This 16-time world champion has a lot to be thankful for. Professional Wrestler and actor John Cena is a talent in the wrestling ring and outside of it.
John Cena’s Early Life
Cena grew up in West Newbury, Massachusetts. He grew up as a wrestling fan and lived with brothers and sisters growing up. He started wrestling at an early age in the Indies in front of a small crowd. This is where Cena established newfound rivalries that would later, have meaning in the big leagues.
Cenas Early Run in WWE
Cena signed a contract early with the company in 2002 and had his first match against Kurt Angle on an episode of SmackDown in July of the same year. Angle had asked him, “What makes you think you should step with the very best in the business?” Cena responded with “RUTHLESS AGGRESSION” and slapped Angle before the match began. He didn’t win the match, but he gained respect from the fans, including a handshake from the Undertaker that night.
Later on, he changed his character to the doctor of Thuganomics. this is where he would have different scenarios before the matches to drop some verses on wrestlers before wrestling them. His push didn’t really start until early 2004, when he won the United States championship against the big show at WrestleMania 20. he had eventually turned face and stayed that way for a long time.
John Cena’s Peak in Wrestling
His primary wrestling didn’t start until WrestleMania 21, where he defeated JBL for the WWE championship in a classic bout. this is where he established epic rivalries with the likes of Edge, Chris Jericho, Triple H, Batista, Shawn Michaels, The Miz, Randy Orton, Brock Lesnar, RVD, and many more. During this run, the fans didn’t really respect the way they did. Most believed that he was privileged as the next Hulk Hogan. It took a lot of time for Cena to gain the respect of the fans, even though he made Make-a-Wish Donations to young ones.
Cena’s Redemption Tour
Around 2011, people had their voices heard and CM Punk was a prime example of what people were talking about with John Cena. They had a great rivalry and then Cena went on to face the Rock at WrestleMania 28 the following year. He lost that match, but he beat Dwyane the following year for the WWE championship. It still took time for people to respect Cena as a leader in the wrestling industry. He had a classic match with Daniel Bryan at Summerslam in 2013 and took a break. In particular, he had feuds with the likes of Bray Wyatt and went over him. Around early 2016, Cena took his talents to Hollywood and still does movies here and there.
One rivalry that stood out and made people respect Cena for who he is in the ring was against AJ Styles in 2016. These two had an unforgettable match at Summerslam 2016 where Styles won, but Cena beat him to win the WWE Title at Royal Rumble 2017. This is where fans realized that Cena has a passion for this industry and knew why the company pushed him for the way he did.
He has one over 16 world titles total in his career, tying WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair’s record in titles won. Cena tried to get 17 by facing Roman Reigns for the WWE Universal Championship but didn’t win. His last recent Mania match was against Austin Theory at Wrestlemania 39 for th
e United States Championship, but did not win that either. Nonetheless, Cena’s impact on wrestling will be idolized for generations to come.
About The Author
Samuel has always loved sports. He has written for the Wingate Triangle at Wingate University. Rodriguez got a BS in Communications with a Sports Media Emphasis. He is also pursuing a Cybersecurity Operations Certificate at Fayetteville Technical Community College. His social media handles are @samtheman_27 (Instagram), @DatManSam (Twitter) and Rodriguez Samuel (Facebook)
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