Rusev beating Cena would be bad... but Cena beating Rusev would be even worse. Though Rusev appeared to be a typical musclebound McMahon fantasy crossed with a run-of-the-mill Anti-American heel upon his debut, he's proven himself to be much more than that. He's as agile as he is strong, and he's earned his push with ring generalship that belies his experience level, as well as a string of exciting matches. All in all, Rusev is a welcome addition to WWE's main event. A loss to John Cena would simply derail the Super-Athlete, and for what gain? Cena is already the biggest star on the roster - he gets no rub from beating Rusev. The U.S. Champion is still relatively untapped as a commodity - after WrestleMania, he can move into a feud for the WWE Championship. A loss to Cena would take the teeth out of his pursuit of the belt, though. Last year, John Cena met the undefeated Bray Wyatt at WrestleMania and beat him. Despite repeated attempts to restore it, Wyatt's momentum has never been as strong as it was before his first loss. If the same were to happen to Rusev, it could be a colossal waste.
Scott Fried is a Slammy Award-winning* writer living and working in New York City. He has been following/writing about professional wrestling for many years and is a graduate of Lance Storm's Storm Wrestling Academy. Follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/scottfried.
*Best Crowd of the Year, 2013
