10 WWE Main Event Feuds That Didn't End At WrestleMania

8. John Bradshaw Layfield Vs John Cena

Rsz Batista Triple H
WWE.com

John Cena's ascent to WWE's summit at WrestleMania 21 was long-assured after over a year building momentum as the top babyface on Smackdown long before a backlash had ever even teased making an appearance.

However, his victory over outgoing WWE Champion John Bradshaw Layfield was something of a disappointment, going a measly 11 minutes and slotting in deservedly as a semi-main event underneath Raw's World Title clash.

The reasons for the rather understated dethroning of the 'longest reigning WWE champion in Smackdown history' became a little more apparent when the storyline continued in earnest, with JBL promptly forcing a rematch and denouncing Cena's reign almost instantly when he unveiled the controversial 'spinner' title belt.

With the company about to enter a prolonged state of flux thanks to a weeks-long draft lottery between Raw and Smackdown, the feud needed resolving, and was done so in grand fashion at May's Judgment Day pay-per-view.

Delivering the genuine headline attraction they probably should have unleashed at WrestleMania itself, the two had an absorbing 'I Quit' brawl in which Cena bled a gusher and threatened Bradshaw with a humongous exhaust pipe to scare him into quitting.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett