PERTH, AUSTRALIA – OCTOBER 11: John Cana makes his entrance during Crown Jewel at RAC Arena on October 11, 2025 in Perth, Australia. (Photo by Rich Freeda/WWE via Getty Images)
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Injuries have played a major role in the John Cena Last Time is Now tournament. Just one week after Sheamus was forced to bow out of the tournament due to injury, Penta suffered a similar fate. On Monday during an episode of Raw in Oklahoma City, Penta injured his shoulder when Solo Sikoa appeared to botch a hurricanrana. The match was stopped and Sikoa advanced to the semifinals of the LTIN tournament where he will face Gunther on December 1.
Earlier in the show, Gunther knocked off Carmelo Hayes in the match of the night in OKC.
That’s one semifinal bracket. The Smackdown portion of the bracket won’t be settled or completely revealed until Friday.
At this point, we still don’t know who’s replacing Sheamus, but that person will meet LA Knight in one of the quarterfinals matches. The other quarterfinals match will have Jey Uso taking on Rusev. The winners of those matches will presumably clash on December 5. The finals could take place on the December 8 episode of Raw or the December 12 episode of Smackdown.
I’d expect it to be the latter, but that’s not confirmed.
Smackdown SPOILERS: The Sheamus Replacement Revealed
During Friday’s taped Black Friday edition of SmackDown in Denver, Colorado, WWE revealed who would step into Sheamus’ spot. Following a backstage confrontation with R-Truth, The Miz received the opportunity to replace the injured Celtic Warrior in his quarterfinal matchup.
The substitution didn’t last long. Knight defeated Miz decisively, advancing to the next round as expected. The selection raised questions about WWE’s strategic direction, though it appears the promotion always intended for Knight to move forward regardless of opponent.
Based on results from both Raw and the taped SmackDown episode, here’s where the bracket stands:
Raw Semifinal (December 1):
SmackDown Quarterfinal Results:
- Jey Uso defeated Rusev
- LA Knight defeated The Miz
The two SmackDown quarterfinal winners will meet on December 5 to determine who advances to face the Raw semifinal winner. The tournament finals are expected on either the December 8 Raw or December 12 SmackDown, with the latter being more likely though unconfirmed.
Who’s Still Alive?
Four competitors remain in the Last Time is Now Tournament.
The victor will face Cena in his final match at Saturday Night’s Main Event on December 13 in Washington, D.C., potentially for the Intercontinental Championship depending on the outcome of Cena’s November 29 title defense against Dominik Mysterio at Survivor Series.
The Likely Outcome
It’s hard to imagine anyone besides Knight winning the tournament. Uso doesn’t need to win and neither do Rusev or Gunther. There is a case to be made for Solo. His heel status would see another major bump up if he is the one to end Cena’s career. Still, being the man to beat Cena–especially in a memorable match–is a privilege that is most fitting for the Megastar. We’ll see how it plays out.