6 WWE stars clearly left out of the Last Time Is Now Tournament

John Cena's The Last Time is Now tournament will feature 16 superstars from RAW, SmackDown, NXT, and even those who aren't currently working in WWE. Many assume that former WWE legends like, Adam Copeland (Edge) and Chris Jericho might also return to compete against The Champ for one last time. Sheamus and Rusev have already qualified in the tournament after winning their respective matches on RAW.

However, WWE has left out a few big superstars from the tournament. In this listicle, we shall discuss those 6 big names who aren't part of the tournament.

#6 CM Punk

The Best in the World isn't part of the tournament because he already squared off against John Cena at Night of Champions PLE in June 2025. That was also advertised as their last clash in WWE, and it was for the Undisputed WWE Championship.

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It was also the first-ever clash between them when Cena played a heel, and Punk was a face. Seth Rollins had caused outside interference in the match, and Cena capitalized on it, thus beating CM Punk in their final match.

#5 Randy Orton

The Viper is also not part of the tournament since he, too, has faced Cena in a match at Backlash, back in May. In fact, Randy Orton was the first challenger to Cena's newly won title at WrestleMania 41.

John Cena, who was a heel then, used all sorts of tricks to deprive the Apex Predator of his 15th WWE title win. Orton has also been absent for the past few days, and maybe he can return this week on SmackDown to participate in the Survivor Series: WarGames match.

#4 AJ Styles

The Phenomenal is also left out of the tournament since he also had a memorable clash with John Cena at Crown Jewel PLE. In fact, it was one of the best wrestling matches of Cena's career, with him pulling off finishers of different superstars, thus paying his tribute to his former rivals. In the end, Cena was able to beat Styles, thus bringing a close to a glorious chapter in his in-ring rivalry with the TNA legend.

#3 Brock Lesnar

The Beast is not part of the tournament because he, too, has faced John Cena in their last-ever clash. Lesnar's clash with The Beast was, in fact, one of the most brutal matches in recent times. The Beast squashed Cena in their final match, beating him fair and square.

It wasn't the kind of booking that the fans expected. The fans expected Cena to put up a good fight against Lesnar, but the contest was clearly a one-sided battle, with Brock destroying Cena. Since then, The Beast hasn't made any appearance in the company, and is expected to return before the Survivor Series: WarGames match.

#2 Undisputed WWE Champion, Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes is also not part of John Cena's Last Man tournament because he had a clash with The Champ at SummerSlam 2025. He defeated Cena to finally win back the Undisputed Championship, which he lost at WrestleMania 41.

The contest also marked an end to Cena's lacklustre heel turn in WWE. After playing a heel for nearly six months, Cena turned face after losing the match.

#1 Roman Reigns

Roman Reigns is also not part of the tournament since he is more of a part-time superstar in WWE today. The Big Dog hasn't faced Cena in any match for the past one and a half years. Many fans expected him to clash against John Cena in his last match at SNME on December 13, 2025.

However, that might not happen as the Tribal Chief's availability for the event isn't confirmed. He may, however, return to take part in the Survivor Series: WarGames match later this month, but a clash against Cena isn't on the cards at the moment.

Edited by Mohammad Bilal