Gunther is a step closer to turning rumor into reality.
“The Ring General” defeated Carmelo Hayes on Raw to advance in the “Last Time is Now Tournament,” which will determine John Cena’s final opponent
at Saturday Night’s Main Event on Dec. 13.
With Cena’s career winding down, rumors suggested that WWE had already picked Gunther to face Cena in his last match before the tournament was announced. Then, something unexpected happened on Monday night.
Solo Sikoa also advanced in the tournament after his opponent, Penta, suffered a legitimate injury. WWE’s medical staff deemed Penta unfit to continue, and Sikoa was declared the winner by stoppage.
While the plan to get to Cena vs. Gunther seems to be moving full steam ahead, WWE has a chance to alter its script — one that could provide a feel-good moment as Cena says goodbye.
The Problem With Gunther
Before Raw on Monday, Cageside Seats writer Kyle Decker gave his reasoning for why Gunther vs. Cena didn’t need to happen, saying:
“I don’t think (Gunther) needs to be bestowed another accolade. He’s the longest-reigning Intercontinental Champion. He’s had two world title reigns. He’s retired Goldberg. I get they are building him to be a very decorated champion. But at this point, the win over Cena isn’t going to supply a major benefit.”
Without knowing WWE’s plans for Gunther, it’s hard to see, as Decker noted, how a win over Cena would elevate him even further. But beyond pushes and accolades, there’s an even bigger issue with positioning Gunther as Cena’s final opponent.
Since coming to the main roster, Gunther has been a destroyer, a nightmare for adversaries. For fans, he is something much worse: he is a thief of joy. Crowds have left shows disappointed after he blistered, battered, and beat favorites like Sami Zayn and Chad Gable.
Just as Gunther left fans deflated, Cena’s ill-fated heel turn earlier this year complicated his farewell, giving fans little to cheer for.
In February, Cena betrayed Cody Rhodes and sided with The Rock, Rhodes’ rival. Shortly after, The Rock abandoned the storyline, feeling he was no longer needed after helping to set Cena’s turn in motion. This sequence led to a poorly received match between Cena and Rhodes, billed as Cena’s final WrestleMania match.
Though his heel run was brief, it robbed many of the chance to support the retiring icon in his final moments wholeheartedly. Now, in his last match, he might have to go through a buzzsaw.
It’s one thing for Cena to lose and put someone over on his way out. But it’s another to see him get diced to pieces in the process. In a year that took away so many potential feel-good moments, having Cena get run over by the Austrian tank is far from a fitting farewell.
Enter, Solo Sikoa
The winner of the match between Solo Sikoa and Penta would move on to face Gunther in the tournament. It stands to reason that the plan was for Penta, the babyface, to advance to face the heel, Gunther, though writer Dave Meltzer said otherwise.
Either way, WWE has an intriguing showdown between two main event villains, one of whom has a history with the 17-time world champion.
At Crown Jewel in 2023, Sikoa blasted Cena with 11 Samoan Spikes en route to a dominant victory over the legend. It was a sad ending, but one that set Sikoa up for a big 2024, where he feuded with Cody Rhodes and Roman Reigns.
Now that Sikoa is an established act, losses don’t hurt him. This year, he has lost 26 out of 36 matches. But in moments when his status was in jeopardy, WWE always found a way to keep Sikoa credible.
His biggest win of the year came against Jacob Fatu to win the United States Title. He followed that up with a dubious victory in their rematch at SummerSlam. In between, he beat his brother Jimmy Uso to maintain his dominance as champion.
Against Cena, he’s a formidable opponent who poses a viable threat based on their history. Yet, Sikoa can, and should, lose to Cena as it won’t hurt his credibility and allows Cena to overcome a previous obstacle.
Most importantly, it gives fans a storybook ending for their hero, a proper send-off after a year that began with promise but was ruined by a regrettable heel turn.
