John Cena is an American actor and professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Cena was first signed to WWE in 2001 and has since wrestled only for WWE. Cena is one of the most decorated wrestlers in the history of the company, having won 16 world titles and is tied with Ric Flair for the most in history, as of January 2025. Cena has also won the WWE United States Championship five times, Tag Team titles four times, Royal Rumble match twice, and has also won the Money in the Bank briefcase.
Also Read: What is John Cena's record at WrestleMania?
John Cena Royal Rumble Appearances- Wins, Losses and Stats
John Cena has competed in eight Royal Rumble matches, and has won two matches. In these eight matches, Cena eliminated 25 superstars and survived for a combined two hours, 42 minutes, and 25 seconds. The Leader of Cenation has finished in the top 10 in each of his Royal Rumble appearances. On January 7, 2025, episode of RAW, he announced himself for the 2025 Royal Rumble, marking his return to the event after seven years.
| Number of Appearances | 8 |
| Number of Wins | 2 |
| Number of Runners-Up | 2 |
| Number of Top Four | 5 |
| Longest Time in Match | 34:17 (Royal Rumble 2011) |
| Shortest Time in Match | 07:34 (Royal Rumble 2004) |
| Best Finish | Winner (Royal Rumble 2008, Royal Rumble 2013) |
| Worst Finish | 9 (Royal Rumble 2003) |
| Number of Eliminations | 25 |
John Cena Royal Rumble Year-on-Year Appearance- Entry Number, Finish Position, and Eliminations
| Year | Entrant Number | Finish Position | Eliminations | Eliminated By |
| 2003 | 18 | 9 | 0 | The Undertaker |
| 2004 | 28 | 6 | 0 | Big Show |
| 2005 | 25 | 2 | 3 | Batista |
| 2008 | 30 | 1 | 4 | Winner |
| 2010 | 19 | 2 | 4 | Edge |
| 2011 | 22 | 5 | 7 | The Miz |
| 2013 | 19 | 1 | 4 | Winner |
| 2018 | 20 | 3 | 3 | Shinsuke Nakamura |
Royal Rumble 2018 - 3rd Place
John Cena entered the 2018 Royal Rumble match at number 20 and was attacked by all the wrestlers at once. However, Cena soon turned the tide around and managed to eliminate Elias, The Hurricane, and Finn Balor. He survived for 29 minutes and 14 seconds before being eliminated by the eventual winner Shinsuke Nakamura and finished in third place.
Royal Rumble 2013 - Winner
In 2013, John Cena entered the Royal Rumble at number 19. Cena eliminated Heath Slater, Cody Rhodes, and Antonio Cesaro before facing Ryback in the final two. He would then throw Ryback over the top rope to win the Royal Rumble match for a second time and spent 26 minutes and 39 seconds in the ring. On the same night, The Rock won the WWE Championship, and the two superstars would then face each other at WrestleMania 29.
Royal Rumble 2011 - 4th Place
The 2011 Royal Rumble is the grandest Royal Rumble that has taken place on the Road to WrestleMania. 40 superstars entered the match and John Cena was the 22nd to do so. When he entered, the ring was filled with the members of the New Nexus faction, who were dominating the Royal Rumble match until then. However, Cena’s attack was too much for them to handle, as he quickly eliminated Mason Ryan, David Otunga, Michael McGillicutty, CM Punk, Tyson Kidd, and Heath Slater after his entry. A few minutes later, he eliminated Alex Riley to bring his count to seven. After a survival time of 34 minutes and 17 seconds, he was eliminated by The Miz, who was not even a part of the match. John Cena finished fourth in the Rumble.
Royal Rumble 2010 - Runner-Up
In 2010, John Cena entered the Royal Rumble match at number 19 and survived for 27 minutes and 11 seconds. He eliminated Shelton Benjamin, Yoshi Tatsu, Kofi Kingston, and Batista to make it to the final two against Edge. However, he couldn't get the better of The Rated-R Superstar and finished as the runner-up.
Royal Rumble 2008 - Winner
Fans had no hope of John Cena entering the 2008 Royal Rumble because he was out of WWE due to injury at the time. Therefore, when his theme hit the titantron at number 30, the crowd went berserk. In no time, he eliminated Carlito, Chavo Guerrero, Mark Henry, and then Triple H to win the Royal Rumble match. Cena did so within eight minutes and 28 seconds of his entrance and became only the second wrestler after The Undertaker to win the match after entering at number 30.
Royal Rumble 2005 - Runner-Up
John Cena entered the 2005 Royal Rumble match at number 25 and survived the contest for 15 minutes and 28 seconds. He eliminated the giant Viscera, Kane, and Edge before meeting Batista in the final two. In one of the most debatable eliminations in Royal Rumble history, both Batista and John Cena fell from the ring at the same time, and thus the match was restarted. Eventually, John Cena fell short as Batista won.
Royal Rumble 2004 - 6th Place
In 2004, John Cena entered the Royal Rumble match at number 28, towards the end of the match. However, the future world champion did not have a good outing as he failed to eliminate any superstar. He was then eliminated by Big Show, who ended Cena’s time in the Rumble after seven minutes and 37 seconds.
Royal Rumble 2003 - 9th Place
John Cena entered the Royal Rumble match for the first time in 2003. He entered at number 18 but failed to score any eliminations. Nonetheless, he had quite an impressive duration in the match, lasting for 19 minutes and 45 seconds. He was then eliminated by The Undertaker.
John Cena Royal Rumble Eliminations of Opponents By Numbers
| Wrestler | Times Eliminated |
| Heath Slater | 2 |
| Finn Balor | 1 |
| Elias | 1 |
| The Hurricane | 1 |
| Cody Rhodes | 1 |
| Cesaro | 1 |
| Ryback | 1 |
| CM Punk | 1 |
| Michael McGillicutty | 1 |
| David Otunga | 1 |
| Mason Ryan | 1 |
| Tyson Kidd | 1 |
| Alex Riley | 1 |
| Shelton Benjamin | 1 |
| Yoshi Tatsu | 1 |
| Kofi Kingston | 1 |
| Batista | 1 |
| Carlito | 1 |
| Mark Henry | 1 |
| Chavo Guerrero | 1 |
| Triple H | 1 |
| Edge | 1 |
| Viscera | 1 |
| Kane | 1 |
FAQs on John Cena's Royal Rumble Appearances
A. John Cena has won the Royal Rumble match twice - in 2008 and 2013.
A. John Cena won the Royal Rumble in 2008.
A. John Cena’s hand gesture means “You Can’t See Me,” which is also one of his famous slogans and a part of his theme song.
A. John Cena salutes in WWE as a respect to the US Armed Forces, as he revealed in an earlier interview to WWE.Com.
