John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar: WWE Can't Agree On Who Should Win... (WWE News)

WWE chiefs are reporting split on who should win the bumper Cena vs. Lesnar PLE match.

WWE SummerSlam 2025 Brock Lesnar John Cena
WWE.com

A bumper match pitting John Cena vs. Brock Lesnar looks likely to headline WWE's mysterious 20 September PLE that'll air on the same day as AEW's All Out pay-per-view, according to The Wrestling Observer's Bryan Alvarez. Further, Alvarez has reported that this September show could air on ESPN ahead of WWE shifting all PLEs to the platform in 2026.

The company's top brass cannot, however, agree on who should go over in the bout.

Bodyslam.net say there are split opinions behind the curtain about exactly who should win: Cena or the returning Lesnar. Some believe that John should triumph after restoring his babyface status (following a heel run Cena himself has bashed) mid-retirement run. Meanwhile, others reckon it'd be a shame to squander Brock's comeback by having him stare at the lights on 20 September.

Advertisement

Lesnar recently returned from a 2-year hiatus. That downtime wasn't through choice. He was named in the ongoing Janel Grant lawsuit against Vince McMahon, WWE and others, and there's been no change to that; WWE's legal team did clear Brock to make a shock return at SummerSlam 2025 shortly before the weekender though.

There, he targeted Cena following JC's loss to Cody Rhodes in Sunday night's main event. There were conflicting reports afterwards about whether or not John had requested one more match with Lesnar before calling it a career.

Advertisement

Initially, it looked likely that Cena vs. Brock could take place at Crown Jewel or Survivor Series, but it seems it'll be used as the dangling carrot to sell September's as-yet-unnamed PLE instead.

Advertisement
Contributor

Lifelong wrestling, video game, music and sports obsessive who has been writing about his passions since childhood. Jamie started writing for WhatCulture in 2013, and has contributed thousands of articles and YouTube videos since then. He cut his teeth penning published pieces for top UK and European wrestling read Fighting Spirit Magazine (FSM), and also has extensive experience working within the wrestling biz as a manager and commentator for promotions like ICW on WWE Network and WCPW/Defiant since 2010. Further, Jamie also hosted the old Ministry Of Slam podcast, and has interviewed everyone from Steve Austin and Shawn Michaels to Bret Hart and Trish Stratus.