Every Wrestler Who Defeated John Cena For The WWE Title (And How They Did It)
3. Daniel Bryan
Not only did Daniel Bryan beat John Cena clean with an then-unestablished finisher, he did so at the climax to one of the greatest WWE matches of all time.
Slightly forgotten due to post-match action that saw Randy Orton and Triple H reveal an alliance against Bryan that would run all the way through to the following year's WrestleMania, the absorbing near-thirty minute title contest between the real life brothers-in-law is rightfully considered one of the finest main events in company history, and was huge in cementing Bryan's place in WWE's upper echelon.
Cena would take a brief hiatus the following night to get surgery on a nagging tricep injury, but even to those with knowledge of his latest niggle, a clean Bryan victory was still wholly unpredictable.
Hitting a brutal running single leg high knee for the win, Daniel's title reign would last mere minutes before the aforementioned 'Money In The Bank' cash-in from Orton, but as victories over Cena go, (especially in a title situation) this remains one of the most surprising and conclusive to ever occur.