Exclusive: Charlotte Flair reveals how John Cena earned her ‘respect’ before WWE retirement

If you talk to WWE icon Charlotte Flair long enough, it’s clear that she looks up to the recently-retired John Cena, who called it a career at Saturday Night’s Main Event on Dec. 13, 2025.

During an extensive profile with ClutchPoints, Flair mentioned Cena several times. Speaking about his retirement, Flair acknowledged that “there will never be another John Cena.”

“If there’s one thing I took from watching his journey, it’s how completely he gave himself to his craft and to this business,” Flair raved. “Despite being, arguably, the greatest of all time, he was always approachable and never stopped making time for talent seeking advice.”

If there was one way that Flair would like to be the same as Cena, it’d be in the respect he garnered from his peers. He did this “through consistency, humility, and giving everything back.”

Charlotte Flair and John Cena were on opposite tracks in WWE in 2025

For most of her career, Flair has played a heel. WWE has tried to make her a babyface on a few occasions, but she has largely remained a villain. Meanwhile, Cena was the company’s top face for over two decades.

2025 would flip fans’ expectations on their heads, as Cena turned heel in March and Flair became a beloved babyface, thanks to her partnership with Alexa Bliss.

While they talked a lot throughout the year, Flair and Cena never acknowledged their contrasting character arcs. Still, Flair called Cena the “gold standard” of the industry. He also gave her the biggest advice of 2025: “Don’t be perfect.”

“What he has done with the Make-A-Wish kids, I still think will be one of [the most] memorable parts of his legacy, and him just saying, like, it was just so easy. ‘Don’t be perfect.’ It’s just that simple. He has a way of explaining things and not overcomplicating them, and it’s just taking his advice. It’s not simple, but it’s like, That’s all it is?”

Cena also embodies his “Hustle, Loyalty, Respect” mantra outside of the ring. “He really lives by ‘Never Give Up’ and ‘Hustle, Loyalty, Respect,’ and seeing that and seeing where he is, he’s just the perfect blueprint for what we do,” Flair praised.

Will Charlotte Flair have a John Cena-like retirement tour?

Flair finds it “hard to sit and actively picture her retirement. As she approaches 40, Flair knows the end of her career is likely closer than the beginning.

Not every WWE Superstar requires such a send-off as the one Cena got, but Flair would be deserving whenever she hangs up the boots.

Still, Flair has no idea when she’s retiring. Earlier in our interview, Flair said, “I have no timeline.” She emphasized that she’s down for “whatever the future holds for me.”

Fans will have to wait and see what the future holds for Flair. For now, she will continue her partnership with Alexa Bliss, which has rejuvenated “The Queen’s” career.

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