John Cena may have retired from his in-ring wrestling career last December, but he’s seemingly been around almost as much as he was before his retirement tour began. Not only was Cena on hand for both nights of WrestleMania 42, hosting WWE’s marquee event, but he is also scheduled to appear at WWE Backlash this weekend, where he has teased unveiling a “history making” bit of news.

For many, Cena’s two consecutive appearances on WWE PLEs is confusing given Cena’s busy schedule and the belief he would be less involved with the promotion after retirement. But as Dave Meltzer explained during Monday’s edition of “Wrestling Observer Radio,” Cena’s appearance at WrestleMania, Backlash, and any other future events is all by design, and part of a new agreement Cena and WWE reached right after Cena’s final match.

“They signed him to a contract, which called for a number of appearances,” Meltzer said. “So this is one of those appearances. It was not like…his deal called for these things. So…to me, it’s kind of weird because it’s like, he just did WrestleMania. It was supposed to be special. And here we are, a couple of weeks after WrestleMania, and he’s doing it again. 

“So it feels like you’re kind of, for like a big guest like that, coming back so quick and having him again, it kind of seems like ‘Why would you do it?’ almost. But I think the mentality is that John Cena is important, and getting him on TV is important, and he’s signed for a number of dates, so…that’s one of them. That’s it.”

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit “Wrestling Observer Radio” and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription