John Felix Anthony Cena is an American actor and a current part-time professional wrestler in the WWE. He is known as the “franchise player” of WWE because of how profitable his career has been for the WWE. Cena has always been WWE’s top merch seller, and despite having a part-time schedule, he has remained the fan favorite. Aside from WWE, Cena also holds the world record for the most wishes granted by the Make-A-Wish Foundation, having granted over 650 wishes.
John Cena started his professional wrestling career in 2002, when he debuted on SmackDown in a segment against Kurt Angle. He wrestled his first-ever WWE match on the same night against Kurt Angle. After his initial character failed, WWE pivoted to the persona of “The Doctor of Thuganomics”. He won his first-ever singles title at WrestleMania XX by defeating The Big Show to win the United States Championship. Over the years, despite being the face of WWE, he started receiving boos from the WWE universe, which led to the famous split “Let’s Go Cena / Cena Sucks” chants. The reason behind this was that fans were tired of seeing Cena win every single match, and they started to call him Super Cena.
Cena slowly shifted his focus from WWE to Hollywood, and he wrestled his last match as a full-time wrestler at Hell in a Cell 2015. Over the years, Cena has become a huge name in the Hollywood industry, securing many big roles, including Christopher Smith, aka Peacemaker, in the DC Universe. Cena is also the only WWE wrestler who has won the WWE Championship 17 times. As of 2025, he is on his retirement tour, and he will wrestle his last match on December 14, 2025, at Saturday Night’s Main Event.
John Cena’s Top Rivalries in WWE
1. The Franchise Player vs The Rater “R” Superstar
John Cena vs Edge has been one of the biggest rivalries in the history of professional wrestling. During this rivalry, Cena played the character of the franchise player, representing the company, and the Rated “R” Superstar, Edge, played the role of a rebel. Their rivalry officially started when Edge cashed in the first-ever Money in the Bank contract on Cena to win the WWE Championship. However, Cena won his title back at the Royal Rumble 2006.
The peak of this rivalry happened at the Unforgiven 2006, where Cena and Edge faced each other in a TLC match for the WWE Championship. This Premium Live Event took place in Edge’s hometown of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. As a result, despite being a face in this feud, Cena received heavy boos from the audience. However, Cena overcame all of this and delivered an Attitude Adjustment to Edge from the top of a 16-foot ladder to secure the win in this match. Even after this rivalry ended, they continued to cross each other’s path, often facing each other in multi-man matches.
2. The Face of the Company vs The Voice of the Voiceless
John Cena vs CM Punk is another rivalry that has changed WWE forever. This rivalry officially peaked on Monday Night Raw, June 27, 2011, when Punk came out and sat cross-legged on the entrance ramp, and delivered an unscripted-sounding promo against Cena. He labeled Cena as an “ass-kisser” as he was delivering his promo; his mic was cut off by the WWE management, further fueling the perception that Punk had gone completely rogue. This promo went viral and quickly turned CM Punk into the biggest thing in wrestling.
One of the most memorable matches in this rivalry took place at the Money in the Bank 2011 in CM Punk’s hometown of Chicago, Illinois. This match had very high stakes because, as per the storyline, CM Punk’s contract with WWE was ending at the end of the Event, and Punk had promised that he would walk out of the WWE with the WWE Championship. At the end of the match, Punk defeated Cena, grabbed the WWE championship, blew a kiss to Vince McMahon at ringside, and walked through the audience, indicating he was leaving the company. Their last match against each other took place at the Night of Champions 2025, where Cena defeated Punk.
3. The Present vs The Past
One of the most exciting rivalries in Cena’s career has been against The Rock. This rivalry began when The Rock returned to the WWE after seven years and immediately took shots at Cena. Their first physical clash took place at WrestleMania XXVII, when The Rock delivered a Rock Bottom to Cena, costing him the WWE Championship against the Miz in the main event. The next night on Raw, Cena challenged The Rock to a match, and The Rock accepted the match, but proposed that the match should happen one year later at WrestleMania XXVIII.
Their first-ever one-on-one match took place at WrestleMania XXVIII on April 1, 2012, at the Sun Life Stadium. This match was billed as “Once in a Lifetime”; at the end of the match, as Cena was about to hit the five-knuckle shuffle, The Rock countered the move and delivered a final Rock Bottom to secure the victory in this match. A year later, at WrestleMania 29, they had a rematch, but this match was for the WWE Championship. The Rock walked into this match as the champion, and Cena was the challenger. Cena redeemed himself in this match, as he defeated The Rock to win the WWE Championship.
4. The Champ vs The Legend Killer
John Cena and Randy Orton have had a memorable rivalry over the past decade; they have faced each other in multiple matches. One of the most memorable matches in their rivalry took place at TLC 2013, which was a title unification match, where the WWE and the World Heavyweight Championship were merged. This match is considered one of the best matches in WWE. This match was ultimately won by Randy Orton when he retrieved both the WWE and World Heavyweight Championship belts from above the ring. Their last match against each other took place at Backlash 2025, where Cena defeated Randy Orton to retain his Undisputed WWE Championship.
5. Greatest of All Time vs The Face That Runs the Place
John Cena vs AJ Styles was one of the biggest dream matches of every wrestling fan during the 2010s. This match officially took place after Styles signed with the WWE in 2016, and Cena and Styles wrestled their first-ever singles match at Money in the Bank 2016, where Styles defeated John Cena. Over the years, they have had many memorable matches, including their match at the Royal Rumble 2017, where Cena defeated Styles to become a 16-time World Champion. Their last match against each other took place at Crown Jewel 2025, where Cena defeated AJ Styles.
FAQs
Q. Does John Cena hate The Rock?
A. John Cena and The Rock have had real-life issues, where both of them have criticized each other.
Q. Will John Cena face Edge in his retirement tour?
A. John Cena will not face Edge in his retirement tour, as Edge is currently signed with AEW.
Q. Will John Cena receive a tribute show?
A. As per the latest reports, Triple H wanted a 2-hour tribute show for John Cena, but Cena declined the offer and instead wanted to see young wrestlers from NXT to perform on his retirement show.
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