It’s over.
No, I’m not talking about John Cena’s career, which ended on Saturday Night’s Main Event.
I’m talking about Paul Levesque’s redemption tour.
The redemption tour that began in 2012 with the rebranding of NXT, from a weird, partially kayfabed game show to WWE’s version of a superindie, capturing the attention of the smart fans repeatedly disillusioned with what Vince McMahon’s main roster product was giving them.
The redemption tour that saw Paul Levesque’s online persona go from universally reviled anchor on many promising stars in the mid-2000s to the hero that would save the company once Vince McMahon was out of the picture.
Getting fruit baskets sent to him for great shows, signing anyone who was on a PWG DVD, filling basketball arenas with what he portrayed as HIS version of pro wrestling.
Paul Levesque convinced a generation of pro wrestling fans that once he took over, he would usher in a new era of the WWE. One where the previously concrete ceilings were removed, and stars of any look could reach the top of the card. Gone would be the stodgy, lame WWE house style, replaced with a more contemporary style that brought excitement and energy to WWE cards.
The day came.
On July 22, 2022, a random Friday, Vince McMahon tweeted out his retirement. The boogeyman was gone, and Paul Levesque was named Head of WWE Creative soon after. The happy days were here, and the change would come.
For a while, it felt real.
Cody Rhodes, who returned to the company after Vince McMahon sold him on a main event run, was the new hot star.
Roman Reigns and The Bloodline, a story that started under McMahon’s direction, captured the imagination of the WWE Universe.
CM Punk, who came back to wrestling in AEW, returned to WWE and brought his fervent fans with him.
WrestleMania 40 was the culmination of the multi-year arc of Rhodes and Reigns, and the peak of WWE’s current surge of popularity.
For a moment, Levesque had everything he wanted.
For a moment, he had his redemption.
Fast forward twelve months, and signs were showing that the moment had passed. A dismal WrestleMania 41 opened people’s eyes to the flaws in Levesque’s booking style. A stream of failed pushes littered the card, whether it be the failed elevations of names like Damian Priest, LA Knight, and Jey Uso, the stalled-out heel turn of the New Day, and the critical and box office bomb that was going with Seth Rollins as a top-line star in 2025. Fresh new stars like Penta, Rey Fenix, and Bron Breakker lost to meme acts like El Grande Americano and Dominik Mysterio. Worst of all, John Cena’s record-breaking 17th World Title reign came about after interference from a rapper and a nutshot.
The shock and interest from Cena’s heel turn quickly faded away, as it was abundantly clear that WWE had no real ideas for John Cena as a heel. Cena himself admitted that the turn only happened for shock value and a viral moment.
The company couldn’t follow up on the moment, leading to WWE tucking tail and admitting defeat, having Cena randomly decide to turn back babyface the night before SummerSlam and the blowoff to the Cody Rhodes feud.
That brings us to this night.
December 13th, 2025, nearly eighteen months after Cena first announced his retirement tour, and eleven months after Cena’s first appearance on the retirement tour. And after Cena tapped out to Gunther to the shock of a sold-out Capital One Arena, Paul Levesque led the locker room out to the ring. But this time, he wasn’t showered with praise and fruit baskets.
This time, Levesque was booed.
Repeatedly.
He was told that he fucked up. He was met on the official, insulated WWE post-show with AEW chants from the fans surrounding the stage. The people who were bowing to him last year were chanting “WE WANT VINCE” at the end of this show.
The goodwill he worked so hard to earn is gone.
The love and adulation he received (and openly welcomed at the start of every major show) for saving the company from Vince McMahon has been replaced with people calling for his job.
The redemption he thought he earned is gone. All that remains is an aging roster of main eventers, fresh names that he refuses to truly put over the top, and a fanbase growing more disillusioned with every big show.
Heavy is the head that wears the crown.
Suit’s full review of WWE’s Saturday Nights Main Event from December 13 can be found here: https://www.voicesofwrestling.com/2025/12/14/wwe-saturday-nights-main-event-42-john-cenas-final-match-december-13-results-review/
WWE Saturday Night’s Main Event #42 – John Cena’s Final Match (December 13) Results & Review
