John Cena Pins Triple H to Open Greatest Royal Rumble

There was no WrestleMania hangover for John Cena: he just pinned Triple H to open WWE‘s Greatest Royal Rumble in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

The match lasted a fun 20-minutes that saw each of the WWE icons play their greatest hits. However, ever a clever sequence that lead to back-to-back Attitude Adjustments, Cena put Triple H to rest.

It was good to see some of WWE’s finest in action. We hadn’t seen Cena and Triple H fight in over eight years and this was the perfect way for WWE to whet the palates of the Jeddah crowd—who, by the way, promise to be incredibly vocal.

The match’s turning point came when Triple H kicked out of the first AA right as the referee’s hand was falling a fateful third time. That dramatic moment let the crowd know they were in for more than just an exhibition match.

Despite having no build up for this match, Triple and Cena delivered a good show. The Game argued earlier on Friday morning that a match like this didn’t need a build as it had been in the making for nearly two decades.

The most prominent question both of these men is when will we see them again? Cena’s Hollywood obligations seem to multiply by the year. This combined with WWE’s expansive roster has made Cena’s in-ring time less of a priority. 2018 could see very little of John Cena in WWE.

He does have one big story to tell, though: his pursuit of this record-breaking 17th World Championship. It’s bee quite a while since Cena has been on top, but at 40 years old, he has plenty of time to collect accolades. Afterall, his WrestleMania opponent, The Undertaker, is 53.

For the 48-year old Triple H, he too may have plenty to give WWE in the ring. However he may not be needed for physicality, rather his most important contributions could be made backstage. All signs point to The Game taking over for Vince McMahon when the day comes, so any spare time h has will be dedicated to learning how to run WWE, not deliver pedigrees.