Update On John Cena Taking Time Off From WWE – His Return Date

John Cena is taking time off from WWE immediately after Hell in a Cell, and the latest indication is that he won’t be returning until late December.

The official website of Madison Square Garden is advertising Cena for a live event on Dec. 26. The annual post-Christmas tour is WWE’s next booking of Cena, meaning he’ll be missing all of November and most of December. That will mean not only is he missing Survivor Series, but he’ll be missing TLC as well.

It is a bad time for WWE to be losing Cena since he’s their biggest mass market attraction. Raw viwership is already at record lows, and WWE Network subscriptions are volatile. Cena will also be missing the November European tour, where he had been marketed as the main selling point. No doubt about it, WWE are going to be badly hurt by him being away.

Cena does deserve his time off, he’s one of the hardest working wrestlers. There’s no ideal time to lose a wrestler of his stature, but it appears WWE wanted to get the break out of the way before WrestleMania season.