Earlier today WWE revealed that John Cena will be in action at Crown Jewel against The Bloodline’s Solo Sikoa, but the two superstars couldn’t help but collide on tonight’s SmackDown. Cena came to the ring and delivered a somewhat somber promo about what this match means to him, saying “You can’t ignore the numbers” and recognizing he hasn’t won a singles match in quite some time. He vowed to change that though and called his shot, and that brought out Paul Heyman. Heyman commended Cena on his abilities with a microphone, calling his ability to communicate with the WWE Universe his greatest weapon, but then added that Sikoa is going to take that weapon from him. Sikoa tried to make that happen even sooner, leaving Cena reeling on the mat.
“We are one week away from Crown Jewel and there is a special energy in this building tonight,” Cena said. “There is a special excitement in this building tonight.” Cena paused for a minute as the Cena chants started. “For me tonight, the energy is a little different. It is special, but for me tonight the energy is serious. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve had a lot of serious moments in my career, but it hasn’t been this serious since 20 years ago when the WWE wanted to fire me.”
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“I think about that time and what did we do. We dug in deep, and for over 20 years we have shared this. For over 20 years each and every night, I’ve tried to give you my heart and my soul, and in return, you give me the noise. You’ve given me your support, and most importantly, you’ve given me your respect,” Cena said.
The reason that Crown Jewel is so serious to me is because for the first time in 20 years, I’m in jeopardy of losing your support,” Cena said. “For the first time in 20 years, I feel like I’m in jeopardy of losing your respect.” Chants of you still got it hit, and Cena said, “I really do appreciate that, I do. Thank you.” The crowd started chanting again and you could tell it hit Cena. “Thank you. Thank you. But we can’t ignore the math, okay.”
Cena then said this match is not just a must-see, but a must-win. “It’s a must-see. But it’s not just a must-see. It’s a must-win. I know that your respect is earned, and I also know it takes guts to stand in this ring and promise a victory, but the time has come to dig deep,” Cena said. “The time has come to knuckle up. The time has come to deliver!”
Paul Heyman then came out and addressed the crowd to a ringing of boos. Heyman said he was out here “with no hustle” or loyalty. “I assure you, with respect.” When the crowd said “You suck”, Heyman said his actions in the past meant he deserved that, but not tonight. Heyman said, “We are sold out tonight in Milwaukee. Thank you for the house. Thank you for 21 years of sold-out arenas based on the name John Cena.”
“I raised my kids wanting them to be more like you than me,” Heyman said. “Then SummerSlam came and Roman Reigns proved that you’re not the best of all time in the ring anymore. But that’s okay, because as long as you can pick up a microphone and speak into it, and this is coming from me, you are the best at communication in the history of WWE. You have a bond with them that I can never ever have, because you can talk like no one on this planet can talk. What a future you could have just talking. John, you could have been me. Until you pissed off the Bloodline.”
“And now the order has come down from the top, the very top, Roman Reigns. It’s not enough for him to spear you. It’s not enough for Jimmy Uso to hit you from the top rope and crack your sternum. You’ve come back from that. But Solo, Solo hits you with that spike and you can’t talk anymore John. The greatest weapon that you had, the ability to communicate, taken away from you. What makes you so dangerous, taken away from you. Solo takes that away from you, and the Bloodline takes you away from your WWE Universe,” Heyman said.
“You come out here with your heart and say I must win. I must I must I must. And in the one match in your career that you must win, you can’t win,” Heyman said. “And John Cena, that’s not a prediction. That’s a spoiler.” Sikoa then came running up and attacked Cena from behind, knocking him to the mat. Sikoa then lifted Cena and hit the Spinning Solo to boos from the crowd. Cena was back up though, and Sikoa hit the Samoan Spike, knocking him down to the mat again as Cena grabbed his throat.
