John Cena Classic Gets a Date, a Belt and Its First Entrant

Cody Rhodes is the first official name in the John Cena Classic, and WWE now has a date, a place and a prize for it. The details came on the November 2 episode of Raw, after months without word.

Rhodes first, and Orton interrupts

The event will put main roster stars against members of the NXT roster. Rhodes is the first official entrant. More main roster names are due in the coming weeks, including at Survivor Series in Houston, Texas.

On NXT this week, Cena is due to name the up-and-coming wrestlers in the field.

Rhodes had little time to react. Randy Orton cut in to warn him that their Last Man Standing match at Crown Jewel this Saturday could turn very ugly.

A new belt for the winner

The winner takes home the WWE John Cena Championship. Cena showed the new title on the show. The belt does not spin, but its structure matches the spinner belt Cena carried years ago.

He kept the talk short. He did say that Club WWE subscribers would have a say in who wins. That idea was already floated at Backlash.

December 14 at Walt Disney World

The Classic is booked as a special Raw on December 14. Another Raw is set for earlier that day in Perth, Australia, so WWE will air two shows on one date.

The location is Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Cena did not name a venue.

Months of silence end in Brooklyn

Cena first announced the event at Backlash in May, describing a showcase of current stars facing the stars of tomorrow. Nothing more was said about what to expect until he came back to Raw in Brooklyn, New York, where fans gave him a warm welcome.

Our View

Several things are still open: the exact venue, the format of the competition and how much weight the Club WWE vote carries. Cena's NXT appearance this week should show who the "stars of tomorrow" are, and the Survivor Series announcements will show how the main roster side fills out.

Source: Wrestling Inc.