10 WWE Superstars And Their Japanese Counterparts

1. John Cena

John Cena, the WWE€™s top man for many years, has shown fans both the best and worst of his capabilities. Described as both a terrible wrestler and a workhorse, Cena has proven why he is at the top of the company, despite countless criticisms. Cena is indeed a good wrestler when he needs to be, as demonstrated by his matches with Shawn Michaels, Daniel Bryan and CM Punk over the years. He has also shown both sides of the spectrum in terms of promos: he can do great ones when required, but has also floundered with some especially terrible or childish promos. But what truly defines Cena is his reign at the top: multiple World Title reigns, some incredibly long, others lasting only a single day. Either way, Cena is a top man in WWE who has enjoyed many years as the face of the WWE; to the point that it might be time for him to step away from the spotlight. Japanese Equivalent: Hiroshi Tanahashi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NtZLdB40Ejo When one of the people who trained you is none other than Keiji Mutoh, you know that good things are meant to come in your future. Hiroshi Tanahashi has been wrestling since 1999, but his career really took off in 2006, when he won his first IWGP Heavyweight title. Since then, he has gone on to become the face of New Japan Pro Wrestling (sound familiar?), and has won the World title a record seven times. He has also had four 5-Star matches between October 2012 and September 2014, and has basically been considered the best wrestler in the world since 2011. He is also the person with whom the aforementioned Kazuchika Okada had such a great feud. The connection Tanahashi has with John Cena is that both men have risen to the top of their respective wrestling companies and have shattered records. Cena has won the WWE Championship/WWEWHC a record 12 times, and has basically become synonymous with the main event picture in WWE. Another interesting connection is that both men are extremely popular in their respective promotions. Though Cena€™s reaction has become more and more mixed as time went on, he is still the WWE€™s top draw. The same can be said for Tanahashi; he has been arguably the top draw for New Japan for the last five to six years, and it is partly because of him that New Japan has become arguably the most dominant promotion in Japan. Despite constant allegations of being unable to wrestle, Cena has clearly demonstrated that when needed to, he can put on a good match against the right opponent. However, Tanahashi, who is more or less Cena€™s Japanese equivalent, has demonstrated that he can put on a good match against virtually any opponent.