10 Most Hated Wrestlers Of All Time
2. John Cena
John Cena was the new Hulk Hogan endured by an audience who matured as wrestling fans through the work and star power of Bret Hart and Steve Austin, respectively. The perception of what a WWE megastar "had" to be had been shattered like glass, and when the shards reformed in the image of a gurning, limited kiddie attraction, it felt like an insult to their loyalty and intelligence.
A certain, incredibly vocal set of fans detested John Cena.
They detested a magic comeback routine they weren't the power behind, exposing the warts of its corny artifice. They detested his almost trollish unwillingness or inability to properly apply the STF. They detested his juvenile promos and how they diminished rather than built up his opponent, which to them crystallised his hideous essence: he was, in too many ways, anti-pro wrestling.
The booking worked in dementedly OTT harmony to intensify this perception through a quite incredible series of finishes. Spooky children; constant disqualifications; about five thousand f*cking Big Show turns: when John Cena lost, there was never any weight behind it. Nobody got over.
And he shouldn't have lost often! He was the Ace! Aces win, that's what Aces do! But don't make it so patently obvious that he was going to be OK, folks!
WWE made an entire generation of fans feel like tearing off an NWA Cyberspace t-shirt.