WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event - Best and Worst - Reason Why John Cena Tapped Out; Former World Champion Buried

John Cena says goodbye. (Image via WWE.com)
John Cena says goodbye. (Image via WWE.com)

This is it. John Cena has officially retired from WWE. He did so following an interesting show, as Saturday Night's Main Event delivered a host of fun matches and surprises. Not all of them were great, though.

Ad

A lot of the show worked well, while there were also a few glaring issues. But how did Cena's final match hold up compared to the rest of Saturday Night's Main Event, and his Farewell Tour as a whole?

Here is a breakdown of the biggest positives and negatives from Saturday Night's Main Event, featuring John Cena's retirement match.


John Cena's last match opening SNME - Check out Why!

#3. Best: The NXT Stars Show Out

Sol Ruca pays tribute to John Cena. (Image via WWE.com)
Sol Ruca pays tribute to John Cena. (Image via WWE.com)

John Cena's idea to platform NXT's brightest talents on his final show was a genius one. They took that opportunity and looked incredible in the process. We will get to one of them specifically below, but they all showed up.

Ad

Je'Von Evans and TNA's Leon Slater put up an explosive effort against AJ Styles and Dragon Lee. Meanwhile, Sol Ruca earned a monumental victory over Bayley. Their match may have been the best on the entire undercard at Saturday Night's Main Event.


#2. Best/Worst: Say His Name

Joe Hendry showed up. (Image via WWE.com)
Joe Hendry showed up. (Image via WWE.com)

The Miz's segment with Joe Hendry and R-Truth was nothing more than filler. And considering how large the gap between matches was in the first place, it wasn't really necessary.

Ad

The segment didn't mean much, other than tying up a loose end from John Cena's Last Time is Now Tournament. Truth confronted The Miz for scamming his way to a second chance in the tournament, revealing that he took Hendry's spot.

The Scotsman didn't seem too upset that he was screwed; instead, he just smiled all the way. Regardless, this was an inconsequential piece of fun that ensured more NXT presence at Saturday Night's Main Event.

Ad

#1. Worst: Joke's on Drew McIntyre

Cody Rhodes and Oba Femi stood tall. (Image via WWE.com)
Cody Rhodes and Oba Femi stood tall. (Image via WWE.com)

WWE is verging on parody with their treatment of Drew McIntyre. Only he can end up suffering the biggest burial on a show he wasn't advertised for. The fact that he interrupted a potential classic between Cody Rhodes and Oba Femi was bad enough.

Ad

The two champions were having a great match, with Femi holding his own against Rhodes. After McIntyre appeared and attacked The American Nightmare, he had a tense staredown with the NXT Champion. He was then beaten down like a geek following a Cody Cutter and a Chokeslam.

All would be forgiven if Drew McIntyre ends up winning the Undisputed WWE Championship from Cody Rhodes, but we know that isn't going to happen.

Ad

#1. Best: John Cena Gives Up

Gunther has retired John Cena. (Image via WWE.com)
Gunther has retired John Cena. (Image via WWE.com)

This was the perfect farewell. From his legendary entrance and Lilian Garcia's ring introduction, all the way to his emotional goodbye and the locker room emptying, John Cena's final night as a WWE wrestler couldn't have gone much better. Other than maybe a speech at the end.

Ad

The decision for Gunther to tap out Cena has been heavily criticized. WWE fans are calling for Triple H's head as a result, but that's exactly what is supposed to happen. It was the right move. Other than putting over The Ring General as the new legend killer, there was another thing John Cena needed to achieve in his final match.

He needed to prove that this really is the end. Cena tapping out means that was the final bit of fight he had left. There isn't any more gas in the tank, which is why his smile at the end was perfect. He accepted his fate and let go of his past, allowing us to look to the future.

John Cena said that he wanted to leave WWE in a better place than when he came in. That is exactly what he's done, right until the very end.

Read all the hottest WWE news from Sportskeeda by choosing us as your preferred source. Click HERE.

Quick Links

Edited by Divesh Merani
sk promotional banner
Sportskeeda logo
Close menu
WWE
WWE
NBA
NBA
NFL
NFL
MMA
MMA
Tennis
Tennis
NHL
NHL
Golf
Golf
MLB
MLB
Soccer
Soccer
F1
F1
WNBA
WNBA
down arrow icon
More
bell-icon Manage notifications