10 Wrestlers John Cena Couldn't Get Over

4. Alberto Del Rio

Alberto Del Rio John Cena Vengeance
wwe.com

If ever there was a main event WWE star that people cared less about than Alberto Del Rio, the wrestling world has yet to see them.

As an in-ring talent, Del Rio can be great when he wants to be. Likewise, he’s a strong talker and carries himself like a star. The problem is, during the majority of his time spent under a WWE contract, the spark always felt lacking in the multiple main events programs Del Rio was a part of.

The struggle to get Alberto over as a genuine superstar was more down to the way that WWE booked the talented former amateur wrestler than any real problem with Del Rio. During the second half of 2011, for example, WWE had Del Rio battling John Cena for the WWE Championship at several PPVs. The problem was, regardless of being paired up against Cena, nobody cared about ADR at that time. Why’s that? Well, how about because we all wanted to see Cena vs. CM Punk instead?

This was when Punk became the hottest act in the business and was in the middle of an iconic rivalry with Cena. Instead of letting the drama between the two play out, WWE inserted Del Rio into the mix as a way to make Alberto seem as big a star as Cena and Punk - and the Mexican grappler battled Cena at several PPVs. Much like the matches between ADR and Cena, this whole plan saw the majority of fans struggle to take to Del Rio.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer and Presenter, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund and Eli Roth to Kevin Smith and the Russo Brothers, to Kevin Conroy and Frank Miller, to Bret Hart and Sting, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, and Brian Flynn, to many, many more. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is a long-standing season ticket holder and an FSA Award-winner for his time co-hosting the Fearless in Devotion podcast.