Now that John Cena is back, who will he feud with in 2019?

Last night (Dec. 24) on Raw, McMahon-ta Claus promised us the gift of John Cena. That means it’s time to think about which WWE superstars will battle it out with John in the lead up to Royal Rumble 2019. Here’s my wish list of potential rivalries for John that sound the most interesting to me.

Samoa Joe

This is the feud we were deprived of last year when Joe suffered an injury before the Royal Rumble. One consequence of Joe’s injury was that Elias received a big spotlight opposite Cena. Elias has his bright spots, but he’s no Samoa Joe. I still need to see Samoa Joe do sadistic and disgusting things to John Cena. Joe is in the middle of a story with Jeff Hardy right now, but sometimes it’s ok to call an audible.

Bobby Lashley

Bobby Lashley has a stupefying ass that commands my attention with every pose. John Cena is a true master of toilet humor. If WWE isn’t looking to do anything too serious with Cena, then Lio Rush might have some Attitude Adjustments in his future.

Drew McIntyre

Raw doesn’t really have a main event level babyface for Drew to deal with right now considering that Braun Strowman and Seth Rollins are preoccupied with other villains. But now that John Cena is back, he’s pretty much the ideal guy who can turn McIntyre into a mainstay at the top of the Raw card for the rest of 2019.

SmackDown tag team division

There’s something about seeing Cena on the mic opposite the New Day or the Usos that sounds wildly appealing to me. And of course Cena versus Cesaro in the ring will always deliver. Cena can be used here to either give some exposure to an act that desperately needs more TV time like Sanity, or perhaps he can help get Big E positioned for more singles work in 2019. Even if none of this is all that probable, it’s still my wish list, and Cena partnering up with Mustafa Ali and getting a short-term run in the SmackDown tag team division sounds great to me.

Randy Orton

Just kidding. Booking this match would be the most WWE thing to do though, right?

The New Daniel Bryan

John Cena doesn’t need to be in the actual Royal Rumble match. He has a very long history with Daniel Bryan, particularly when all the Total Divas / Total Bellas connections are taken into account. Cena and Bryan are two main event level stars and this is one of the few potential options on the table that could actually be a step up from Bryan versus Styles. The main problem with this choice is that it’s more appropriate for the WrestleMania stage rather than the Royal Rumble. Either way, John Cena can break Ric Flair’s record if he wins the WWE Championship one more time, and Daniel Bryan is right there standing in his way.

That’s my wish list for immediate John Cena feuds in January. Who do you want to see John in the ring with next month, Cagesiders?