John Cena asserted that, in the end, the fans’ love made him become a good guy again.

“The fans changed me. Like, you go to the Cody match at WrestleMania, which is where I debut a more methodical style [I was getting cheered.] And then you lean into like only so many dates left. I’m taking this thing home. I’m a victim of an abusive relationship. All of the things, like, I’m going to remove the fun from wrestling. You can’t ignore the noise,” he said.

He recounted a few of the memorable matches he had with legendary opponents like Rhodes, Randy Orton, and CM Punk, and how each told a unique story. Despite the criticism the heel run got from fans, he applauded WWE creative for trying something different and also acknowledged that they pivoted when it didn’t work. The 17-time world champion holds no regrets about his bad-guy run and isn’t interested in discussions about any hypothetical match with The Rock.

“I don’t dwell for one second on what could have been,” he said. “I don’t care [if a match with Rock was on the cards]. Like, first of all — I’m always the last to know. It doesn’t trickle down to me. If you watch Unreal, like that process is genuine. I talk to Rock and then I talk to this and the last guy I got to call is John [Cena]. I’m usually the last guy they call ’cause I’m the easiest.”

Cena eventually turned babyface again ahead of his clash with Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam, allowing him to end his career as a good guy.