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It’s no secret that John Cena has been spending more and more time away from WWE in recent years. The guy is busy producing and starring in reality shows, breaking out in acclaimed movies, and hosting pretty much everything there is to host on television.
All of this has led to Cena being tarred with the “part-timer” brush, and leading many to speculate or assume he is winding down his days as a full-time wrestler. During an appearance on SportsCenter last week, Cena said that not only is he not thinking about retirement, he’s actually extra motivated now, specifically because people are ready to say this is the end stage of his career.
“[I am so proud that] I am still able to do this after 16 championships and I always say that my greatest match is my next one. And thank you very much for recognizing the accolade. That just means that I’ve been able to do this for a really long time. I don’t think it’s any secret to anybody, it’s what I love to do the most and I am far from over. Like another 39-year-old that’s in the sports arena, I am far from retiring, I feel like I am at my physical best.
“[AJ Styles has brought out the best in me] by pushing the envelope, by speaking his mind, by challenging me. It’s no secret, I am getting a bit older. And just as AJ went through a long struggle to be a member of the WWE Universe, there’s a lot of folks in the WWE say that maybe I’m past my prime and I’ve lost a step and that creates a giant chip on this here shoulder, and I want to showcase to everyone watching that I am still at my best.”
Cena went on to say that he apologized to Styles for what he had said to them leading up to their match at Royal Rumble, and to tell him after their match that he’d been wrong. John Cena: not retiring, and always happy to admit he’s wrong, as long as he has just recently won a championship from you.
