Potential update on disappointing John Cena rematch at WWE Royal Rumble 2024 - Reports

John Cena's 2023 run in WWE thus far has been stellar, as one must expect from The Franchise Player. However, most of it has been part of creating 'moments' as he puts it, rather than an actual match. His last one-on-one contest, which was hyped up, was the WrestleMania contest against then-US Champ Austin Theory.

Theory's run has been lackluster, according to many fans, but WWE continues to push the young star. One can make an argument that he will gradually become a top star down the line, but there is a large chunk of the viewers who do not want to witness a rematch between him and Cena.

Per Ringside News, despite some rumors that John Cena's first WWE match in 2024 is supposedly going to be against Theory, the bout is not even in discussion. They have ruled out Cena vs. Theory at the Royal Rumble or WrestleMania:

"A rumor is going around that John Cena is slated to wrestle Austin Theory at the Royal Rumble or WrestleMania. Ringside News reached out to confirm this story making the rounds, and we were told by a tenured member of the creative team that this is not the plan."

The former US Champ is still regarded by the higher-ups seemingly as a major WWE star in the making. Perhaps it remains to be seen if Theory ultimately rises up the occasion.

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The Rock made Austin Theory more important than he may have been before in WWE, says veteran

Dutch Mantell discussed on Smack Talk about The Rock's return to SmackDown and the latter's segment with Austin Theory and Pat McAfee. According to the veteran, the promo instantly made the former US Champion relevant again:

"See, this is the type of segment that gets talent over. Now, Austin Theory is over more right now than he was before tonight. He didn't beat nobody but he got a lot of attention. And look at the ring he shared. I call this getting over by osmosis. He's in the ring with Pat McAfee, and then, out of nowhere, The Rock shows up. Now it's getting interesting. So I'm gonna be highly interested to see what this segment did."

Despite a promising tag team formation hinted on the blue brand between Grayson Waller and Austin Theory, the former US Champion's relevancy at this point was in question until The Rock's return.

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