John Cena has already given his thoughts on getting his second five-star rated match in WWE.
Cena impressed in his SummerSlam match with Rhodes, which made up for the poorly received match the pair had at WrestleMania 41.
The two men wrestled for nearly 40 minutes at SummerSlam, which was Cena’s longest WWE match since 2009.
Cena vs Rhodes received five-stars from the Wrestling Observer’s Dave Meltzer, just the 17-time champion’s second WWE match to do so.
However, Cena will likely be nonplussed about his latest accolade as he’s already explained why star ratings mean little to him.
John Cena said he prefers crowd reaction to star ratings back in 2024
Cena was asked about his thoughts on Meltzer’s star ratings during an interview with The 92nd Street in 2024.
Meltzer’s star ratings have become incredibly popular with fans, but Cena explained why they don’t matter to him.
“I am much more concerned when I perform for WWE in how the audience as a whole feels about my performance rather than one individual trying to grade me in a level of stars,” said Cena about Meltzer’s ratings.
“Not that it doesn’t matter, because that is a great way for those to try and get equity and try to get noticed,” added Cena.
“It’s a great ranking system and I do appreciate it. I’m not knocking critics. I’m just saying my process is to make sure that everyone who paid a ticket had a great night.”
“And if that gets me a zero-star match, I still know in my heart of hearts that I entertained my audience that night,” concluded Cena.
Cena’s only other five-star match came against CM Punk at Money in the Bank in 2011.
How many matches has John Cena got left in WWE?
Cena has just 10 appearances left in WWE before he laces up his boots for the final time in December 2025.
That includes three WWE PLEs at Clash in Paris, Survivor Series, and Crown Jewel: Australia, as well as his reported last date at Saturday Night’s Main Event in December.
Cena will face Logan Paul at Clash in Paris, and he’s expected to face Brock Lesnar after the star’s return at SummerSlam.
The star’s other appearances are at WWE SmackDown or Raw shows, which could also result in off-the-cuff matches.
Cena has wrestled two SmackDown matches in 2025, against Paul and Drew McIntyre alongside Rhodes and against R-Truth in a singles match.
The 17-time champion is also expected to face Gunther in his final WWE match.