Theory had helped the team of Bron Breakker, Bronson Reed, Logan Paul, Drew McIntyre and Brock Lesnar win WarGames at Survivor Series, and continued to appear to help out Breakker, Reed and Paul, all while The Vision's Paul Heyman insisted he did not know who was under the mask.

John Bradshaw Layfield was a top-tier heel champion and Cena was already over with the fans. The challenger needed a performance that would solidify his capabilities in the company. Cena was able to do it and ended JBL's nine-month reign to win the WWE Championship, his first world title.