Why Cody Rhodes Hated WWE Match Against John Cena

Cody Rhodes and John Cena fought each other twice in 2025, with the Undisputed WWE Championship on the line in both bouts.

The first match took place at WrestleMania 41, where Rhodes walked in as the Undisputed Champion and defended the title against a heel Cena. With a little help from rapper Travis Scott, Big Match John won the title to become The Never Seen 17 in WWE.

Months later, Rhodes challenged Cena, who turned babyface before their match, for a SummerSlam Street Fight match and regained the title.

Cody Rhodes Wanted His WrestleMania 41 Encounter With John Cena To Do “Far Better”

Speaking about his WrestleMania 41 match against John Cena during episode five of WWE: Unreal season 2, Cody Rhodes shared that he didn’t like it because it could have been “far better.”

“I didn’t like the end result, not in terms of finish, in terms of execution. I think it was beneath what we can do. I need far better. Not just I need far better, WWE needs far better,” he said.

Like Cody, the WWE Universe was also upset with Rhodes vs Cena at WrestleMania 41. Fans felt the match felt slow, clunky, and poorly paced, with a flat ending.

The finish relied heavily on rapper Travis Scott interfering out of nowhere to help Cena win, which many felt was unearned and killed the special feel of a 17-time champion moment.

Moreover, fans expected The Rock to be involved, but he never showed up. The whole main event came across as a half‑baked plan that didn’t live up to the huge hype, leaving fans disappointed that such a big match between two icons ended so flat.

While Rhodes vs Cena at Mania 41 didn’t live up to the expectations, fans thoroughly enjoyed their SummerSlam clash. Dave Meltzer rated it as the best match of SummerSlam 2025, giving it five stars.

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