10 Times The Independent Scene Met The WWE Machine
3. Kevin Owens Vs. John Cena - Elimination Chamber 2015
If we're going purely on aesthetics, as depressing as that is to continually do when speaking of Owens, then Kevin Owens vs. John Cena is as Indy vs. WWE as it gets.
Heck, if we're talking purely about motivation and reason for doing this, that status remains. Cena does this because he wants to entertain, he wants to grant wishes, he wants to inspire people all around the world. Owens? He does it because otherwise his family will starve.
John Cena is the corporate professional wrestler. He's a great one, don't get me wrong, but he is still a corporate wet dream come to life, Rihanna in the form of a professional wrestler. He avoids scandal, he shows up on time, he is respectful and is extremely unlikely to embrace the hate any time soon.
Kevin Owens, well, Owens probably doesn't even like wrestling. The fact is he is good at it, and good enough to make really good money doing it. He is the anti-John Cena. It makes for a unique dynamic in this indy/WWE world, where the man with the passionate motives comes from the corporate world, the man with the financial ones from the independent.
Cena and Owens had a remarkable series of matches in 2015, but for me their best was their first, which came at Elimination Chamber. Owens won clean as a whistle, in the centre of the ring. His family ate well that night.