"They had nobody" - WWE veteran discusses alleged backstage chaos affecting John Cena's heel turn
Former WWE head writer Vince Russo recently spoke about how he felt John Cena's heel turn materialized. The Cenation Leader attacked Cody Rhodes at Elimination Chamber 2025.
The WWE Universe looked in horror as Mr. Hustle Loyalty Respect embraced his dark side and launched a brutal attack on Cody Rhodes. Aided by The Rock and rapper Travis Scott, Cena annihilated the Undisputed WWE Champion, leaving him writhing in pain in the middle of the ring.
During a recent episode of The Brand, Vince Russo pointed out that WWE probably looked at its roster and realized it had nobody Cody Rhodes could go up against at WrestleMania. He explained that The Rock and his writer, Brian Gewirtz, probably intervened just like last year and pulled the trigger on John Cena's heel turn, setting up the marquee matchup for WrestleMania 41.
"They booked Jey Uso and Gunther, which is not a main event by the way. Now, they realize we gotta pull something out of our a*se* that's gotta be really strong. So they looked up and down the roster. Who are they gonna book Cody Rhodes against, bro?" He continued, "They had nobody. Nobody to book Cody against at WrestleMania. Enter the Rock who seems to add two months of a shining light every year. Enter The Rock, enter Gewirtz, and now we're gonna turn John Cena heel." [21:18 - 22:13]
John Cena cut a scathing promo on the WWE Universe
Last Monday Night on RAW, John Cena’s promo revealed years of bottled-up resentment toward WWE fans.
The 16-time World Champion claimed the WWE Universe never truly supported him but only took from him. Cena said he was in a "toxic" relationship with fans and no matter how much he tried to please them, it was never enough.
The Cenation Leader's promo was cut short when Cody Rhodes interrupted him, leading to The American Nightmare criticizing the legend. The two megastars will once again be under the same roof this week as Monday Night RAW rolls into Glasgow, Scotland.
If you use quotes from this article, please credit Russo's The Brand and give an H/T to Sportskeeda for the transcription.
