How Good Was John Cena Actually?
Moments
John Cena played a role in some of the greatest moments in WWE history.
It was Cena with his back on the mat when CM Punk kissed WWE goodbye at Money In The Bank 2011. It was Punk’s night - but that moment does not feel like a life-affirming relief, if Cena didn’t play the role of invincible company Ace so effectively.
Cena was also battered by the Nexus in one of the strongest debut angles ever. It’s an ultra-rare occasion, when the polished WWE produces a genuinely chaotic and unsettling scene. A rare, giving performance on Cena’s part put it over the top - a key argument as to why he was protected so heavily in the first place.
Cena created a moment a week with his incredibly tasteless battle raps. It’s hard to watch them now, but back then, they catapulted him to the top.
Even when Cena was performing in less than seminal programmes, he had the ability to unleash something that will stick with you. John Cena Vs. Edge Vs. the Big Show won’t make it near the top of any “best WrestleMania matches” lists, but he hit both of them with the AA at the same time. What a spot that was, Jesus Christ: it was stupidly impressive on his part to do it Big Show alone. Was it even the best moment involving Cena and Edge?
No: that was the wild finish to their awesome TLC war at Unforgiven 2006.
Cena suspecting that the Rock had used notes for a promo was an eclipse-rare moment where nobody could be sure if the segment was a work or a shoot. Cena’s return at Royal Rumble 2008 was mind-blowing - so much so that the contrarian Madison Square Garden temporarily forgot that they were meant to hate him.
The legend of John Cena is so mythical that his challenging Kurt Angle is considered to be the start of an entire era in WWE - Ruthless Aggression - when in fact, Cena was demoted very shortly afterwards.
Cena was also responsible for some of the worst and destructive moments in WWE history, too.
8/10