John Cena wasn’t originally supposed to face AJ Styles at WWE Crown Jewel.
The Cenation Leader wrote the final chapter of his legendary rivalry with the Phenomenal One in Australia on October 11, 2025. The match ended up stealing the show and gave the WWE Universe one less reason to complain about Cena’s retirement tour.
However, as John Cena revealed on the No-Contest Wrestling Podcast, WWE initially had different plans for him at Crown Jewel, with Drew McIntyre originally pitched to face him at the Premium Live Event in Perth.
“I try to plan it as a year of creative experiences, but you have to be able to pivot. ‘You don’t have Rock, you don’t have Travis [Scott]. We’re going to do this and this.’ AJ was supposed to be Drew [McIntyre],” Cena said.
Why did WWE switch from Drew McIntyre to AJ Styles for John Cena?
According to Cena, the overwhelmingly negative reaction to his match with Brock Lesnar at WWE WrestlePalooza prompted the company to pivot and replace McIntyre with AJ Styles at Crown Jewel.
“We pivoted. You want to have a feel-good moment because they were listening to the data points. They listen to you guys. They do. It’s real. You have the Brock moment; people are pied off. You have the AJ moment, and things are great.
“You have this three-appearance run with Dom, which is fun. You know, hometown boy wins in his hometown, and then you go to San Diego; he gets his payback, but Liv comes back. We involve every f*cking person we possibly can. Like, fun match! Then, the Ring General,” John Cena said. [H/T 411mania.com]
AJ Styles wrestled his final WWE match against Gunther at Royal Rumble 2026. Earlier this week, WWE announced that the February 23 episode of RAW will be dedicated to the Phenomenal One in his hometown of Georgia.
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