3 Reasons why John Cena sold his soul to The Rock at WWE Elimination Chamber

At WWE Elimination Chamber 2025, fans witnessed one of the greatest swerves in history when John Cena officially turned heel and sold his "soul" to The Rock. This astonishing angle played out after The Cenation Leader won the Men's Elimination Chamber match.

Following his triumph, Cody Rhodes, The Rock, and Travis Scott appeared for a high-stakes segment concerning The American Nightmare's decision. Rhodes ultimately rejected The People's Champion's offer, but in an unexpected betrayal, Cena turned heel and brutally assaulted the Undisputed WWE Champion.

After the vicious attack, Cena and The Rock stood tall over Cody, leaving the WWE Universe in shock and fueling speculation about a budding alliance. Now, it seems clear that The Cenation Leader has officially become The Rock’s corporate star after selling his "soul" to The Great One.

In this article, we will discuss why John Cena chose to align himself with The Great One at the recently concluded premium live event.

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#3 John Cena badly wants to become a 17-time World Champion

John Cena is currently on his retirement tour, and this is his final opportunity to become a 17-time World Champion. This could be why Cena didn’t want to take any risks and ultimately decided to join forces with The Rock, selling his "soul" to The Final Boss.

With The Great One's backing, Cena now has a high chance of dethroning Cody Rhodes and becoming the new Undisputed WWE Champion at WrestleMania 41.

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#2 To officially turn heel

Before tonight, John Cena last played a heel character over two decades ago. But his alliance with The Rock might have finally allowed him to transform into a villain. WWE may want to give Cena one last run as a top star, this time as a bad guy. This could explain why Cena turned heel at Elimination Chamber 2025 and joined forces with The Final Boss on the Road to WrestleMania 41.

Since this is Cena’s final run, it’s his only opportunity to do whatever he wants before retiring. This could be why he chose to embrace his dark side, with Elimination Chamber 2025 being the perfect stage for his shocking turn.

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#1 To incorporate The Rock into Cody Rhodes' storyline

The American Nightmare rejected The Final Boss’ offer, which would have effectively excluded The Rock from the storyline unless John Cena decided to align with him. A possible rationale behind Cena selling his "soul" to The People's Champion could be to keep The Rock involved in Cody Rhodes' storyline.

Since Cena won the Elimination Chamber match, he was the only remaining leverage to ensure The Great One remained in Rhodes' program.