In a matchup which paid tribute to numerous wrestling stars along the way, John Cena went 27 minutes to score a pinfall victory over rival AJ Styles.
Cena connected with his Attitude Adjustment finisher to put away Styles at WWE Crown Jewel inside the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia, this Saturday.
Cena, who it was mentioned on the broadcast has just four appearances left as part of his 2025 retirement tour, channelled countless past rivals during his near 30-minute battle against Styles, hitting the iconic finishers of many he has shared the ring with before.
The Skull Crushing Finale (The Miz), Walls of Jericho (Chris Jericho), draping DDT and RKO (Randy Orton), Tombstone Pilderiver (The Undertaker), and an attempted 619 (Rey Mysterio) were all seen during the lengthy singles match. Styles also scored a Scorpion Death Drop and a Sweet Chin Music as well.
It was a successful Tombstone Piledriver from Cena, which led to the AA finisher at the end of the match. The bout took place in front of a red-hot Perth crowd, a solid fraction of whom were seen sporting bright yellow Cena shirts.
Cena and Styles entered this weekend tied 2-2 in past broadcast singles matchups. They faced off twice during Styles’ first year on the roster, with the then-WWE newcomer scoring a win over Cena at Money in the Bank and Summerslam in 2016.
In 2017, Cena defended his WWE Championship over Styles at the Royal Rumble. A year later, he would pick up another singles win over him on Smackdown, tying things up between them.
While they have been in heated rivalries before, with a past version of Styles often flexing his ability to “beat up” Cena, the matchup on Saturday was without any bad blood.
Cena gave Styles a surprise special introduction just before the match on Saturday, with the ring announcer billing him as “the definition of Total Nonstop Action” and the “boss” of the Bullet Club. Styles was notably sporting a throwback look, wearing the type of outfit many would associate with an earlier era of his career.
While Cena’s retirement run is right around the corner, it’s worth noting that Styles doesn’t plan to stick around for much longer either. He mentioned earlier this week at a WWE event that he hopes to retire in 2026, although it remained unclear when in the year he would step away.
Results
- Bronson Reed def. Roman Reigns (Australian Street Fight) (21:06)
- Stephanie Vaquer def. Tiffany Stratton (2025 Women’s Crown Jewel Championship) (10:06)
- John Cena def. AJ Styles (27:12)
- Rhea Ripley & IYO SKY def. Asuka & Kairi Sane (19:56)
- Seth Rollins def. Cody Rhodes (2025 Men’s Crown Jewel Championship) (29:43)
