Randy Orton Trolls John Cena over Final Raw, WWE Rumors on Zack Ryder and Mike Santana
Bleacher Report catches you up on the latest news from the WWE Universe.
Orton Casts Doubt on Cena's Raw Farewell
WWE is advertising Monday's edition of Raw at Madison Square Garden as the final time John Cena will wrestle on its flagship show. One of his biggest rivals isn't so sure that's going to be the case.
Randy Orton responded to Cena's message to the WWE Universe with the perfect GIF:
Wrestling fans know the bait-and-switch is a common tactic by promoters. Countless legends have "retired," only to step back into the ring again. Ttle matches either didn't happen or provided an unsatisfactory conclusion that was intended to build toward a return bout.
In the case of Cena, however, he and WWE have written into the storyline how he has a finite set of dates for his farewell tour. His appearance Monday night is just one of three remaining. He's scheduled to wrestle at Survivor Series: WarGames and then Saturday Night's Main Event on Dec. 13.
Granted, Orton is probably correct in that the 17-time world champion won't be gone from Raw forever. Cena is a natural candidate to return whenever WWE finds a reason to celebrate past stars.
Cardona Not Signed to WWE Despite SmackDown Return
Cena hyped up The Last Time Is Now Tournament by saying wrestlers who aren't signed with WWE could show up. That's what happened Friday as Zack Ryder had his first WWE match since 2020, losing to LA Knight.
It appears this was just a one-off, with Ryder confirming to Fightful's Sean Ross Sapp he hasn't signed a long-term contract with his old employer.
The 40-year-old also gave a promo backstage, laying out how badly he wanted to wrestle for WWE and what he achieved on the indy circuit during his hiatus. He said his match with Knight might be a "one-time shot" while entertaining the possibility he could be called back for a full-time role.
There's no question Ryder could seamlessly fit back into the WWE roster. He's a natural heel who could form a great tandem with wife Chelsea Green.
It's equally easy to see Ryder coming back and getting lost in the mid-card shuffle. The early momentum from his return dissipates and he becomes just another talent largely treading water.
This might be a case where leaving fans wanting more is the best call.
Is Santana Heading to WWE?
Mike Santana wound up arriving in time for the main event of TNA's Turning Point show. He teamed up with Steve Maclin to beat Frankie Kazarian and Nic Nemeth.
Whether Santana would show up was a running subplot throughout the night.
After the show ended, he gave an impassioned promo in which he said "definitely didn't want to be here today." However, he turned it around and seemingly reaffirmed his commitment to TNA and its fans.
People were left asking questions after Santana's shocking loss to Kazarian, which ended his TNA title run after a little more than a month. He then made himself scarce leading up to Turning Point.
PWInsider Elite's Mike Johnson (via Steve Carrier of Ringside News) initially reported this drama might all be part of a bigger storyline to write the 34-year-old off TNA television ahead of a defection to NXT.
This does appear to be a carefully orchestrated plan by TNA, only one intended to swerve fans with Santana going nowhere for the time being.
