Zilla Fatu Is the Second John Cena Classic Entrant, Cena Says on NXT
Summary: John Cena invited NXT's Zilla Fatu to the John Cena Classic on the Nov. 4 NXT, in Cena's first NXT appearance since 2023. Cody Rhodes is the only other entrant named so far.
The quick version
- Cena announced Fatu on the Nov. 4 NXT from the Performance Center in Orlando.
- The John Cena Classic is Monday, Dec. 14, at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World, as a special Raw.
- Entrants so far: Cody Rhodes and Zilla Fatu. WWE has not named the rest of the field.
John Cena picked NXT's Zilla Fatu as the second entrant in the John Cena Classic on Wednesday, Nov. 4, during NXT from the WWE Performance Center in Orlando. POST Wrestling says it was Cena's first NXT appearance since 2023.
What happened
Cena told Fatu he felt like an "honorary Samoan" because of his history with Rikishi, The Rock, Roman Reigns, The Usos and Solo Sikoa. He also spoke about Fatu's father, Umaga, and said he loved him, according to POST Wrestling. Fatu was emotional and thanked Cena. He said that on Raw on Dec. 14 he would have the whole world saying one word: "Hello."
Fatu is the first NXT name in the field. Cody Rhodes was named first on Raw on Nov. 2. Wrestling Noticias notes Fatu debuted on NXT on Aug. 11 and challenged for the NXT Championship at Heatwave.
Backstage with Kam Hendrix
POST Wrestling also reports that Kam Hendrix asked Cena for a spot. Cena told him to focus on his opponent next week, EK Prosper. WWE has not said how many people will be invited.
What WWE has confirmed about the event
- Date and place: Monday, Dec. 14, at ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Walt Disney World, as a special edition of Raw.
- Format: Raw, SmackDown and NXT talent. Club WWE members vote on the top performance.
- Cena's other dates: SmackDown on Nov. 13 in Fort Lauderdale, Raw on Nov. 16 in Raleigh and Survivor Series on Nov. 28 in Houston, per POST Wrestling.
What to watch
Cena announced Rhodes on Raw and Fatu on NXT. He is scheduled for SmackDown on Nov. 13. WWE has not said whether a third name will come then.
Source: WWE's own posts of the segment, as carried by POST Wrestling and F4W Online, with the NXT results from WWE.com. We did not watch the show live. Nothing in this story is a rumor.
Sources
- POST Wrestling (Jason Ounpraseuth), "John Cena announces Zilla Fatu as the second participant in the John Cena Classic", Nov. 4, 2026. https://www.postwrestling.com/2026/11/04/john-cena-announces-zilla-fatu-as-the-second-participant-in-the-john-cena-classic/
- F4W Online (Shounak Chakrabarti), "WWE NXT's Zilla Fatu added to the John Cena Classic", Nov. 4, 2026. https://www.f4wonline.com/news/wwe/wwe-nxts-zilla-fatu-added-to-the-john-cena-classic/
- Wrestling Noticias (Leonardo Cunha), "John Cena Makes Big Announcement on WWE NXT", Nov. 4, 2026 (for Fatu's NXT debut date and Heatwave). https://wrestlingnoticias.com/john-cena-makes-big-announcement-on-wwe-nxt/
- WWE (corporate), "WWE and The Walt Disney Company expand partnership with two-day takeover of ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex featuring The John Cena Classic", Nov. 3, 2026 (for the event details). https://corporate.wwe.com/about/news/2026/11-03-2026
- WWE.com, "WWE NXT results: Nov. 4, 2026". https://www.wwe.com/shows/wwenxt/2026-11-4/results
- WWE (@WWE), posts on X about the segment, Nov. 5, 2026. https://x.com/WWE/status/2118170468741992585
- WrestlingNews.com staff reporting: checked the event details against our earlier John Cena Classic coverage.
How we credit sources: Editorial standards.