The storied history of professional wrestling and the much-shorter history of sports entertainment have never had a more polarizing figure than John Cena. As the WWEs top star for the less decade-plus, no one inspires a more passionate response among the fanbase. Cena the man is well-liked, or at the very least respected by the majority of the audience, while Cena the character is a very different story. Opinions on him run the gamut from avid support, passionate disdain and ardent frustration. The positive to take from all that is that he rarely inspires apathy. Live crowds at every event where he appears battle it out with dueling chantsthe high-pitched chorus of lets go Cena vs. the lower register Cena sucks. The distaste for the character comes from a visceral desire to see something, anything really, different from WWE rather than the much-maligned #LOLCENAWINS. Neither Hulk Hogan nor Steve Austin, the two biggest stars in history in history, were ever consistently on top for as long as John Cena. The mantra of hustle, loyalty, respect has grown stale and repetitive and were hungry for something different. For as polarizing as Cena is to the fans, hes been known to be equally so among his peers. There have been several cases where talent (many of whom are no longer with the company) have voiced their frustration with John Cena the man, as well as the way the character is booked. Some of this can be chalked up to professional envy and the competitive nature of the performers. But other times the resentment stems from a very real (at least perceived as real) place. Were about to get into that. Please bear in mind that this is all hearsay.
Brad Hamilton is a writer, musician and marketer/social media manager from Atlanta, Georgia. He's an undefeated freestyle rap battle champion, spends too little time being productive and defines himself as the literary version of Brock Lesnar.
