How John Cena's Injury Impacts WWE Royal Rumble 2016 and Beyond

John Cena announced on Twitter on Wednesday that he would be undergoing shoulder surgery that would keep him out of action as WWE heads into the 2016 edition of the Royal Rumble:

Cena’s injury is a devastating blow to a WWE roster that is already thin due to major injuries to top stars such as Seth Rollins, Daniel Bryan, Randy Orton and others. Cena's shoulder surgery doesn’t impact just the Royal Rumble, though, as it will also be a major long-term blow during the build to WrestleMania 32.

According to a report from Mike Johnson of PWInsider.com, Cena’s injury—possibly a torn rotator cuff—and recovery timetable could force him to miss WWE’s biggest event. With the company looking to sell out AT&T Stadium for WrestleMania 32 and set an attendance record, this could be a massive blow to the anticipation surrounding the annual show.

From a short-term perspective, Cena was a legitimate contender to win at this year’s Royal Rumble. Wrestling fans are waiting for the 15-time champion to finally earn another world title and match Ric Flair’s record of 16, and doing it in a Battle Royal would have been a distinct possibility.

Not only does Cena’s injury remove one of the biggest fan favorites in wrestling history from television each week, but it also takes one of the top stars in the sport out of the Royal Rumble match itself, weakening what could be a lackluster group of entrants without him.

Even if Cena wasn’t going to win the championship, the entire WWE Universe could see the company giving him the belt in a surprise twist, which would have made him a major focus of the bout. Now, WWE Creative will have to overcompensate to satisfy the fans.

In the long term, this hurts WWE from a marketing perspective the most. Cena is a public relations blessing for the company, and dealing with shoulder surgery and a proper recovery will keep him off the television and media circuits.

The Royal Rumble match with the WWE World Heavyweight Championship on the line is enough to sell the event, but Cena was going to be a cornerstone of the entire build to WrestleMania 32. Regardless of who he was going to square off against in March, Cena was going to appear on all the morning shows and represent the company in all of the most important moments.

Cena will still be able to do media appearances for WWE, but without a marquee match of his own to promote, he will fail to make the same impact he would have if he were wrestling. If the surgery keeps him off the Road to WrestleMania 32 card, the company will need to make major changes to compensate for the loss.

On the other hand, the reports about Cena missing WrestleMania were not immediately confirmed by WWE, and it’s not out of the realm of possibility that the notoriously quick healer makes a speedy recovery. This is the same man who came back much earlier than expected in 2007 from a torn pectoral muscle to win the Royal Rumble.

While it’s unclear how long Cena will be on the shelf following shoulder surgery, losing a bona fide draw at this time of year is an undeniable blow to WWE as the Road to WrestleMania approaches.

How the company responds to Cena’s injury could make or break the build to WrestleMania 32.

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