Backstage News On Who John Cena Is Supposed To Face At WrestleMania 35 and Why It May Not Happen

WWE has plans for John Cena to face Lars Sullivan at WrestleMania 35, according to Dave Meltzer in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter published today.

That match may no longer be on the table, however, due to Sullivan dealing with some personal issues.

Meltzer noted that Sullivan was supposed to compete in a dark match prior to Raw in Orlando, Florida, but he either didn’t show up at the Amway Center or left the venue early due to an anxiety attack.

“Sullivan, real name Dylan Miley, 30, was scheduled to debut on the main roster, probably in a dark match, on the 1/7 Raw in Orlando. He either didn’t show up at the arena, or did and left the building, believed to be due to an anxiety attack,” Meltzer wrote.

It would appear that Sullivan left the Amway Center before his scheduled main roster debut since PWInsider.com reported that he was backstage — hence our Sullivan could debut on Raw report.

According to Meltzer, management spoke to Sullivan and their feeling was that “everything was fine.” However, he was supposed to work a dark match at the following night’s SmackDown LIVE event in Jacksonville, Florida and he didn’t show up at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena. The belief is that he flew back home to Colorado. Sullivan apparently moved back to Colorado last month as he posted an Instagram video of himself working out with the location set at Rocky Mountains, Colorado.

“The office, which is a lot more understanding of mental health issues due to its experience with Mauro Ranallo, talked with him and smoothed things out and everything was fine. He was then supposed to do a dark match at the 1/8 Smackdown tapings in Jacksonville. Not only did he not show up in Jacksonville, but he apparently flew back home to Colorado,” Meltzer wrote.

For the past several weeks, WWE has been airing vignettes hyping Sullivan’s main roster debut after a successful run in NXT. Meltzer expected the feud between Cena and Sullivan to begin at the Royal Rumble, but he doesn’t know now if the feud will even happen.

“Nothing else is known, whether they will change plans or how it will be handled,” Meltzer wrote.

“Sullivan was scheduled for a monster push. The Cena match was confirmed and logic would say if he was facing Cena in his first big match, with Cena working limited dates and Sullivan being groomed to be one of the top guys in the company, that Sullivan would have won that match. But we were also told that would be premature and that while the match was on the books, there has been no discussion this far in advance regarding the finish.

“While this was not told to us directly, all hints and signs pointed to the angle getting started at the Royal Rumble. So the Rumble show will likely tell the story as to whether they will go with this program or not. They may feel it’s just something they can work through or they may feel that it’s a risk giving that much of a push to him.”

• Rare photos of Lars Sullivan outside the ring