John Cena returned to WWE on this week's Monday Night Raw in his hometown of Boston. This was the perfect place for Cena to make his long-awaited return to the company. With WrestleMania less than a month away, fans wondered if Cena's return would set up a match at WWE's biggest event of the year.

The hometown hero was met with cheers and applause as soon as his music hit. As Cena stepped out onto the stage, he was overwhelmed with emotion. The Boston crowd went crazy when Cena's music hit and as he made his way out to the ring. But just as Cena was about to address the crown, Austin Theory‘s music hit.

The United States Champion, who is eerily similar to Cena, greeted him and told him how much he respected him. It should be no surprise that Theory was a huge John Cena fan growing up. Theory took part in a John Cena-themed photoshoot about a year ago, and the side-by-side pictures are insane. They looked very alike, and Theory also rocked the jorts and spinner United States title.

After greeting Cena and telling him how much he respects him, he wasted no time challenging him to a WrestleMania match. Theory wanted to give Cena a “gift” by getting a United States Championship match at the Show of Shows. To the surprise of some, John Cena gave Theory an immediate “no” before verbally destroying him. Cena would talk about how the fans don't believe in Theory because he doesn't believe in himself. According to Cena, Theory has “no heart” and “no soul.” Cena told the United States Champion that he wasn't ready to face him at WrestleMania because there was nothing inside him.

“You’re a generic kid in fancy sneakers wearing sunglasses indoors and you got nothing in here,” Cena said. “And dude, I’m not talking to you from a high place. I’ve walked in your shoes. There’s a sign out there that says ‘Austin Theory is a John Cena wannabe.’ Dude, I’m your ghost of Christmas future. And right now, you’re in that phase of ‘Ruthless Aggression.’ And ‘Ruthless Aggression almost got me fired. What a great opportunity it was, but you could see I didn’t believe in myself and the opportunity just wasn’t enough. … You’re a pair of trunks away from being a jabroni.”

This verbal beatdown visibly upset Theory. After hearing what Cena had to say, Theory began questioning Cena, wondering if he was “giving up.”

“You know what I realized, you being my childhood hero and all of this,” Theory said. “Boston, I want you to pay close attention to this because they are right and they talk a lot but they are right about this – you don’t want to meet your hero. Because all they do is disappoint.”

Theory began to get the crowd involved and asked them if Cena should face him at WrestleMania. Of course, the fans cheered because who doesn't want to see John Cena at WrestleMania? Cena is a man of the people, so of course, he listened to the crowd. He told Theory he didn't say no to the match because he was giving up. Cena believes Theory isn't ready. He accepted Theory's challenge but warned him about the consequences of facing him. Cena told Theory that, win or lose, he can't come out of this match on top.

Let me start by saying this: this segment was terrific. Cena returning to WWE is always must-see TV. Fans anticipated a faceoff between Theory and Cena, but nobody knew how it would go. Cena did a phenomenal job hyping up a match that some fans might not care too much about. In some people's minds, Cena is the greatest of all time, and Theory is just a prototype of him.

Despite what fans think of Theory, he needs to defeat Cena at WrestleMania. As much as I would love to see Cena win and become United States Champion again, he needs to help Theory reach the next level. Defeating Cena at WrestleMania is step one. After this match, we must see a new side to Austin Theory. We need to see a cocky, over-confident champion who boasts about defeating the GOAT at WrestleMania.

Fans will be upset if Cena loses, but he really shouldn't win this match. Cena isn't a full-time WWE superstar anymore and can't be a full-time champion. I hate to say it, but John Cena's time is up, and Austin Theory's time is now.

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