John Cena vs CM Punk should happen at WWE Money in the Bank 2025

John Cena‘s Farewell Tour has so far been a bit underwhelming, and although there is only a couple of weeks between Saturday Night’s Main Event and Money in the Bank in early June, the main event for that show needs to be Cena vs CM Punk. The 2011 MITB event was essentially the coming out party for Punk in WWE, as years of frustration and stop start creative led to his ‘pipebomb’ on RAW and one of the best builds to a WWE title match in recent times.
The John Cena Retirement Tour seems to be playing all of the hits from the 17-time Champion’s career, so this call back to one of the best matches of his career would be fitting. There is not a lot of time between SNME (May 24th) and MITB (June 7th), but there is a ready-made storyline there with Punk.
Why Cena vs Punk should happen at MITB
Arguably Punk’s greatest feud in WWE was against Cena, and it can be said that Punk is one of Cena’s best opponents, if not THE best. Money in the Bank 2011 was built around Punk threatening to leave the company with the WWE Championship in his possession, something that Cena is now claiming will happen when he retires from in-ring competition at the end of 2025.
There’s a very simple story to tell here, and with the chance to have Cena and Punk promoting the match on the two RAWs and two SmackDown shows before MITB, it makes sense to draw on history for this quick turnaround between shows. With the flip-flop of roles and a clear history there, it’s difficult to think of any other matches to put in that slot for Cena except for R-Truth if the likely Saturday Night’s Main Event match gets pushed back.
Will John Cena be at Money in the Bank 2025?
It’s currently not confirmed if Cena will even be at the MITB 2025 event. Although he is featured on a poster for the show, there is a chance that he could be held back to start a build to SummerSlam on the RAW after (a show he has been confirmed for).
Holding back the massive Cena vs Punk rematch after all these years for SummerSlam does make sense from a build standpoint (in that there actually could be one), but considering the importance of that 2011 MITB match and the trajectory it set Punk’s WWE career on? It would be fitting to close the chapter on Punk vs Cena at where it arguably all began.