4 Reasons why John Cena missed WWE RAW tonight

John Cena defeated CM Punk in the main event of WWE Night of Champions this past weekend, courtesy of an unintentional "assist" from Seth Rollins. Cena is now scheduled to face Cody Rhodes in the main event of SummerSlam, with Cody having earned the rematch after he defeated Randy Orton in the final of the King of the Ring Tournament in Riyadh.

Cena was nowhere to be seen on RAW last night, which led fans to question why that could have been the case. In fact, Cena is not advertised for any appearances until the July 18 episode of SmackDown. While he may make surprise appearances on shows before then, one can never be sure.

Nevertheless, in this article, we shall discuss four reasons why John Cena was in a "you can't see me" mood on Monday and why he may remain in this mood over the next few weeks, too.

#1. John Cena and Cody Rhodes are technically still SmackDown guys

Yes, the brand split, as a concept, has been buried more than John Cena buried Austin Theory on the Road to WrestleMania 39. Cena has been one of the major names engaged in this perpetration. WWE, of late, has been lenient with the enforcement of these rules, especially with top stars constantly interacting across brands.

With Cena having limited time left, though, one cannot fault them for taking such liberties. The Undisputed WWE Championship itself has been featured across the board since the Road to WrestleMania began. The truth is—the average fan would never care about being a stickler for the enforcement of fictionalized regulations over the prospect of seeing top wrestlers in engaging programs.

However, the Undisputed WWE Championship is still technically the world championship of SmackDown, and Cody Rhodes, the challenger at SummerSlam, is also primarily a SmackDown guy. It stands to reason that Cena may have skipped RAW tonight simply because the road to his SummerSlam showdown with Rhodes will kickstart on Friday.

There was simply no reason for Rhodes and Cena to be on RAW tonight.

#2. To keep John Cena and CM Punk apart

CM Punk has a bone to pick with Seth Rollins after his actions at Night of Champions. However, Punk's issues with Cena, or his desire to win a world championship, haven't been resolved yet. So, if Cena had appeared on RAW tonight, it would have made narrative sense to continue the Cena-Punk program.

This, of course, is not the planned direction, with Punk and Cena having already wrestled their final match. John Cena and CM Punk should not, thus, be on the same show for a while, at least until their respective roads to SummerSlam, likely against Cody Rhodes and Seth Rollins (the latter possibly inside Hell in a Cell and for the World Heavyweight Championship), aren't in full swing.

That said, fans clearly want Cena and Punk to continue feuding with each other. They are two men who could stand across from each other till they're 80, with fans eating it up and still left wanting more.

#3. John Cena now has limited appearances left

John Cena now has just 15 dates left on his retirement tour, having been featured regularly on WWE TV since March across RAW, SmackDown, and WWE Premium Live Events. With over one month yet to elapse before SummerSlam and exactly six months left on Cena's Farewell Tour, he can only devote so many of those dates before SummerSlam.

And much like the Road to WrestleMania 41, Cody Rhodes will likely be left to shoulder the responsibility of carrying this feud. Even if Cena does not, indeed, make any appearances before his next advertised date, Rhodes and Cena will have a good three weeks to build up their match beginning with July 18.

The option of a RAW appearance thereafter, in case three dates on SmackDown aren't enough for the narrative building up to SummerSlam, is always there.

#4. John Cena as Undisputed WWE Champion remains a novelty

There is absolutely no reason for John Cena to make unnecessary appearances, especially in his role as Undisputed WWE Champion. Cena appearing on WWE TV is still special and a major attraction, and too many appearances, especially those made just for the sake of it, only take away from his presentation since he is a heel.

With the added context of limited dates left on his calendar, it would make no sense whatsoever for him to make any meaningless appearances at all, and doing so would just mean that he becomes a full-fledged part-timer post-SummerSlam. There is absolutely no sense in handicapping the final leg of his retirement tour, especially since he is expected to become a babyface soon.

What sort of legendary, "man of the people," workhorse babyface would make, say, just seven appearances in his last five months as a wrestler, after having treated fans horribly for several months up until that point? Certainly not John Cena! It seems likely right now that Cena won't be appearing on television till July 18.

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