WWE SmackDown: 4 Possible Opponents For John Cena

AJ Styles

The Christmas edition of WWE SmackDown was filled with big moments, such as Rusev defeating Shinsuke Nakamura for the United States Championship, but nothing left a more lasting impression on the audience than AJ Styles punching CEO and commissioner Vince McMahon to close the show.

Vince egged on Styles, urging The Phenomenal One to show him the “Real” AJ Styles, especially since the “New” Daniel Bryan has been running the show since defeating AJ for the WWE Championship on the Survivor Series go-home show. Mr. McMahon even got physical with Styles, provoking the two-time champ in an effort to get Styles in touch with his more animalistic side. Styles took the bait, punching Vince in the face and screaming at the top of his lungs, much to the pleasure of Mr. McMahon.

Something is brewing on SmackDown Live, and perhaps this character change leads to a Rumble Triple Threat featuring Ali, Styles, and Bryan. And to build this new, darker Styles character up, a statement victory may be needed.

And what would make a bigger statement than Styles defeating Cena on SmackDown Live, just like he did in a career-defining moment at SummerSlam 2016?

Styles has a couple of losses against Cena that he must avenge, including at Royal Rumble 2017 and on SmackDown Live early in 2018. He did retain the WWE Championship at Fastlane in a multi-man match that involved Cena, but Styles wants to prove he’s the best wrestler in the company and will have a chip on his shoulder if he gets another crack at Cena.

These two superstars were meant to be rivals, and it’s always a huge moment when Cena is pinned, even on television. WWE seems to have huge plans for this more brutal Styles character, and even if they don’t want Styles to pin Cena, they could give fans a huge throwback moment by having The Club, who are back on the rise after pinning the SmackDown Tag Team Champions on Christmas, interfere on Styles’s behalf.