WWE Throwback: John Cena's 5 most surprising losses that fans will never forget

John Cena began his WWE retirement tour with Royal Rumble 2025, but the 47-year-old suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of Jey Uso. 

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The legendary professional wrestler John Cena has been one of the legends of WWE over the last two decades. He clinched a joint-record 16World Championship titles while playing a pivotal role in making the WWE one of the most successful and marketable sports entertainment brands in the world. Cena is set to retire from his legendary WWE career at the end of year. 

John Cena began his retirement tour with Royal Rumble 2025. However, the 47-year-old suffered a shocking defeat at the hands of Jey Uso. The unexpected loss left John Cena’s fans in disbelief as Uso managed to secure one of the biggest wins in his career. 

However, there have been several surprising defeats of John Cena in the past in his illustrious WWE career. Let’s take a look at top 5 shocking losses of John Cena that fans will never be able to forget. 

1. WrestleMania24 vs Triple H and Randy Ortan (2008)

John Cena’s loss at WrestleMania 24 in a triple-threat match against Triple H and WWE Champion Randy Orton was shocking. Cena was expected to miss WrestleMania after tearing his pectoral muscle in October 2007. However, Cena made a big surprise by making a stunning return at the Royal Rumble, entering at number 30 and eliminating Triple H to win. Then, John Cena challenged Randy Orton at No Way Out, but the latter got disqualified. Cena later defeated Orton on Raw to earn a spot in Wrestlemania24. In the match, Orton punted Triple H and stole the pin to retain his WWE Championship. This was Cena’s first WrestleMania loss after back-to-back title defenses, despite the fans rallying behind his incredible comeback.

2. Crown Jewel vs Solo Sikoa (2023)

John Cena has faced several members of The Bloodline, including Solo Sikoa. At Crown Jewel 2023, Cena lost to Sikoa in a surprising match. This happened when fans noticed Cena hadn’t won a televised singles match in a long time. During his WWE return, due to the Hollywood writer’s strike, Cena teamed with LA Knight to defeat Sikoa and Jimmy Uso at Fastlane. However, in Riyadh, Sikoa dominated Cena with multiple Samoan Spikes. Fans expected Cena to win, especially in Saudi Arabia, where nostalgia acts are popular. Since then, Cena has wrestled in tag matches and the Royal Rumble. He is now set for another multi-man match at Elimination Chamber.

3. WrestleMania39 vs Austin Theory (2023) 

At WrestleMania 39, John Cena suffered a surprising loss to Austin Theory in the opening match of Night 1 for the United States Championship, a title Cena helped elevate in his prime. The feud began on social media and escalated when Theory interrupted Cena’s 20-year WWE anniversary in June 2022. Cena returned in March 2023, initially rejecting Theory’s challenge but later accepting it in front of his Boston hometown crowd. Despite expectations for a strong start to WrestleMania, Theory retained his title after a low blow and A-Town Down. This marked Cena’s sixth WrestleMania loss, following his Firefly Funhouse defeat against Bray Wyatt the previous year.

4. Over The Limit vs John Laurinaitis (2012) 

In 2012, John Laurinaitis, the on-screen GM of WWE Raw and leader of "People Power," feuded with John Cena after siding with Brock Lesnar in his attack on Cena post-WrestleMania 28. Laurinaitis later named himself as Cena’s opponent at Over The Limit in a No Disqualification match, with a stipulation that interference would result in termination, and Laurinaitis himself would be fired if he lost. In a shocking twist, the recently fired Big Show interfered, knocking out Cena with a WMD, allowing Laurinaitis to win. As one of WWE’s top heels, Laurinaitis escaping punishment was unexpected, making him even more despised by fans.

5. Elimination Chamber vs Kevin Owens (2015) 

Kevin Owens’ WWE main roster debut remains one of John Cena’s most shocking losses, as ranked by WWE. Owens, the reigning NXT Champion, answered Cena’s U.S. Championship Open Challenge on Raw but opted for an attack instead of a match, vowing to fight on his terms. At Elimination Chamber, the two clashed in a hard-hitting bout, trading finishers. Owens taunted Cena, even hitting an Attitude Adjustment of his own. A second pop-up powerbomb sealed Owens’ victory, stunning the crowd. Grabbing the mic, Owens declared, “Cena’s time is up, my time is now.” WWE later called it a career-making win and one of the hardest-hitting fights in history.