John Cena Reveals Major John Cena Classic Format Change

John Cena has revealed some significant new details about the upcoming WWE John Cena Classic, including a change to the previously expected tournament format.

Speaking with The Takedown on Sports Illustrated, Cena confirmed that the December 14 event will not feature a traditional tournament. Instead, the show will consist of exhibition matches pairing WWE main roster stars against NXT talent, with separate men’s and women’s champions being crowned at the conclusion of the event.

“They’re all gonna be current [main roster wrestlers] versus NXT,” Cena explained. “It’s very much like Saturday Night’s Main Event [when Cena had his retirement match], and I love that December 14 is the date, because that’s one year and one day from my last match. And as soon as I retired, on the way home, I was thinking about how I can [stay] involved.”

The inaugural John Cena Classic will take place at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida.

The event will also make for an unusual night of WWE programming, as two separate episodes of Monday Night Raw are scheduled for December 14. WWE will first present its regularly scheduled Raw from Perth, Australia, before airing the John Cena Classic as a second Raw broadcast on Netflix later that evening.

Another key component of the event will be fan participation through Club WWE, with members getting the opportunity to vote on the night’s winners.

Cena hopes the voting process can be conducted immediately following the final match, allowing WWE to announce both champions before the broadcast concludes.

“Hopefully, if we have the technological acumen to do this, as soon as the last match is over, it’s kinda like American Idol… voting’s open now to Club WWE members,” Cena said. “And when we come back from commercial break, we’re gonna award the women’s champion of the night, and we’re gonna award the men’s champion of the night.”

Cody Rhodes and Zilla Fatu have already been confirmed as the first two participants in the John Cena Classic, with additional names expected to be revealed in the coming weeks.

Cena will be making several WWE television appearances leading up to the special event, including this Friday’s SmackDown on November 13, next Monday’s Raw on November 16, and Survivor Series on November 28.

The WWE legend is also scheduled to appear at the John Cena Classic itself on December 14, which will take place one year and one day after his retirement match.