10 INSANE Risks WWE Took With Their Biggest Stars
9. John Cena
Dragged into WWE's systemic cruelty of Zack Ryder in early 2012 as he patiently waited for his WrestleMania build with The Rock to kick back off, John Cena looked even lamer than usual due to being positioned as a patronising, girlfriend-stealing blowhard.
At first, the intentions from the company seemed mostly noble. Ryder had won the United States Championship and regularly working alongside the company's biggest star seemingly offered him the next logical leg up. It was his impending burial hiding in plain sight.
Transitioning from being Cena's friend to his pathetic sidekick in 'The Champ's p*ss-weak programme with Kane, Ryder was reduced to the bumbling buffoon spot in segments with 'The Big Red Machine', taking the brunt of his physical assaults to build up to the infamous scene in which he was pushed off the stage in a wheelchair and neck brace.
Flirtations with Eve Torres were instead used to garner her heat for a heel turn, triggered in part by her and Cena kissing in front of Ryder's gutted gurning face. 'Big Match John' typically faced backlash from 50% of the crowd at the best of times - it was astonishing this angle didn't finish him for good.