After being defeated by AJ Styles at WWE Summerslam , John Cena disappeared from WWE television until returning last week. In his brief absence from SmackDown , Styles established himself as “the new face that runs the place,” and defeated Dean Ambrose at WWE Backlash to become the WWE World Champion.
John Cena has been working a limited schedule since returning earlier this year, which has given others the opportunity to become bigger stars on WWE television. Ambrose and Styles have been running SmackDown over the past few weeks because Cena was in China helping WWE build that relationship overseas . John Cena is back on SmackDown and he’s asserted himself right into the WWE title scene for WWE No Mercy .
In a few weeks at WWE No Mercy, AJ Styles will defend the WWE Championship against both John Cena and Dean Ambrose in a triple threat match. The match quality is going to be off the charts, but the match will be especially important for John Cena because it’s most likely going to be his last for quite some time.
It was reported and well known before WWE Summerslam that John Cena would be taking some time off from WWE television to film the second season of American Grit for the FOX Network. In fact, WWE officials have had plenty of time to prepare for Cena’s absence this fall from WWE programming. There was some speculation about WWE’s creative plans for John Cena, but those appear to have been worked out too.
According to a new report , Cena will be leaving to film American Grit after WWE No Mercy in October, and his last scheduled appearance is for the following SmackDown after the PPV. He’ll likely be written off of WWE television during that edition of SmackDown , but his return date is unknown. While Cena will be busy filming through most of December, he’s still being advertised for WWE Survivor Series in November.
There is some speculation that he’ll be appearing at the PPV despite being absent from WWE television for the better part of two months. The card is always subject to change, so Cena may not be featured on the PPV. The expectation is the feud with AJ Styles will continue whenever he returns , but the rumors of a feud with The Undertaker have begun to surround Cena the same way they did last year before his injury.
Before the WWE Universe can concern themselves with what John Cena will be doing at the end of 2016 or Wrestlemania 33 in Orlando, Cena still has the opportunity to win his 16th WWE World Championship at WWE No Mercy before his hiatus begins, which he is not taking lightly.
Cena has made it clear that his only goal heading into the triple threat match is to reclaim the WWE title, but what is the point of putting the championship back on him and taking it away from Styles if he’s going to be gone for the next two months? Not to mention, the issues it would cause for WWE in the long term.
The problem with Cena winning his 16th world title is that as historic as it is to tie Ric Flair’s record, it is all for naught unless he breaks it before hanging up his boots. In many ways, breaking Flair’s record is the last thing Cena has to accomplish before his days in the ring finally come to an end. That story could begin as early as WWE No Mercy , which makes Ambrose vs. Cena vs. Styles must see for the WWE Universe.
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