John Cena's shocking heel turn is, without question, the biggest wrestling headline of 2025. The longtime hero of the WWE is finally playing the bad guy, and he will headline WrestleMania 41 against Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed Championship. As people wonder if Cena's big persona shift will last in upcoming WWE events beyond Las Vegas, Hulk Hogan is making a bold prediction about how big this showdown will go down.
Just a couple of months after being booed out of a Monday Night Raw airing, Hogan is still staying plugged into what's happening in the WWE. He spoke to the Undisputed Substack about Cena's recent heel turn, which some have equated to his own heel turn and formation of the nWo. The Hulkster was high on Cena's big coming out party as a bad guy, and had some kind words for Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson as well:
It’s one of the best heel turns I’ve seen in a long, long time. All the major players were involved. I can’t say enough about The Rock, too–he was incredible. They did it right, I’ll tell you that.
It seems like Hulk Hogan enjoyed John Cena's heel turn far more than Kendrick Lamar's halftime performance, though I'm still not entirely sure what he meant by those comments about the latter. Nevertheless, he's thrilled to see The Champ turning rogue and The Rock playing puppet master and running the WWE from the shadows.
It's high praise from the superstar who, before this, had one of the most shocking heel turns in WWE history. Now, it's time to pass the torch, and it seems Hogan thinks Cena could do something really special with his final run in the WWE, provided he's available to see it through:
It’s going to work as long as John wants to stay plugged in. I don’t know his schedule or how many days he’ll work, but he definitely has everyone’s attention. Plus, The Rock is involved, too. This could heat up more than anyone is expecting. It could be so hot that it’s crazy, which will lead to a WrestleMania match you’ll never forget.
I think many wrestling fans would agree with Hulk Hogan's assessment, since no one really saw this coming. In fact, CinemaBlend speculated that Cody Rhodes would turn heel on Cena because the WWE veteran has repeatedly stated over the years that he would never become a villain because of what his character means to so many people.
While I would wager that few fans take wrestlers at their word when making such claims, I don't think anyone believed this, specifically, would happen. John Cena was the golden boy of the WWE for decades, so turning heel in what he says will be his final year in the company was quite a twist. It was thrilling enough for many that Cena will get a chance to break the record for most overall titles at WrestleMania 41; turning him heel is just icing on the cake.
I know I'll be seated and watching with my Peacock Premium subscription when WrestleMania 41 kicks off in Las Vegas on April 19th and 20th. While I originally thought there was a good chance of Cody Rhodes retaining at the big event and continuing his title run, I'm sure The Rock has plans to ensure Cena gets that championship and that he gets the "soul" of the top guy in the WWE.
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