25 Best John Cena Matches

By the time Night of Champions 2012 rolled around, John Cena and CM Punk had already proven how well they worked together. After Punk - newly turned heel and entering his ninth month as WWE Champion - defeated Cena and Big Show in a triple threat match at SummerSlam by pinning Show, another singles encounter between the two masters of the ring was imminent.

This time, the story was different - Punk had vocally complained about being overshadowed by Cena despite being WWE Champion, and he immediately proved he deserved the spotlight. He dominated Cena, answering every bit of the challenger's offense with a reversal or retaliation. Cena managed to kick out of the Go To Sleep, but when he followed up with an AA, Punk kicked out. The champion continued to outfox Cena, but he began to get frustrated when he couldn't keep him down for three. Punk used a Rock Bottom for two, and Cena came back with another AA for a near-fall. Cena then hit Punk with a bridging German suplex off the second rope, but both men's shoulders were counted down and the bout was ruled a draw. Cena had finally managed to take the fight to Punk, but he had failed to win the title.