After hosting WrestleMania 42, John Cena is seemingly set to make an appearance at Backlash on May in Tampa, Florida.
The official website of the Benchmark International Arena, the venue for Backlash, is advertising Cena’s return.
“WWE RETURNS TAMPA WITH THE FIRST PREMIUM LIVE EVENT AFTER WRESTLEMANIA 42! JOHN CENA RETURNS TO TAMPA AT BACKLASH!” the advertisement read.
Cena is a resident of Tampa for a long time, so he’s not going to travel far for Backlash. It will also be Cena’s first event in the city since Saturday Night’s Main Event on May 24, 2025.
The 17-time WWE World Champion defeated R-Truth at the event held inside Yuengling Center as part of his year-long farewell tour last year.
John Cena Hosted WrestleMania 42
GettyJohn Cena (R) lifts the hand of Danhausen after thwarting The Miz and Kit Wilson on Night 2 of WrestleMania 42 at Allegiant Stadium on April 19, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
After a 24-year pro wrestling career, John Cena officially retired on December 13 at Saturday Night’s Main Event in Washington, D.C. He lost to Gunther via submission, tapping out for the first time in more than 20 years.
Cena remained in WWE as an ambassador after his retirement. He returned to serve as host of WrestleMania 42 last month. He hyped up fans inside the Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas in both nights.
In addition to his hosting duties, Cena also announced the attendance for both nights of WrestleMania.
As for segments, Cena was in the ring when Bianca Belair announced that she’s pregnant with her first child with husband Montez Ford in Night 1.
In Night 2, Cena was confronted by The Miz and Kit Wilson for being a toxic host. Danhausen intervened, along with several miniature versions of himself, attacking Miz and Wilson.
John Cena Adjusting to Retirement
GettyJohn Cena makes his entrance before the match against Cody Rhodes during the WWE 2025 SummerSlam at MetLife Stadium on August 03, 2025 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Speaking to The Undertaker and Michelle McCool in a special live episode of the Six Feet Under podcast during WrestleMania week, John Cena opened up about adjusting to the life of retirement.
“Truth be told, I kind of had a while to work up to it,” Cena said. This was something I thought about and something I thought about early in my career. I literally promised the fans that when I felt a step slower, I was out. So not only did I make that promise early, but the whole planning of the retirement tour took three years.”
He added, “The concept happened three years before execution. I pitched WWE about close to 18 to 20 months out, and then we announced it in Toronto and then we started in January in Intuit Dome. So I’ve adjusted, cause I’ve had close to four years to think about what’s going on.”
However, Cena remains pretty busy with his acting career. He just doesn’t have to stress himself out or get his body beat up like when he was still an active in-ring performer in WWE.
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