AEW World Champion MJF has opened up about missing the chance to face John Cena.
Before winning the AEW World Championship at AEW World’s End, MJF spoke with Brandon Walker on Mostly Sports and shared his honest thoughts about John Cena. When asked if he was disappointed about never getting a singles match with Cena, MJF didn’t hesitate.
He said, “Yes, absolutely. I think that there is a different world where that match would have happened. Unfortunately, it’s not this one.”
Despite the match never happening, he made it clear that he has nothing but respect for Cena.
“I’ve had so many incredible run-ins with John where we’ve shot the sh*t. He’s an incredible guy. He watches our product, he’s seen my stuff. He was very complimentary. Obviously, I’m super complimentary to him.”
MJF also admitted that Cena played a huge role in shaping his love for wrestling. “I’ve said it before in other interviews, but before CM Punk, my favorite wrestler growing up as a kid was John Cena. He was a Fathead on my wall in my bedroom. So I’d wake up, salute the OG, and then get ready for school.” [H/T: 411mania]
Fans may also remember that MJF and Cena made headlines in late 2023 when they appeared together at The Iron Claw premiere. Cena later praised MJF in an interview, noting how professional he was during their meeting.
MJF wants to go down as the greatest of all time
In an interview with Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp, MJF made it clear that simply being mentioned among the top names in wrestling is not enough for him. He said, “Now, when people think about professional wrestling in 2025, the names that come up, am I one of them? Yeah, no f*ing st. But that’s not enough for me. I need to go down as the greatest of all time,” Friedman asserted. “I need to go down as a generational talent, as a guy who led my generation for years to come. AEW had me in my 20s. They’re about to have me in my 30s.”
He also admitted that while his resume is already impressive, winning matters more to him than match quality. “Have I accomplished more than anybody has in that period of time? Probably. But I’m not satiated. That was my biggest thing that I realized after the Mark Briscoe match. I just was not satiated. It’s not okay to just have a good outing. I need to win.”
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