John Cena Bracket Predictions, Drew McIntyre Fall From Glory, More WWE, AEW Reaction

Even with WWE Survivor Series on the horizon, the next installment of Saturday Night's Main Event on Dec. 13 headlined by John Cena's last match is bound to be a far more anticipated occasion for fans.

Cena's final-ever opponent will be determined in a 16-man tournament featuring familiar faces from Raw, SmackDown and NXT as well as others who don't currently work for WWE starting on the Nov. 10 edition of Raw.

If executed properly, the star-studded competition should inject some much-needed excitement into Raw and SmackDown in the coming weeks and give Cena the grand, celebrated sendoff he deserves.

Drew McIntyre may find himself among those taking part, but it will be difficult to buy into him as a legitimate threat to Cena or anyone at the main event level following his latest loss to Cody Rhodes at SNME.

The Scot has had a subpar 2025 and his horrendous booking hasn't helped changed the perception he's simply incapable of winning the big one at this point. Worse yet, with the damage that's been done, there's no quick fix for his struggling credibility.

From McIntyre's fall from glory to why CM Punk's reign as world heavyweight champion doesn't need to be a long one, these are the top takeaways from the week that was in wrestling.

Early Predictions for John Cena's Last Time Is Now Tournament

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The bracket for John Cena's Last Time Is Now Tournament should be exactly as advertised: A mix of the veteran's former foes and fresh faces he's never mixed it up with before.

The latter should include Gunther, who remains the best bet to win the whole thing and retire Cena at Saturday Night's Main Event next month. Ilja Dragunov could have a real run in the tourney as well as LA Knight, Penta and Dominik Mysterio (who could still face Cena at Survivor Series even if he doesn't advance to the finals).

Sheamus is a longtime rival of Cena's and it would be fitting for him to be among those participating. Additionally, Solo Sikoa holds an unavenged victory over Cena from 2023, and Rusev waged war with The GOAT several times over the United States Championship a decade ago.

The tournament can also be used to further existing storylines, such as the Carmelo Hayes vs. The Miz and Damian Priest vs. Aleister Black feuds.

As for combatants who aren't under contract to the company, the strongest choices from TNA would be Joe Hendry (who has been lobbying hard for a match with Cena all year), Jeff Hardy, Nic Nemeth and Matt Cardona, with Je'Von Evans and Trick Williams being fitting representatives from NXT.

This Would Be the Most Logical Lineup for Men's WarGames

At one point, The Vision potentially teaming up with Brock Lesnar to battle some combination of CM Punk, Roman Reigns, The Usos and LA Knight appeared to be the perfect men's WarGames match for Survivor Series, but Seth Rollins' injury caused those plans to fall apart.

It's not impossible for that match to happen without Rollins involved, but with Punk, The Usos and Knight all having bad blood with each other as of late, it would take a lot longer than four weeks to set that up.

Instead, if WWE insists on keeping WarGames an annual staple at Survivor Series, the nod should go to the Superstars of SmackDown, specifically The MFTs and the group of babyfaces they've been targeting in recent weeks.

The MFTs and The Wyatt Sicks faced off a few times last month, but it's way too early for that feud to be culminating in a WarGames match. Rather, The MFTs having scores to settle with Shinsuke Nakamura, Rey Fenix, The Motor City Machine Guns and Sami Zayn make that the better bout.

It would have worked as a traditional Survivor Series tag team elimination match if WWE didn't ditch the concept in 2022.

Likewise, Survivor Series should see Punk defending his newly-won World Heavyweight Championship and the OG Bloodline progressing their story outside of WarGames.

CM Punk's World Heavyweight Title Reign Doesn't Have to Last Long

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Between CM Punk and Jey Uso, The Best in the World walking away with the vacant World Heavyweight Championship at Saturday Night's Main Event was the much smarter choice. Uso is a compelling character but doesn't work in the world champion scene long-term.

That isn't to say Punk should be heading for a lengthy run, either, but there are more interesting directions for him to go in for the remainder of 2025 and a slew of appealing opponents waiting in the wings to challenge him.

Beyond possible matchups with LA Knight and Gunther, all roads should be leading to Punk defending against Bron Breakker, but not at WrestleMania 42. Although it is a 'Mania-worthy encounter, there's no reason to delay the inevitable.

The Royal Rumble should be where Triple H pulls the trigger on Breakker's first world title win, freeing up Punk to either win the men's Rumble that same night or a No. 1 Contender's Elimination Chamber match the following month in his hometown of Chicago so he set his sights on SmackDown's top titleholder instead.

Roman Reigns is the bigger marquee match for Breakker at WrestleMania in Las Vegas, and beating him on The Grandest Stage of Them All to retain his title would surely cement him as the next big thing in WWE.

Booking the Rest of AEW Women's World Tag Team Title Tournament

The AEW Women's World Tag Team Championship Tournament got off to a strong start on last week's Dynamite when Sisters of Sin knocked off Jamie Hayter and Queen Aminata in an opening-round match.

Mercedes Moné and Athena have no business beating Willow Nightingale and Harley Cameron with The CEO already holding so many titles and being focused on her Full Gear outing against Kris Statlander.

On the other side of the bracket, Toni Storm and Mina Shirakawa are guaranteed to defeat Alex Windsor and Riho, while Megan Bayne and Marina Shafir have the edge over TayJay despite Shafir having to fill in for the injured Penelope Ford.

Sisters of Sin advancing over Nightingale and Cameron before Storm and Riho get past Bayne and Shafir would set up a fun final of Sisters of Sin vs. Storm and Shirakawa.

Sisters of Sin are more of a team than Storm and Shirakawa, but the latter duo are popular enough that them becoming the inaugural AEW women's world tag team champions would give those belts importance and legitimacy from the get-go.

The division has the potential to be a recurring highlight on AEW TV if treated with the proper reverence and effort.

Drew McIntyre's Abysmal Booking Couldn't Come at Worse Time

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After already falling short of unseating Cody Rhodes as undisputed WWE champion at Wrestlepalooza, Drew McIntyre was in a precarious position heading into their rematch at Saturday Night's Main Event.

The Scot again talked a big game beforehand and assured victory, only to lose to The American Nightmare for a second straight time. That's in addition to other losses he's endured this year to Randy Orton, Damian Priest and The Usos.

It's clear WWE strictly sees him as being at a certain level, otherwise he would have won when it has mattered most by now. As a three-time WWE world champion, he has proved he can get the job done, but his abysmal booking recently has reached such a point where he's no longer believable as a world championship challenger.

Even if the idea were to finally have him take the title at Survivor Series, it then becomes a question of whether fans will care. The only way WWE could have kept their feud somewhat engaging post-SNME would have been to put Rhodes back in chase mode for a few months, but The American Nightmare retaining in underwhelming fashion has effectively killed off McIntyre as a credible contender.

The timing couldn't be worse with SmackDown suffering from a lack of must-see storylines at the moment, particularly toward the top of the card.

Rhodes vs. Randy Orton is still something for fans to look forward to eventually, but McIntyre will need either an extended break or a significant overhaul in order to be taken seriously again.

Graham Mirmina, aka Graham "GSM" Matthews, has specialized in sports and entertainment writing since 2010. Visit his website, WrestleRant, and subscribe to his YouTube channel for more wrestling-related content.