John Cena
Encyclopedia
John Felix Anthony Cena (ˈsiːnə; born April 23, 1977) is an American professional wrestler
, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw
brand
.
In WWE, Cena has won 19 championships in total, including 12 World Titles (having won the WWE Championship
a record 10 times and the World Heavyweight Championship
twice). In addition, Cena has also won the WWE United States Championship
three times, and is a four-time Tag Team Champion, having held the World Tag Team Championship twice (once each with Shawn Michaels
, and Batista), and the WWE Tag Team Championship
twice (once each with David Otunga
and The Miz). Cena also won the 2008 Royal Rumble match, and is a two-time Superstar of the Year Slammy Award winner (2009 and 2010). He also has the fourth highest number of combined days as WWE Champion behind Bob Backlund
, Hulk Hogan
& Bruno Sammartino
.
Cena started his professional wrestling career in 2000, wrestling for Ultimate Pro Wrestling, where he held the UPW Heavyweight Championship. In 2001, Cena signed a contract with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and was sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling
(OVW) where he held the OVW Heavyweight Championship
and the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
(with Rico Constantino
).
Outside of wrestling, Cena has released the rap album You Can't See Me
, which debuted at No.15 on the US Billboard 200
chart, and starred in the feature films The Marine
(2006), 12 Rounds
(2009), and Legendary
(2010). Cena has also made appearances on television shows including Manhunt
, Deal or No Deal, MADtv
, Saturday Night Live
, Punk'd
, and Psych
. Cena was also a contestant on Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race
, where he made it to the final round before being eliminated, placing third in the overall competition.
, Massachusetts, the son of Carol and John Cena, Sr. He is the second eldest of five brothers – Dan, Matt, Steve, and Sean. After graduating from Cushing Academy
, Cena attended Springfield College
in Springfield
, Massachusetts. In college he was a Division III All-America
n center
on the college football
team, wearing the number 54, which is still used on some of his WWE merchandise. He graduated from Springfield in 1998 with a degree in exercise physiology
, after which he pursued a career in bodybuilding
, and also worked as a chauffeur for a limousine company.
character known as The Prototype. Some of this period of his career was documented in the Discovery Channel
program Inside Pro Wrestling School. While in UPW, Cena held the UPW Heavyweight Championship for just shy of a month in April 2000.
(WWF) and was assigned to its developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling
(OVW). During his time there, Cena wrestled as both The Prototype and Mr. P, and held the OVW Heavyweight Championship
for three months and the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
(with Rico Constantino
) for two months.
Cena made his television debut answering an open challenge by Kurt Angle
on June 27, 2002. Inspired by a speech given by WWE Chairman Vince McMahon
to the rising stars of the company, exhorting them to show "ruthless aggression" to earn a place among the legends, Cena took advantage of the opportunity and almost beat Angle kicking out of his finishing move, the Angle Slam and enduring the ankle lock submission hold. Cena ultimately lost to a hard amateur wrestling
-style pin. Following the near-win, Cena became a fan favorite
and started feuding
with Chris Jericho
. In October, Cena and Billy Kidman took part in a tag team
tournament to crown the first WWE Tag Team Champions of the SmackDown! brand
, losing in the first round. The next week, Cena turned on and attacked Kidman, blaming him for their loss, becoming a villain.
Shortly after the Kidman attack, on a Halloween
themed episode of SmackDown, Cena dressed as Vanilla Ice
performing a freestyle rap
. The next week, Cena received a new character: a rapper who cut promos while rhyming. As the gimmick grew, Cena began adopting a variant of the 1980s WWF logo – dropping the "F" – as his "signature symbol", along with the slogan "Word Life". Moreover, he was joined by an enforcer, Bull Buchanan
, who was rechristened B-2 (also written B² and pronounced "B-Squared"). Buchanan was later replaced by Red Dogg
, until he was sent to the Raw
brand in February.
For the first half of 2003, Cena sought the WWE Championship
and chased the reigning champion, Brock Lesnar
, performing weekly "freestyles" challenging him to matches. During the feud, Cena unveiled a new finishing maneuver: the FU, a Fireman's carry powerslam, named to mock Lesnar's F-5. Cena won a number one contenders tournament against Lesnar at Backlash
. However, Cena was defeated by Lesnar. At Vengeance
Cena lost a singles match against The Undertaker. At the end of the year, Cena became a fan favorite again when he joined Kurt Angle as a member of his team at Survivor Series
.
In early 2004, Cena participated in the Royal Rumble match at the 2004 Royal Rumble
, making it to the final six before being eliminated by Big Show and the Match being won by Chris Benoit
. The Royal Rumble elimination led to a feud with Big Show, which Cena won the United States Championship
from Big Show at WrestleMania XX
. During his reign, Cena came into contention with SmackDown General Manager Kurt Angle
over issues arising with René Duprée
and Torrie Wilson
. The reign ended almost four months later, when he was stripped of the belt on July 8 by Angle after he accidentally knocked him over, thus attacking an official. Cena won the championship back defeating Booker T
in a best of five series that culminated at No Mercy, only to lose it to the debuting Carlito Caribbean Cool
the next week. After the loss to Carlito, the duo began a feud, which Cena was stabbed in the kidney
while at a Boston-area nightclub by Carlito's bodyguard, Jesús
. This worked injury was used to keep Cena out of action for a month, while Cena was filming The Marine
. Immediately on his return in November, Cena won the United States Championship back from Carlito debuting a "custom made" spinner
-style championship belt.
Cena took part in the 2005 Royal Rumble match, making it to the final two. Cena and Raw
brand
wrestler Batista went over the top rope at the same time, ostensibly ending the match. Vince McMahon
, however, appeared on stage and re-started the match in sudden death rules, with Batista eventually eliminating Cena. The next month, Cena defeated Kurt Angle to earn a spot in the SmackDown brand's WrestleMania 21
main event match, beginning a feud with WWE Champion
John "Bradshaw" Layfield
(JBL) and his Cabinet in the process. In the early stages of the feud, Cena lost his US belt to Cabinet member Orlando Jordan
, who proceeded to "blow up" the spinner championship with JBL and returning a more traditional style belt. Cena defeated JBL at WrestleMania winning the WWE Championship, giving Cena his first world championship. Cena then had a spinner WWE Championship belt made, while JBL took the original belt and claimed to still be WWE Champion, until Cena reclaimed the original belt in an "I Quit" match at Judgment Day
.
Cena was drafted to the Raw brand on the June 6, 2005, becoming the first wrestler selected by General Manager Eric Bischoff
in the annual draft lottery. Cena immediately entered a feud with Bischoff, after refusing to participate in the "war" against the Extreme Championship Wrestling
(ECW) roster at One Night Stand. With Bischoff vowing to make Cena's stint on Raw difficult, he hand picked Jericho to take Cena's championship from him. During their feud, even though Cena was portrayed as the fan favorite and Jericho as the villain
, a vocal section of live crowds, nonetheless, were booing Cena during their matches. More crowds followed suit during Cena's next feud with Kurt Angle
, who took over as Bischoff's hand-picked number-one contender after Cena defeated Jericho in a You're Fired match on the August 22 Raw. As the feud continued and the dissenters grew more vocal, sometimes seeming to outnumber fans by wide margins, the announce team was forced to acknowledge the booing on television and began calling Cena a "controversial champion", claiming some people disliking him on account of his "in-ring style" and his chosen fashion. Despite the mixed and negative reactions, Cena held on to his championship through his feud with Angle, losing to him by disqualification – which titles do not change hands in WWE – at Unforgiven
and pinning him at Survivor Series
. The feud with Angle also saw Cena add a secondary, submission based, finishing maneuver – the STFU (a Stepover Toehold Sleeper, though named for a Stepover Toehold Facelock) – when he was put into a Triple Threat Submissions Only match on the November 28 Raw.
Cena lost the WWE Championship
at New Year's Revolution
, but not in the Elimination Chamber
match that he had been advertised to participate in beforehand. Instead, immediately after winning the Elimination Chamber, he was forced into a match against Edge, who cashed in his Money in the Bank
contract – a "guaranteed title match for the WWE Champion at a time and place of the owners choosing." After two quick spears pinned Cena, winning the championship. Three weeks later, Cena won the championship back at the Royal Rumble
. After winning the championship, Cena began feuding
with Triple H
, which the crowd began booing Cena and cheering the intended villain, Triple H. Cena beat Triple H at Wrestlemania 22
to retain his WWE Title. The negative reaction towards Cena intensified when facing Rob Van Dam
at One Night Stand. Taking place in front of a crowd of mostly "old school" ECW fans at the Hammerstein Ballroom
, Cena was met with raucous jeering and chants of "Fuck you, Cena", "You can't wrestle", and "Same old shit". When he began performing different moves into the match, the fans began chanting "You still suck". Cena lost the WWE Championship at One Night Stand, with Van Dam pinning Cena after interference from Edge.
In July, after Edge won the championship from Van Dam in a Triple Threat match that also involved Cena, re-ignited the feud between him and Cena from earlier in the year. After Edge went about retaining the title by dubious means – getting himself disqualified (for which Championships do not change hands) and using brass knuckles
– he introduced his own version of Cena's "custom" belt, this one with his logo placed on the spinner. Cena eventually won the championship back in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match
at Unforgiven
. The match had an added stipulation that had Cena lost he would leave the Raw brand and go to SmackDown. Cena returned his version of the spinner belt on the next night's Raw.
On the heels of his feud with Edge, Cena was placed in an inter-brand angle to determine the "Champion of Champions" – or which was the most dominant champion in WWE's three brands. Cena, the World Heavyweight Champion
King Booker
, and the ECW World Champion The Big Show engaged in a mini-feud leading to a Triple Threat match at Cyber Sunday
, with the viewers voting on which of the three championships would be placed on the line. At the same time, Cena became involved in a storyline with non-wrestler Kevin Federline
, when he began appearing on Raw with Johnny Nitro and Melina
. After getting into a worked physical altercation with Federline on Raw, Federline appeared at Cyber Sunday to hit Cena with the World Heavyweight Championship during the match, helping King Booker retain his championship. 2006 ended with Cena beginning a feud with the undefeated Umaga
over the WWE Championship, while 2007 began with the end of his storyline with Kevin Federline. On the first Raw of the new year, Cena was pinned by Federline with an assist from Umaga, although later in the night he was able to get his hands on Federline performing an FU on him.
One night after the Royal Rumble, an impromptu team of Cena and Shawn Michaels
defeated Rated-RKO
(Edge and Randy Orton
) for the World Tag Team Championship, making Cena a double champion. On the April 2 episode of Raw, after losing a WWE Championship match to Cena at WrestleMania 23
, Michaels turned on Cena, costing them the championship in the second of two 10 team battles royals
, by throwing Cena over the top rope and eliminating the team. The Hardys
(Matt
and Jeff
) eventually won the match and the championship. For the rest of the month, Cena feuded with Michaels, Orton, and Edge until The Great Khali declared his intentions to challenge for Cena's championship attacking and "laying out" all three of the top contenders before assaulting Cena himself and stealing the physical belt. For the next two months, Cena feuded with Khali over the championship, eventually becoming the first person in WWE to defeat him by submission at Judgment Day
and then by pinfall at One Night Stand
. Later that summer, Randy Orton was named the number one contender for the WWE championship, starting a feud between the two. Leading up to SummerSlam
, Orton delivered a number of sneak-attacks, performing three RKOs
to Cena, but in the actual match, Cena retained the championship. A rematch between the two occurred at Unforgiven
, with Orton winning by disqualification after Cena ignored the referee's instructions and continued to beat on him in the corner.
During a match with Mr. Kennedy on the October 1, 2007 episode of Raw, Cena suffered a legitimate torn pectoral muscle
while executing a hip toss. Though finishing the match and taking part in the scripted attack by Randy Orton after the match, surgery the following day found that his pectoralis major muscle was torn completely from the bone, estimating at the time to require seven months to a year of rehabilitation. As a result, Cena was stripped of the title in an announcement by Vince McMahon on the next night's episode of ECW, ending what was the longest WWE Championship reign in over 19 years. Cena's surgery was performed by orthopedic surgeon James Andrews
at St. Vincent's Hospital in Birmingham
, Alabama. Two weeks later, in a video update on WWE.com, Dr. Andrews and Cena's physical trainer both said that he was several weeks ahead of where he was expected to be in his rehabilitation at that time. Despite his injury, Cena attended the annual WWE Tribute to the Troops show filmed at Camp Speicher in Tikrit
, Iraq on December 7, and aired on December 24.
match, winning the match, and the traditional WrestleMania title shot, by last eliminating Triple H
. Instead of waiting until WrestleMania, the title shot was cashed in against WWE Champion
Randy Orton
at February's No Way Out
pay-per-view in a match where Cena won by disqualification, resulting in him not getting the championship. The night after No Way Out, Cena was placed back into WrestleMania XXIV
's WWE Championship match, making it a Triple Threat match also involving Triple H, during which he was pinned by Orton. At Backlash
, Cena failed to regain the title in a Fatal Four-Way elimination match, in which he was pinned by Orton. Triple H won the title during that match. During the match, Cena eliminated JBL, renewing their feud from 2005. Cena defeated JBL at Judgment Day
and then at One Night Stand
in a First Blood match. JBL, however, defeated him in a New York City Parking Lot Brawl at The Great American Bash
in July.
On the August 4 edition of Raw, Cena became a World Tag Team Champion for a second time, teaming with Batista to defeat Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase
, but failed to retain the titles the following week against the former champions. Batista defeated Cena at SummerSlam
; shortly after, he was named one of four contenders for CM Punk
's World Heavyweight Championship
in the Championship scramble match at Unforgiven
. He was replaced by Rey Mysterio, however, after announcing Cena had suffered a herniated disc in his neck, which would require surgery. Cena underwent successful surgery to repair the injury.
Cena made his in-ring return at the November pay-per-view event, Survivor Series
, defeating Chris Jericho
to win his first World Heavyweight Championship. The two continued their rivalry up to Armageddon
, where Cena retained his championship. Cena lost the championship at No Way Out
, to Edge after Kofi Kingston
was attacked by Edge, who took his place in the Elimination Chamber match. Cena was given an opportunity to regain the title at WrestleMania XXV
in a Triple Threat match also involving Big Show, which Cena won.
Cena lost the championship back to Edge in a Last Man Standing match at Backlash
after interference from Big Show, who chokeslammed Cena through a big spotlight. This angle resulted in Cena beginning a feud with Big Show. Cena defeated Big Show at Judgment Day
and at Extreme Rules
in a Submission match by applying the STFU.
At the July pay-per-view, Night of Champions
, he participated in a Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship, which also involved Triple H and WWE Champion Randy Orton. Cena, however, did not win the match. Two months later, at Breaking Point
, Cena defeated Randy Orton for the WWE Championship in an "I Quit" match to win his fourth WWE Championship. At Hell in a Cell, Cena dropped the title to Orton in a Hell in a Cell match. Three weeks later, at WWE Bragging Rights, Cena defeated Orton in a 60-minute Iron Man match
.
Two months later, Cena would lose the title to Sheamus at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs in a Tables match.
In February 2010, Cena regained the WWE title at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view in an Elimination Chamber
match after last eliminating Triple H. However, immediately after the match Mr. McMahon declared that he would immediately defend his title against Batista, who had been involved with Cena in Vince McMahon
and Bret Hart
's rivalry. Cena lost that match to Batista, and the WWE Championship and marking one of the shortest WWE Championship reigns in history. The following night after the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, Cena asked for a rematch for the title at WrestleMania, which McMahon gave him the opportunity to as long as he defeated Batista that night. Later that night, Batista intentionally got himself disqualified by kicking Cena in the groin to set up their match at WrestleMania XXVI
. At the event, Cena defeated Batista to win back the WWE title. At the April pay-per-view, Extreme Rules
, Cena defeated Batista in a rematch for the WWE title in a Last Man Standing match. He faced Batista one more time in an I Quit match at Over the Limit which he successfully won.
, he was attacked by all eight former contestants of WWE NXT Season 1, with Wade Barrett
as their leader. Punk, his follower Luke Gallows
, and other personnel around the ring were attacked as well, but Cena took the worst of the attack and was carried out on a stretcher. This group would later refer to themselves as The Nexus
.
At June's Fatal 4-Way
event, Cena lost the WWE title to Sheamus in a fatal four-way match that also involved Edge and Randy Orton due to interference by Nexus. The following month, in a WWE title rematch against Sheamus in a steel cage match at the Money in the Bank
pay-per-view, the group interfered, thus costing Cena the chance of regaining the championship. Cena later formed an alliance with Edge, Chris Jericho, John Morrison, R-Truth
, The Great Khali and Bret Hart
to face the Nexus at SummerSlam
, where Cena's team defeated Nexus with the returning Daniel Bryan
, a former member of Nexus, who replaced Khali after getting injured.
Nexus's actions, however, did not stop after SummerSlam. Hoping to end Nexus for good, Cena challenged Wade Barrett to a match at "Hell in a Cell
" only to lose due to interference by two fans, later identified as Husky Harris
and Michael McGillicutty
. Due to the stipulations in place, Cena was forced to join Nexus. Cena had originally planned to destroy Nexus from within as a member of the group, but the Raw general manager ordered him to follow orders from Barrett, or else he would be fired. At Bragging Rights, Cena and Nexus member David Otunga
defeated "Dashing" Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre to win the Tag Team Championship
.
Later in the show Cena was forced to help Barrett to win his WWE Championship
match against Randy Orton. If Barrett didn't win the match Cena would be fired. Cena twisted his words around and attacked Barrett, giving Barrett the win via disqualification but not Orton's title. The following day, Cena and Otunga lost the Tag Team Championship to fellow Nexus members Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel, when Barrett ordered Otunga to lay down and lose the title. At Survivor Series
, Cena officiated a match for the WWE Championship between Wade Barrett and Randy Orton. As a part of a pre-match stipulation, if Barrett didn't win the championship, Cena would be fired from the WWE.
Orton defeated Barrett to retain the title, thus ending Cena's career in the WWE. The following day on Raw, Cena gave a farewell speech, before costing Wade Barrett the WWE Championship by interfering in his rematch with Randy Orton. A week later, Cena invaded Raw, first as a spectator, but he then attacked members of Nexus, explaining that he would still take down Nexus one by one, despite not having a job in the WWE anymore. On the December 13 episode of Raw, Cena was rehired by Barrett, in exchange that he would face him at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs
in a Chairs Match. Prior to TLC, Cena teamed up with Randy Orton
and Rey Mysterio to defeat Wade Barrett
, The Miz and Alberto Del Rio at The WWE Tribute to the Troops. On December 19 at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, John Cena was victorious against Wade Barrett in a Chairs match in the main event of the evening.
On the December 27 edition of Raw, The Nexus, minus Wade Barrett, announced they were under new management and offered to bury the hatchet with John Cena, to which Cena refused. The Nexus attacked Cena, leaving a Nexus armband in the ring during the process. As the group retreated, CM Punk
, who had attacked Cena with a steel chair twice the week before, came to the ring to, what looked like attack John Cena, but instead put on the armband left behind to symbolically announce his allegiance with The Nexus. The next week, Wade Barrett returned to Raw and confronted CM Punk over the issue of who the leader of The Nexus was and who was responsible for Cena's attack the week before. Barrett was placed into a Triple Threat Steel Cage Match that night that would determine the No. 1 contender for the WWE Championship. CM Punk added his own stipulation to the match saying if Barrett lost, he would be banished from the group, but if he won he would remain leader. Wade Barrett would lose the match after CM Punk interfered by ripping of Barrett's armband.
On the January 17 edition of Raw, Cena returned and faced Punk in a match. During the match, a man, who would later be revealed to be Mason Ryan, attacked Cena. At the 2011 Royal Rumble
Cena eliminated the majority of the Nexus members and ended their feud.
John Cena made it to the final five before being eliminated by The Miz, who was not officially a participant in the match. On the January 31 edition of Raw, John Cena was placed in a battle royal with six other superstars to determine who would face The Miz for his WWE Championship at the Elimination Chamber
pay-per-view. Cena would lose the battle royal, and as a result of the anonymous general manager's stipulation, he was placed in the Elimination Chamber match
that would determine the number one contender to the WWE Championship. At Elimination Chamber, The Miz retained his title against Jerry "The King" Lawler
, and Cena won the Elimination Chamber match, thus earning a WWE Championship match at WrestleMania XXVII
. On the February 21 edition of Raw, Cena rapped on The Rock, the guest host of WrestleMania, in response to some comments against him the week before. The Rock had mocked Cena's colorful shirts by calling him a "big fat bowl of Fruity Pebbles" and his "You Can't See Me" gimmick by referring to it as him playing peek-a-boo. Later that night, by order of the Raw general manager, Cena was placed into a WWE Tag Team Championship
match against newly crowned champions Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel, with his partner being The Miz. The duo successfully defeated the two members of The Corre, becoming the new Tag Team Champions. They were immediately challenged to a rematch during which The Miz betrayed Cena, resulting in The Corre winning back the Tag Team Championship. On the February 28 edition of Raw, The Rock mocked Cena's rap and continued insulting him, including calling him a "Yabba Dabba bitch", referring to the Fruity Pebbles remark made two weeks before. Cena and The Rock finally met face-to-face on the March 28 edition of Raw, which ended with Cena hitting The Rock with the Attitude Adjustment. On April 3 at WrestleMania XXVII the match ended in a double count out, which meant The Miz retained the WWE Championship. The Rock then restarted the match, only to slam Cena and cost him the match. The next night on Raw, Cena called out The Rock leading to The Rock challenging Cena to a match at Wrestlemania XXVIII
which Cena accepted making it the first time ever that the WrestleMania Main Event had been set a year in advance.
The next week, Cena participated in a 5 man gauntlet match to determine the No.1 contender to face The Miz at Extreme Rules
. Cena was the last to come out against R-Truth. The Miz then interfered in the match, resulting in a disqualification; however, it was then announced that they would both face the latter in a triple threat Steel Cage match at Extreme Rules. However, the following week, John Morrison defeated R-Truth to take his place in the match per the pre match stipulation. On the 2011 WWE Draft
, Cena was drafted back to SmackDown in the overall first pick, only to end up drafted back to Raw with the final draft pick of the night.
At Extreme Rules
, John Cena defeated John Morrison
and The Miz in a Triple threat Cage Match to become the WWE Champion once again. He defended the WWE Championship against The Miz at Over The Limit
in an I Quit match and would later defeat R-Truth at Capitol Punishment
.
Cena was then scheduled to face number one contender CM Punk
for the WWE Championship
at Money in the Bank
. However, Punk would, on the June 27 edition of Monday Night RAW, deliver a scathing on-air speech concerning the way in which WWE is run and its owner Vince McMahon
. This resulted in Punk's suspension from televised WWE events. McMahon would later reinstate CM Punk on the condition that John Cena, who heavily petitioned for Punk's reinstatement, would be fired on site if defeated for the championship. In his hometown of Chicago, in front of nearly 15000 fans, most of whom cheered Punk and heavily booed Cena before and through the match, CM Punk would go on to win the match and flee the arena with the WWE Championship. The following night on Raw, after an emotional speech by Cena, before McMahon could fire him, Triple H announced he was named as new COO and head of day-to-day operations in WWE and reinstated Cena. On the July 25th edition of RAW, Cena defeated newly-crowned WWE Champion Rey Mysterio to regain the title for a record breaking nineth time. Soon after, CM Punk returned to the WWE with his title in hand causing both Cena and Punk to be recognized as WWE Champions at the same time. Triple H announced that both champions would face off against one another at Summerslam
to determine the "undisputed" WWE Champion with Triple H as the referee. During the match, Triple H didn't see Cena's leg on the bottom rope
during the pin, causing Cena to lose the match. but Punk would lose it immediately to Alberto Del Rio after he cashed in his Money in the Bank contract.
On the August 22nd edition of Raw, Cena defeated Punk to become the number one contender for the WWE Championship held by Alberto Del Rio. After the match, Del Rio savagely attacked Cena. On the August 29th edition of Raw, Cena would call out Del Rio, but Del Rio would not appear. On the August 30th edition of Smackdown, Cena would call out Del Rio again. This time, Ricardo Rodriguez
, Del Rio's personal ring announcer, appeared claiming that Del Rio was unable to attend before being attacked by Cena. At Night of Champions
, Cena defeated Del Rio to win the WWE Championship for a record tenth time. He would lose the title two weeks later to Del Rio at Hell in a Cell
in a Triple Threat Hell in a Cell match that also involved CM Punk, after Ricardo Rodriguez and Del Rio locked him out of the cage.
On the October 11th edition of Raw, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim Raw Manager John Laurinaitis
announced that Cena would have a rematch with Del Rio for the title at Vengeance. A week later, Cena teamed up with WWE announcer Jim Ross
to defeat Del Rio and fellow announcer Michael Cole
. As the winner, Cena has the right to select a stipulation for the rematch, which Cena made a Last Man Standing Match. At Vegeance, Del Rio defeated Cena followed by interference from The Miz and R-Truth.
On the October 24th edition of RAW, Cena won the match via disqualification when R-Truth hit his bottle on Cena's head. After Truth and Miz brutally beat Cena, they were interrupted by WWE Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim Raw Manager John Laurinaitis
, who let Cena choose his partner against Awesome Truth at Survivor Series
. Cena said that the WWE locker room is no longer safe as Triple H
and Zack Ryder
were attacked brutally. He said is partner at Survivor Series will be someone who will "Bring It" and chose his WrestleMania opponent The Rock as his partner. At Survivor Series The Rock & Cena defeated Awesome Truth but Cena was given the Rock Bottom after the match.
WWE Studios, a division of World Wrestling Entertainment which produces and finances motion pictures, produced Cena's first movie — The Marine
, which was distributed theatrically by 20th Century Fox
America beginning on October 13, 2006. In its first week, the film made approximately US$7 million at the United States box office. After ten weeks in theaters, the film grossed $18.7 million. Once the film was released on DVD, it fared better, making $30 million in rentals in the first twelve weeks.
His second film, also produced by WWE Studios, was 12 Rounds
. Filming began on February 25, 2008 in New Orleans; the film was released on March 27, 2009.
Cena co-starred in his third film produced by WWE Studios, titled Legendary
, which was played in selected theaters starting on September 10, 2010, for a limited time, then it was released on DVD on September 28, 2010.
That same year, Cena starred in the children's film Fred: The Movie
, a film based on Lucas Cruikshank
's YouTube videos of the same name, where he plays Fred's father. The movie was released on the Nickelodeon
channel in September 2010.
show Go Sick as Bruebaker, an angry, cursing wrestler in 2001.
During his WWE career, Cena has appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! three times. Cena has also appeared on morning radio shows; including the CBS
and XM
versions of Opie and Anthony
as part of their "walkover" on October 10, 2006. Other appearances have included Late Night with Conan O'Brien
, Fuse's
Celebrity Playlist, Fox Sports Net
's The Best Damn Sports Show Period
, MADtv
, G4's Training Camp
(with Shelton Benjamin
), and two appearances on MTV's Punk'd
(August 2006 and May 2007), as the victim of a practical joke
. He also served as a co-presenter, with Hulk Hogan
, at the 2005 Teen Choice Awards
, as a guest judge during the third week of the 2006 season of Nashville Star
, and appeared at the 2007 Nickelodeon UK Kids Choice Awards
.
In January 2007, Cena, Batista, and Ashley Massaro
appeared representing WWE on an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
, giving the children of the family whose house was being renovated WWE merchandise and eight tickets to WrestleMania 23
. Two months later, he and Bobby Lashley appeared on the NBC
game show Deal or No Deal
as "moral support" to long time WWE fan and front row staple, Rick "Sign Guy" Achberger. Edge and Randy Orton
also appeared, but as antagonists. On April 9, 2008, Cena, along with fellow wrestlers Triple H
and Chris Jericho
, appeared on the Idol Gives Back
fund-raising special. In March 2009, Cena made an appearance on Saturday Night Live
during the show's cold opening sequence. On March 7, 2009, he was a guest on NPR
's quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
in a Not My Job sequence titled "Sure, pro wrestling is a good gig, but when you win, do they throw teddy bears into the ring?"
, Cena was involved in the UPN
produced reality show Manhunt
. Cena portrayed Big Tim Kingman, leader of the group of bounty hunter
s who chased down the contestants who acted as fugitives. The show, however, was mired in controversy when it was alleged that the portions of the show were rigged to eliminate certain players, scenes were re-shot or staged to enhance drama and contestants read from scripts.
Cena was also featured on the ABC
reality series Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race
, which aired in June 2007, making it to the final round before being eliminated on June 24, placing third in the competition overall.
In 2007 Cena was also interviewed for the CNN Special Investigations Unit
documentary, "Death Grip: Inside Pro Wrestling", which focused on steroid and drug use in professional wrestling. When asked if he had taken steroids he was heard to reply, "I can't tell you that I haven't, but you'll never prove that I have." The day after the documentary aired WWE accused CNN of taking Cena's comments out of context to present a biased point of view, backing up their claim by posting an unedited video of his answering the same question—filmed by WWE cameras from another angle—in which he is heard beginning the same statement with "Absolutely not". A text interview on the website with Cena later had him saying the news outlet should apologize for misrepresenting him, which CNN refused in a statement, saying they felt the true answer to the question began with the phrase "My answer to that question". They did, however, edit the documentary on subsequent airings to include the "Absolutely not".
Cena hosted the Australian Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards with Natalie Bassingthwaighte
on October 11, 2008 in Melbourne, Australia.
He guest starred as Ewan O'Hara in an episode of the fourth season of the comedy drama Psych
, as the brother of Juliet O'Hara
, played by Maggie Lawson
.
He also guest starred in the seventh episode of Disney Channel
's Hannah Montana Forever
as himself.
career, Cena appeared in an advertisement for Gold's Gym
. As a wrestler he has endorsed the energy drink
YJ Stinger
, appearing in commercials beginning in October 2003, and Subway
, for whom he filmed advertisements with their spokesperson Jared Fogle
in November 2006 that began airing the next January. For a time in 2007 he also endorsed two "signature collections" of energy drinks and energy bar
s sold by American Body Builders. In 2008, Cena filmed a commercial as part of Gillette's
"Young Guns" NASCAR
campaign.
In 2009, Cena expanded his relationship with Gillette by introducing a new online campaign called "Be A Superstar" featuring himself alongside WWE Superstars Chris Jericho and Cody Rhodes. The campaign features motivation
al videos.
" until WWE produced specific Cena merchandise which he began wearing. While Cena was a member of the SmackDown! brand, one of his WWE produced t-shirts bore the suggestive spoonerism
"Ruck Fules". Whenever it appeared on television the image was censored, not by the network, but by WWE to sell more shirts under the premise that it was "too hot for TV." He also wore a chain with a large padlock
, occasionally using it as a weapon, until WrestleMania 21
, when it was replaced with a chromed and diamond studded
"Chain Gang" spinner
medallion—reminiscent of the ones worn by members of G-Unit
—matching his spinner title belt.
Around the time The Marine
was released, Cena began wearing attire more military related, including camouflage
shorts, dog tags
, a Marine
soldier cap and a WWE produced shirt with the legend "Chain Gang Assault Battalion." Shortly after WrestleMania 23, when promotion for The Marine ended, the military attire diminished and was replaced with apparel bearing his new slogan "American Made Muscle" along with denim shorts, not seen since he was a member of the SmackDown roster. He then wore shirts that promoted Cenation and his trademark line "You Can't See Me." In late 2011, Cena again switched to wearing camo shorts (to honor the U.S. Armed Forces), coininciding with his new black "Rise Above Hate" T-shirt promoting WWE's "Be a Star" anti-bullying campaign.
ian. Cena performed his fifth WWE theme song
, "Basic Thugonomics," himself, and it was featured on the WWE soundtrack album WWE Originals
. He also recorded a song,"Untouchables", for the company's next soundtrack album WWE ThemeAddict: The Music, Vol. 6
. He collaborated on the song H-U-S-T-L-E remix
along with Murs, E-40
, and Chingo Bling
.
Cena's debut album, You Can't See Me
, was recorded with his cousin Tha Trademarc. It features, amongst other songs, his entrance theme, "The Time is Now", and the single "Bad, Bad Man", for which a music video was made that parodied 1980s culture, including the television show The A-Team
. A video was also made for the second single, "Right Now," and premiered on the August 8 Raw. Cena and Tha Trademarc were later featured on a track by The Perceptionists
named "Champion Scratch." Cena will appear on Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins' upcoming album Still Cool featuring other guests.
Albums
. He is a fan of Japanese animation and has mentioned that his favorite animated movie is Fist of the North Star
. He has also said he is a fan of the video game series Command & Conquer
and noted that it was his favorite game. Cena is also a fan of the Boston Red Sox
, Tampa Bay Rays
, New England Patriots
, and Boston Celtics
. Cena collects muscle cars and has over 20, some of which are one-of-a-kind.
While promoting his 2009 film, 12 Rounds
, Cena announced his engagement to his girlfriend Elizabeth Huberdeau. They were married on July 11, 2009.
Professional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
, actor, rapper, and television personality. He is currently signed to WWE as a member of its WWE Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
brand
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
.
In WWE, Cena has won 19 championships in total, including 12 World Titles (having won the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
a record 10 times and the World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
twice). In addition, Cena has also won the WWE United States Championship
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
three times, and is a four-time Tag Team Champion, having held the World Tag Team Championship twice (once each with Shawn Michaels
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
, and Batista), and the WWE Tag Team Championship
WWE Tag Team Championship
The WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship...
twice (once each with David Otunga
David Otunga
David Daniel Otunga is a professional wrestler and former reality television actor. He is signed to WWE, appearing on the Raw brand under his real name. He's a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion, having one reign each with Michael McGillicutty and John Cena. He was the runner-up on the first season...
and The Miz). Cena also won the 2008 Royal Rumble match, and is a two-time Superstar of the Year Slammy Award winner (2009 and 2010). He also has the fourth highest number of combined days as WWE Champion behind Bob Backlund
Bob Backlund
Robert Lee "Bob" Backlund is an American professional wrestler with an in ring career that spanned over 30 years. Over that time, he went on to become a two-time WWWF/WWF Champion...
, Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan
Terrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
& Bruno Sammartino
Bruno Sammartino
Bruno Leopoldo Francesco Sammartino is an Italian-American former professional wrestler, best known for being the longest-running champion of the World Wide Wrestling Federation , holding the title across two reigns for over 11 years in total, as well as the longest single WWE Championship reign...
.
Cena started his professional wrestling career in 2000, wrestling for Ultimate Pro Wrestling, where he held the UPW Heavyweight Championship. In 2001, Cena signed a contract with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and was sent to Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
(OVW) where he held the OVW Heavyweight Championship
OVW Heavyweight Championship
The OVW Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling heavyweight championship owned by the Ohio Valley Wrestling promotion. The title was introduced on August 17, 1997 at an OVW live event, then known as the NWA-OVW Heavyweight Championship due to OVW's relationship with the National...
and the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
The OVW Southern Tag Team Championship is the tag team titles of Ohio Valley Wrestling. Created in 1997, the first champions were Nick Dinsmore and Flash Flanagan. As of 2011, the current champions are Ted McNaler and Adam Revolver, known as The Elite in their fourth reign...
(with Rico Constantino
Rico Constantino
Americo Sebastiano Costantino is a retired American professional wrestler and wrestling manager of Italian origin. He is best known by his ring names Rico Costantino and Rico in World Wrestling Entertainment from 2001 to 2004...
).
Outside of wrestling, Cena has released the rap album You Can't See Me
You Can't See Me
You Can't See Me is the debut album of WWE wrestler John Cena and his cousin Tha Trademarc. Released on May 10, 2005, the album debuted at #15 on the Billboard 200 charts with over 43,000 copies sold in the first week released...
, which debuted at No.15 on the US Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
chart, and starred in the feature films The Marine
The Marine
The Marine is a 2006 American action film starring wrestler John Cena. The film was directed by John Bonito, written by Michelle Gallagher and Alan B...
(2006), 12 Rounds
12 Rounds (film)
12 Rounds is a 2009 American action film directed by Renny Harlin and produced by WWE Studios. The cast is led by professional wrestler John Cena, alongside Steve Harris, Gonzalo Menendez, Aidan Gillen, Brian J. White, Ashley Scott, and Taylor Cole...
(2009), and Legendary
Legendary (film)
Legendary is a 2010 drama film directed by Mel Damski. The film stars Devon Graye as a high school wrestler, in a cast that features John Cena, Patricia Clarkson, Danny Glover, Madeleine Martin, and Tyler Posey...
(2010). Cena has also made appearances on television shows including Manhunt
Manhunt (2001 TV series)
Manhunt was a reality television series that aired on UPN in the summer of 2001.The contestants on the show posed as fugitives who tried to escape actors who pretended to be bounty hunters. The one who eluded the bounty hunters the longest would receive a cash prize.Manhunt was plagued with...
, Deal or No Deal, MADtv
MADtv
MADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first...
, Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
, Punk'd
Punk'd
Punk'd is an American hidden camera/practical joke reality television series that first aired on MTV in 2003 and was created by Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, produced and hosted by Ashton Kutcher. It bore a resemblance to both the classic hidden camera show Candid Camera and to TV's Bloopers...
, and Psych
Psych
Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts...
. Cena was also a contestant on Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race
Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race
Fast Cars & Superstars: Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race was an ABC reality television series featuring twelve celebrities in a stock car auto racing competition...
, where he made it to the final round before being eliminated, placing third in the overall competition.
Early life
Cena, who is of part Italian descent was born April 23, 1977, in West NewburyWest Newbury, Massachusetts
West Newbury is a town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. Situated on the Merrimack River, its population was 4,450 at the 2006 census. Along with neighboring Merrimac and Groveland, it is part of the Pentucket Regional School District....
, Massachusetts, the son of Carol and John Cena, Sr. He is the second eldest of five brothers – Dan, Matt, Steve, and Sean. After graduating from Cushing Academy
Cushing Academy
Cushing Academy is a coeducational college preparatory boarding school for grades 9 through 12 plus an optional postgraduate year located in Ashburnham, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1865 in fulfilment of a bequest by Thomas Parkman Cushing and opened in 1875, and is sometimes cited as the...
, Cena attended Springfield College
Springfield College
Springfield College is a private, coeducational university located in the City of Springfield, Massachusetts. Springfield College is most famous as the site where the sport of basketball was invented...
in Springfield
Springfield, Massachusetts
Springfield is the most populous city in Western New England, and the seat of Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers; the western Westfield River, the eastern Chicopee River, and the eastern...
, Massachusetts. In college he was a Division III All-America
All-America
An All-America team is an honorary sports team composed of outstanding amateur players—those considered the best players of a specific season for each team position—who in turn are given the honorific "All-America" and typically referred to as "All-American athletes", or simply...
n center
Center (American football)
Center is a position in American football and Canadian football . The center is the innermost lineman of the offensive line on a football team's offense...
on the college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
team, wearing the number 54, which is still used on some of his WWE merchandise. He graduated from Springfield in 1998 with a degree in exercise physiology
Exercise physiology
Exercise physiology is the study of the acute responses and chronic adaptations to a wide-range of physical exercise conditions. In addition, many exercise physiologists study the effect of exercise on pathology, and the mechanisms by which exercise can reduce or reverse disease progression...
, after which he pursued a career in bodybuilding
Bodybuilding
Bodybuilding is a form of body modification involving intensive muscle hypertrophy. An individual who engages in this activity is referred to as a bodybuilder. In competitive and professional bodybuilding, bodybuilders display their physiques to a panel of judges, who assign points based on their...
, and also worked as a chauffeur for a limousine company.
UPW
Cena started training to become a professional wrestler in 2000 at the California-based "Ultimate University" operated by Ultimate Pro Wrestling. Once he was placed into an in-ring role, Cena began using a semi-roboticCyborg
A cyborg is a being with both biological and artificial parts. The term was coined in 1960 when Manfred Clynes and Nathan S. Kline used it in an article about the advantages of self-regulating human-machine systems in outer space. D. S...
character known as The Prototype. Some of this period of his career was documented in the Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel
Discovery Channel is an American satellite and cable specialty channel , founded by John Hendricks and distributed by Discovery Communications. It is a publicly traded company run by CEO David Zaslav...
program Inside Pro Wrestling School. While in UPW, Cena held the UPW Heavyweight Championship for just shy of a month in April 2000.
OVW
In 2001, he signed a developmental contract with the World Wrestling FederationWorld Wrestling Entertainment
World Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
(WWF) and was assigned to its developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
(OVW). During his time there, Cena wrestled as both The Prototype and Mr. P, and held the OVW Heavyweight Championship
OVW Heavyweight Championship
The OVW Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling heavyweight championship owned by the Ohio Valley Wrestling promotion. The title was introduced on August 17, 1997 at an OVW live event, then known as the NWA-OVW Heavyweight Championship due to OVW's relationship with the National...
for three months and the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
OVW Southern Tag Team Championship
The OVW Southern Tag Team Championship is the tag team titles of Ohio Valley Wrestling. Created in 1997, the first champions were Nick Dinsmore and Flash Flanagan. As of 2011, the current champions are Ted McNaler and Adam Revolver, known as The Elite in their fourth reign...
(with Rico Constantino
Rico Constantino
Americo Sebastiano Costantino is a retired American professional wrestler and wrestling manager of Italian origin. He is best known by his ring names Rico Costantino and Rico in World Wrestling Entertainment from 2001 to 2004...
) for two months.
Debut (2002–2004)
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
on June 27, 2002. Inspired by a speech given by WWE Chairman Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
to the rising stars of the company, exhorting them to show "ruthless aggression" to earn a place among the legends, Cena took advantage of the opportunity and almost beat Angle kicking out of his finishing move, the Angle Slam and enduring the ankle lock submission hold. Cena ultimately lost to a hard amateur wrestling
Amateur wrestling
Amateur wrestling is the most widespread form of sport wrestling. There are two international wrestling styles performed in the Olympic Games under the supervision of FILA : Greco-Roman and freestyle. Freestyle is possibly derived from the English Lancashire style...
-style pin. Following the near-win, Cena became a fan favorite
Face (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a babyface or face or in simple words, a fan favorite is a character who is portrayed as a heroic relative to the heel wrestlers, who are analogous to villains...
and started feuding
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
with Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
. In October, Cena and Billy Kidman took part in a tag team
Tag team
Tag team professional wrestling is a variation in which matches are contested between teams of multiple wrestlers. A tag team may comprise two wrestlers who normally wrestle in singles competition, but more commonly are made of established teams who wrestle regularly as a unit and have a team name...
tournament to crown the first WWE Tag Team Champions of the SmackDown! brand
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
, losing in the first round. The next week, Cena turned on and attacked Kidman, blaming him for their loss, becoming a villain.
Shortly after the Kidman attack, on a Halloween
Halloween
Hallowe'en , also known as Halloween or All Hallows' Eve, is a yearly holiday observed around the world on October 31, the night before All Saints' Day...
themed episode of SmackDown, Cena dressed as Vanilla Ice
Vanilla Ice
Robert Matthew Van Winkle , best known by his stage name Vanilla Ice, is an American rapper, extreme athlete and home improvement television personality...
performing a freestyle rap
Freestyle rap
Freestyle rap commonly refers to rap lyrics which are improvised through a acapella or with instrumental beats, i.e. performed with no previously composed lyrics, or "off the top of the head"...
. The next week, Cena received a new character: a rapper who cut promos while rhyming. As the gimmick grew, Cena began adopting a variant of the 1980s WWF logo – dropping the "F" – as his "signature symbol", along with the slogan "Word Life". Moreover, he was joined by an enforcer, Bull Buchanan
Barry Buchanan
Barry Buchanan is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances as Bull Buchanan and B-2 in the World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment.-National Championship Wrestling :...
, who was rechristened B-2 (also written B² and pronounced "B-Squared"). Buchanan was later replaced by Red Dogg
Rodney Begnaud
Rodney Begnaud is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stint in World Wrestling Entertainment and for his work on its Raw brand under the ring name Rodney Mack.-Debut :...
, until he was sent to the Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
brand in February.
For the first half of 2003, Cena sought the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
and chased the reigning champion, Brock Lesnar
Brock Lesnar
Brock Edward Lesnar is an American mixed martial artist, actor and a former professional and amateur wrestler. He is a former UFC Heavyweight Champion and is ranked the No.5 Heavyweight in the world by Sherdog...
, performing weekly "freestyles" challenging him to matches. During the feud, Cena unveiled a new finishing maneuver: the FU, a Fireman's carry powerslam, named to mock Lesnar's F-5. Cena won a number one contenders tournament against Lesnar at Backlash
Backlash (2003)
Backlash was the fifth annual Backlash professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Entertainment...
. However, Cena was defeated by Lesnar. At Vengeance
Vengeance (2003)
Vengeance was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on July 27, 2003 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. It was the third annual Vengeance event and starred wrestlers from the SmackDown brand.Eight professional wrestling...
Cena lost a singles match against The Undertaker. At the end of the year, Cena became a fan favorite again when he joined Kurt Angle as a member of his team at Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2003)
Survivor Series was the seventeenth annual Survivor Series professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
.
United States and WWE Champion (2004–2005)
Royal Rumble (2004)
Royal Rumble was the seventeenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 25, 2004 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania....
, making it to the final six before being eliminated by Big Show and the Match being won by Chris Benoit
Chris Benoit
Christopher Michael "Chris" Benoit was a Canadian professional wrestler whose career and life ended in a murder–suicide...
. The Royal Rumble elimination led to a feud with Big Show, which Cena won the United States Championship
WWE United States Championship
The WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
from Big Show at WrestleMania XX
WrestleMania XX
WrestleMania XX was the twentieth WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on March 14, 2004 at Madison Square Garden in New York....
. During his reign, Cena came into contention with SmackDown General Manager Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
over issues arising with René Duprée
René Goguen
René Goguen better known by his ring name René Duprée, is a French Canadian professional wrestler. Goguen is best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he is a one-time World Tag Team Champion with Sylvain Grenier as the tag team La Résistance and a one time WWE Tag Team...
and Torrie Wilson
Torrie Wilson
Torrie Anne Wilson is a retired American professional wrestler, fitness competitor and model. She is best known for her tenures in World Championship Wrestling and World Wrestling Entertainment , where she worked on both their SmackDown and Raw brands throughout her eight-year run.As a fitness...
. The reign ended almost four months later, when he was stripped of the belt on July 8 by Angle after he accidentally knocked him over, thus attacking an official. Cena won the championship back defeating Booker T
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
in a best of five series that culminated at No Mercy, only to lose it to the debuting Carlito Caribbean Cool
Carly Colon
Carlos Edwin "Carly" Colón, Jr. is a Puerto Rican professional wrestler better known internationally by his ring name Carlito. He is best known for his work in the World Wrestling Entertainment , but was released from his contract on May 21, 2010. In his native Puerto Rico, he is known as both...
the next week. After the loss to Carlito, the duo began a feud, which Cena was stabbed in the kidney
Kidney
The kidneys, organs with several functions, serve essential regulatory roles in most animals, including vertebrates and some invertebrates. They are essential in the urinary system and also serve homeostatic functions such as the regulation of electrolytes, maintenance of acid–base balance, and...
while at a Boston-area nightclub by Carlito's bodyguard, Jesús
Aaron Aguilera
Aaron Aguilera , is a Mexican American professional wrestler and actor best known as Jesús and Uno on World Wrestling Entertainment and MTV's Wrestling Society X...
. This worked injury was used to keep Cena out of action for a month, while Cena was filming The Marine
The Marine
The Marine is a 2006 American action film starring wrestler John Cena. The film was directed by John Bonito, written by Michelle Gallagher and Alan B...
. Immediately on his return in November, Cena won the United States Championship back from Carlito debuting a "custom made" spinner
Spinner (wheel)
A spinner is a type of hubcap that spins independently inside of a wheel itself when the vehicle is in motion, and continues to spin once the vehicle has come to a stop. Being an attachment to the car's wheel, spinners operate by using one or more roller bearings to isolate the spinner from the...
-style championship belt.
Cena took part in the 2005 Royal Rumble match, making it to the final two. Cena and Raw
WWE RAW
WWE Raw ) is a sports entertainment television program for WWE that currently airs on the USA Network in the United States...
brand
WWE Brand Extension
WWE, formerly the World Wrestling Federation and World Wrestling Entertainment , currently promotes its core business of professional wrestling through two "brands" named after their two major television shows Raw and SmackDown...
wrestler Batista went over the top rope at the same time, ostensibly ending the match. Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
, however, appeared on stage and re-started the match in sudden death rules, with Batista eventually eliminating Cena. The next month, Cena defeated Kurt Angle to earn a spot in the SmackDown brand's WrestleMania 21
WrestleMania 21
WrestleMania 21 was the twenty-first annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 3, 2005 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. It started off with an interpormotional battle royal, for which Booker T...
main event match, beginning a feud with WWE Champion
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
John "Bradshaw" Layfield
John Layfield
John Charles Layfield is a former American professional wrestler, a former commentator/host for mixed martial arts promotion Vyper Fight League and financial analyst for Fox News...
(JBL) and his Cabinet in the process. In the early stages of the feud, Cena lost his US belt to Cabinet member Orlando Jordan
Orlando Jordan
Orlando Jordan is an American professional wrestler, most recently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling. Jordan is best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment, where he was a one-time United States Champion....
, who proceeded to "blow up" the spinner championship with JBL and returning a more traditional style belt. Cena defeated JBL at WrestleMania winning the WWE Championship, giving Cena his first world championship. Cena then had a spinner WWE Championship belt made, while JBL took the original belt and claimed to still be WWE Champion, until Cena reclaimed the original belt in an "I Quit" match at Judgment Day
Judgment Day (2005)
Judgment Day was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It was the seventh annual event of the same name and took place on May 22, 2005 at the Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota...
.
Cena was drafted to the Raw brand on the June 6, 2005, becoming the first wrestler selected by General Manager Eric Bischoff
Eric Bischoff
Eric Aaron Bischoff is an American entrepreneur, and professional wrestling booker and on-screen personality currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling...
in the annual draft lottery. Cena immediately entered a feud with Bischoff, after refusing to participate in the "war" against the Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling
Extreme Championship Wrestling was a professional wrestling promotion that was founded in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1992 by Tod Gordon and closed when his successor, Paul Heyman, declared bankruptcy in April 2001...
(ECW) roster at One Night Stand. With Bischoff vowing to make Cena's stint on Raw difficult, he hand picked Jericho to take Cena's championship from him. During their feud, even though Cena was portrayed as the fan favorite and Jericho as the villain
Heel (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a heel is a villain character. In non-wrestling jargon, heels are the "bad guys" in professional wrestling; the term heel coming from the term take to you heels, which means to run away which heel champions tend to do to avoid losing their titles.storylines...
, a vocal section of live crowds, nonetheless, were booing Cena during their matches. More crowds followed suit during Cena's next feud with Kurt Angle
Kurt Angle
Kurt Steven Angle is an American professional wrestler, amateur wrestler, and 1996 Olympic gold medalist. He is currently under contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling, where he is recognized as a 15-time World Heavyweight Champion...
, who took over as Bischoff's hand-picked number-one contender after Cena defeated Jericho in a You're Fired match on the August 22 Raw. As the feud continued and the dissenters grew more vocal, sometimes seeming to outnumber fans by wide margins, the announce team was forced to acknowledge the booing on television and began calling Cena a "controversial champion", claiming some people disliking him on account of his "in-ring style" and his chosen fashion. Despite the mixed and negative reactions, Cena held on to his championship through his feud with Angle, losing to him by disqualification – which titles do not change hands in WWE – at Unforgiven
Unforgiven (2005)
Unforgiven was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It was the seventh annual Unforgiven event and took place on September 18, 2005 at the Ford Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma...
and pinning him at Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2005)
Survivor Series was the 19th annual Survivor Series professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
. The feud with Angle also saw Cena add a secondary, submission based, finishing maneuver – the STFU (a Stepover Toehold Sleeper, though named for a Stepover Toehold Facelock) – when he was put into a Triple Threat Submissions Only match on the November 28 Raw.
WWE Championship feuds and injury (2006–2007)
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
at New Year's Revolution
New Year's Revolution (2006)
New Year's Revolution was the second annual New Year's Revolution pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
, but not in the Elimination Chamber
Elimination Chamber
The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE promotion. It features a large chain-linked circular steel structure or "chamber" which encloses the ring. The chamber's floor is platformed over the ringside area which elevates it to ring level and within...
match that he had been advertised to participate in beforehand. Instead, immediately after winning the Elimination Chamber, he was forced into a match against Edge, who cashed in his Money in the Bank
Money in the Bank ladder match
The Money in the Bank ladder match is a professional wrestling ladder match held by WWE. The match can feature anywhere from six to ten participants from any WWE brand, with the objective being to retrieve a briefcase that is suspended 20 feet above the ring...
contract – a "guaranteed title match for the WWE Champion at a time and place of the owners choosing." After two quick spears pinned Cena, winning the championship. Three weeks later, Cena won the championship back at the Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (2006)
Royal Rumble was the nineteenth annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 29, 2006 in the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida and featured talent from the Raw and SmackDown! brands...
. After winning the championship, Cena began feuding
Feud (professional wrestling)
A professional wrestling feud is a staged rivalry between multiple wrestlers or alliances of wrestlers. They are integrated into ongoing storylines, particularly in events which are televised...
with Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
, which the crowd began booing Cena and cheering the intended villain, Triple H. Cena beat Triple H at Wrestlemania 22
WrestleMania 22
Notes: .The predominant feud on the SmackDown! brand was between Kurt Angle, Rey Mysterio, and Randy Orton over the World Heavyweight Championship. Mysterio won the 2006 Royal Rumble match, last eliminating Orton, to earn a World Championship match at WrestleMania. At No Way Out, Orton defeated...
to retain his WWE Title. The negative reaction towards Cena intensified when facing Rob Van Dam
Rob Van Dam
Robert Alexander "Rob" Szatkowski , better known by his ring name Rob Van Dam , is an American professional wrestler and actor who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
at One Night Stand. Taking place in front of a crowd of mostly "old school" ECW fans at the Hammerstein Ballroom
Hammerstein Ballroom
The Hammerstein Ballroom is a two-tiered, 12,000 square feet ballroom located within the Manhattan Center Studios on 311 West 34th Street in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States of America. It is known for its elegant appearance and excellent acoustical design...
, Cena was met with raucous jeering and chants of "Fuck you, Cena", "You can't wrestle", and "Same old shit". When he began performing different moves into the match, the fans began chanting "You still suck". Cena lost the WWE Championship at One Night Stand, with Van Dam pinning Cena after interference from Edge.
Brass knuckles
Brass knuckles, also sometimes called knuckles, knucks, brass knucks, or knuckledusters, are weapons used in hand-to-hand combat. Brass knuckles are pieces of metal, usually steel despite their name, shaped to fit around the knuckles...
– he introduced his own version of Cena's "custom" belt, this one with his logo placed on the spinner. Cena eventually won the championship back in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match
Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match
A Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match, often abbreviated as a TLC, is a type of professional wrestling match originated within WWE, but can be seen under different variations in other wrestling promotions....
at Unforgiven
Unforgiven (2006)
Unforgiven was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on September 17, 2006 at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario. It was the eighth annual Unforgiven event. The show's seven matches showcased prominent WWE wrestlers, who...
. The match had an added stipulation that had Cena lost he would leave the Raw brand and go to SmackDown. Cena returned his version of the spinner belt on the next night's Raw.
On the heels of his feud with Edge, Cena was placed in an inter-brand angle to determine the "Champion of Champions" – or which was the most dominant champion in WWE's three brands. Cena, the World Heavyweight Champion
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
King Booker
Booker Huffman
Robert Booker Tio Huffman , better known by his ring name Booker T, is a semi-retired American professional wrestler and currently signed to WWE, on its SmackDown brand, as part of the announcing team. Booker is best known for his time in both the World Wrestling Entertainment and World...
, and the ECW World Champion The Big Show engaged in a mini-feud leading to a Triple Threat match at Cyber Sunday
Cyber Sunday (2006)
Cyber Sunday was the first annual Cyber Sunday professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on November 5, 2006 at the U.S. Bank Arena in Cincinnati, Ohio, with 7,000 fans attending...
, with the viewers voting on which of the three championships would be placed on the line. At the same time, Cena became involved in a storyline with non-wrestler Kevin Federline
Kevin Federline
Kevin Earl Federline is an American dancer, rapper, fashion model, and actor. Previously engaged to actress Shar Jackson, Federline is best known for his two-year marriage to pop singer Britney Spears...
, when he began appearing on Raw with Johnny Nitro and Melina
Melina Perez
Melina Nava Perez is an American professional wrestler currently signed to Women Superstars Uncensored. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment under the ring mononym Melina....
. After getting into a worked physical altercation with Federline on Raw, Federline appeared at Cyber Sunday to hit Cena with the World Heavyweight Championship during the match, helping King Booker retain his championship. 2006 ended with Cena beginning a feud with the undefeated Umaga
Eddie Fatu
Edward Smith "Eki" Fatu was a Samoan-American professional wrestler better known by his ring name Umaga...
over the WWE Championship, while 2007 began with the end of his storyline with Kevin Federline. On the first Raw of the new year, Cena was pinned by Federline with an assist from Umaga, although later in the night he was able to get his hands on Federline performing an FU on him.
Shawn Michaels
Michael Shawn Hickenbottom , better known by his ring name Shawn Michaels, is an American television host and retired professional wrestler. He presents the Outdoor Channel show MacMillan River Adventures, and is currently signed to WWE, where he has served in an ambassadorial role since December...
defeated Rated-RKO
Rated-RKO
Rated-RKO was a villainous professional wrestling tag team in World Wrestling Entertainment based on the Raw brand. The team consisted of Edge, Randy Orton, and Lita, their valet...
(Edge and Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
) for the World Tag Team Championship, making Cena a double champion. On the April 2 episode of Raw, after losing a WWE Championship match to Cena at WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23 was the twenty-third annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 1, 2007 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan...
, Michaels turned on Cena, costing them the championship in the second of two 10 team battles royals
Battle royal (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a battle royal is a multi-competitor match type in which wrestlers are eliminated until one is left and declared winner...
, by throwing Cena over the top rope and eliminating the team. The Hardys
Hardy Boyz
The Hardy Boyz are a professional wrestling tag team, consisting of real-life brothers Matt and Jeff Hardy...
(Matt
Matt Hardy
Matthew Moore "Matt" Hardy is a semi-retired American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stints in World Wrestling Entertainment and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
and Jeff
Jeff Hardy
Jeffrey Nero "Jeff" Hardy is an American professional wrestler, who is currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling , where he is a former two–time TNA World Heavyweight Champion...
) eventually won the match and the championship. For the rest of the month, Cena feuded with Michaels, Orton, and Edge until The Great Khali declared his intentions to challenge for Cena's championship attacking and "laying out" all three of the top contenders before assaulting Cena himself and stealing the physical belt. For the next two months, Cena feuded with Khali over the championship, eventually becoming the first person in WWE to defeat him by submission at Judgment Day
Judgment Day (2007)
Judgment Day was the ninth annual Judgment Day professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on May 20, 2007 from the Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri...
and then by pinfall at One Night Stand
One Night Stand (2007)
One Night Stand was the third annual One Night Stand professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on June 3, 2007 at the Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Florida and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown!, and ECW brands...
. Later that summer, Randy Orton was named the number one contender for the WWE championship, starting a feud between the two. Leading up to SummerSlam
SummerSlam (2007)
SummerSlam was the twentieth annual SummerSlam professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on August 26, 2007 at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey and featured talent from each of WWE's three brands: Raw,...
, Orton delivered a number of sneak-attacks, performing three RKOs
Cutter (professional wrestling)
In professional wrestling, a cutter is a common term that refers to the three-quarter facelock bulldog maneuver. The move is also described as an inverted neckbreaker, though it is not one, it only bears an inverted style to it...
to Cena, but in the actual match, Cena retained the championship. A rematch between the two occurred at Unforgiven
Unforgiven (2007)
Unforgiven was the tenth annual Unforgiven pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on September 16, 2007 from the FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brands.The main match on the SmackDown brand was The...
, with Orton winning by disqualification after Cena ignored the referee's instructions and continued to beat on him in the corner.
During a match with Mr. Kennedy on the October 1, 2007 episode of Raw, Cena suffered a legitimate torn pectoral muscle
Pectoralis major muscle
The pectoralis major is a thick, fan-shaped muscle, situated at the chest of the body. It makes up the bulk of the chest muscles in the male and lies under the breast in the female...
while executing a hip toss. Though finishing the match and taking part in the scripted attack by Randy Orton after the match, surgery the following day found that his pectoralis major muscle was torn completely from the bone, estimating at the time to require seven months to a year of rehabilitation. As a result, Cena was stripped of the title in an announcement by Vince McMahon on the next night's episode of ECW, ending what was the longest WWE Championship reign in over 19 years. Cena's surgery was performed by orthopedic surgeon James Andrews
James Andrews (physician)
James Rheuben Andrews, M.D., born 1942 in Homer, Louisiana, is an orthopedic surgeon who practices at the Andrews Institute for Orthopaedics & Sports Medicine in Gulf Breeze, Florida. He also practices in Birmingham, Alabama at the Andrews Sports Medicine & Orthopaedic Center located at St....
at St. Vincent's Hospital in Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
, Alabama. Two weeks later, in a video update on WWE.com, Dr. Andrews and Cena's physical trainer both said that he was several weeks ahead of where he was expected to be in his rehabilitation at that time. Despite his injury, Cena attended the annual WWE Tribute to the Troops show filmed at Camp Speicher in Tikrit
Tikrit
Tikrit is a town in Iraq, located 140 km northwest of Baghdad on the Tigris river . The town, with an estimated population in 2002 of about 260,000 is the administrative center of the Salah ad Din Governorate.-Ancient times:...
, Iraq on December 7, and aired on December 24.
Return and various feuds (2008–2010)
Cena made an unannounced return as the final participant of the Royal RumbleRoyal Rumble (2008)
Royal Rumble was the twenty-first annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 27, 2008 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown and ECW brands. The event was...
match, winning the match, and the traditional WrestleMania title shot, by last eliminating Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
. Instead of waiting until WrestleMania, the title shot was cashed in against WWE Champion
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
at February's No Way Out
No Way Out (2008)
No Way Out was the ninth annual No Way Out professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on February 17, 2008 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada...
pay-per-view in a match where Cena won by disqualification, resulting in him not getting the championship. The night after No Way Out, Cena was placed back into WrestleMania XXIV
WrestleMania XXIV
WrestleMania XXIV was the twenty-fourth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . The event took place on March 30, 2008, at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida and was the first WrestleMania to be held in the state of Florida...
's WWE Championship match, making it a Triple Threat match also involving Triple H, during which he was pinned by Orton. At Backlash
Backlash (2008)
Backlash was the tenth annual Backlash professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 27, 2008 at the 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore, Maryland...
, Cena failed to regain the title in a Fatal Four-Way elimination match, in which he was pinned by Orton. Triple H won the title during that match. During the match, Cena eliminated JBL, renewing their feud from 2005. Cena defeated JBL at Judgment Day
Judgment Day (2008)
Judgment Day was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on May 18, 2008 at the Qwest Center Omaha in Omaha, Nebraska...
and then at One Night Stand
One Night Stand (2008)
One Night Stand was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment that took place on June 1, 2008 at the San Diego Sports Arena in San Diego, California. It was the fourth and final event promoted under the One Night Stand name...
in a First Blood match. JBL, however, defeated him in a New York City Parking Lot Brawl at The Great American Bash
The Great American Bash (2008)
The Great American Bash was the fifth annual Great American Bash professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment...
in July.
Ted DiBiase, Jr.
Theodore Marvin "Ted" DiBiase Jr. is an American professional wrestler and actor signed with WWE, where he appears on its SmackDown brand...
, but failed to retain the titles the following week against the former champions. Batista defeated Cena at SummerSlam
SummerSlam (2008)
SummerSlam was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on August 17, 2008 at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was the 21st annual SummerSlam event and starred wrestlers from the Raw, SmackDown and ECW brands.Seven...
; shortly after, he was named one of four contenders for CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
's World Heavyweight Championship
World Heavyweight Championship (WWE)
The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
in the Championship scramble match at Unforgiven
Unforgiven (2008)
Unforgiven was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on September 7, 2008 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio...
. He was replaced by Rey Mysterio, however, after announcing Cena had suffered a herniated disc in his neck, which would require surgery. Cena underwent successful surgery to repair the injury.
Cena made his in-ring return at the November pay-per-view event, Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2008)
Survivor Series was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , took place on November 23, 2008 at the TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts The Survivor Series was in Boston 15 years prior in 1993 in the now-demolished Boston Garden...
, defeating Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
to win his first World Heavyweight Championship. The two continued their rivalry up to Armageddon
Armageddon (2008)
Armageddon was a professional-wrestling pay-per-view event produced by the World Wrestling Entertainment promotion, which took place on December 14, 2008 at the HSBC Arena in Buffalo, New York. It featured professional wrestlers and other talent from all WWE's three brands: Raw, SmackDown and ECW...
, where Cena retained his championship. Cena lost the championship at No Way Out
No Way Out (2009)
No Way Out was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on February 15, 2009 at the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington. It was the 11th and final event under the No Way Out name and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown and ECW brands...
, to Edge after Kofi Kingston
Kofi Kingston
Kofi Nahaje Sarkodie-Mensah , is a Ghanaian American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name, Kofi Kingston. He is currently signed to WWE and works on its Raw brand where he is one half of the WWE Tag Team Champions with Evan Bourne as Air Boom...
was attacked by Edge, who took his place in the Elimination Chamber match. Cena was given an opportunity to regain the title at WrestleMania XXV
WrestleMania XXV
WrestleMania XXV was the twenty-fifth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on April 5, 2009 at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas...
in a Triple Threat match also involving Big Show, which Cena won.
Cena lost the championship back to Edge in a Last Man Standing match at Backlash
Backlash (2009)
Backlash was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 26, 2009 at the Dunkin' Donuts Center in Providence, Rhode Island. The 11th and final event under the Backlash banner, it featured talent from all three WWE brands: Raw,...
after interference from Big Show, who chokeslammed Cena through a big spotlight. This angle resulted in Cena beginning a feud with Big Show. Cena defeated Big Show at Judgment Day
Judgment Day (2009)
Judgment Day , a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , took place on May 17, 2009 at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. It was the eleventh and final show under the Judgment Day name and the tenth show held annually; it...
and at Extreme Rules
WWE Extreme Rules
Extreme Rules was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on June 7, 2009 at the New Orleans Arena in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the first event promoted under the Extreme Rules name and initially noted by WWE to be a direct...
in a Submission match by applying the STFU.
At the July pay-per-view, Night of Champions
Night of Champions (2009)
Night of Champions was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on July 26, 2009 at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was the second annual event to be promoted solely under the Night of Champions name and the...
, he participated in a Triple Threat match for the WWE Championship, which also involved Triple H and WWE Champion Randy Orton. Cena, however, did not win the match. Two months later, at Breaking Point
WWE Breaking Point
Breaking Point was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on September 13, 2009 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown, and ECW brands. The name of the event was voted by fans via...
, Cena defeated Randy Orton for the WWE Championship in an "I Quit" match to win his fourth WWE Championship. At Hell in a Cell, Cena dropped the title to Orton in a Hell in a Cell match. Three weeks later, at WWE Bragging Rights, Cena defeated Orton in a 60-minute Iron Man match
Iron Man match
An Iron Man match is a professional wrestling match type that is set to go a specific amount of time, usually 30 or 60 minutes, with the competitor with the most falls at the end of that time named the victor...
.
Two months later, Cena would lose the title to Sheamus at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs in a Tables match.
In February 2010, Cena regained the WWE title at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view in an Elimination Chamber
Elimination Chamber
The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE promotion. It features a large chain-linked circular steel structure or "chamber" which encloses the ring. The chamber's floor is platformed over the ringside area which elevates it to ring level and within...
match after last eliminating Triple H. However, immediately after the match Mr. McMahon declared that he would immediately defend his title against Batista, who had been involved with Cena in Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
and Bret Hart
Bret Hart
Bret Hart is a Canadian on-screen personality, writer, actor and Semi-retired professional wrestler. Like others in the Hart wrestling family, Hart has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal College...
's rivalry. Cena lost that match to Batista, and the WWE Championship and marking one of the shortest WWE Championship reigns in history. The following night after the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view, Cena asked for a rematch for the title at WrestleMania, which McMahon gave him the opportunity to as long as he defeated Batista that night. Later that night, Batista intentionally got himself disqualified by kicking Cena in the groin to set up their match at WrestleMania XXVI
WrestleMania XXVI
WrestleMania XXVI was the twenty-sixth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on March 28, 2010 at the University of Phoenix Stadium in the Phoenix suburb of Glendale, Arizona. This was the fourth WrestleMania to...
. At the event, Cena defeated Batista to win back the WWE title. At the April pay-per-view, Extreme Rules
Extreme Rules (2010)
Extreme Rules was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on April 25, 2010 at the 1st Mariner Arena in Baltimore, Maryland. It was the second event promoted under the Extreme Rules name...
, Cena defeated Batista in a rematch for the WWE title in a Last Man Standing match. He faced Batista one more time in an I Quit match at Over the Limit which he successfully won.
Storyline with Nexus (2010–2011)
On the June 7, 2010 edition of RAW, which was a "3-hour Viewer's Choice episode", Cena was suddenly thrust into a new storyline when during his main event match against CM PunkCM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
, he was attacked by all eight former contestants of WWE NXT Season 1, with Wade Barrett
Wade Barrett
Wade Barrett is a retired American soccer player. He is currently an assistant coach at Major League Soccer club Houston Dynamo-College:...
as their leader. Punk, his follower Luke Gallows
Drew Hankinson
Andrew "Drew" Hankinson is an American professional wrestler. He was best known for his time with World Wrestling Entertainment , where he appeared under the ring names Festus and Luke Gallows...
, and other personnel around the ring were attacked as well, but Cena took the worst of the attack and was carried out on a stretcher. This group would later refer to themselves as The Nexus
Nexus (professional wrestling)
The Nexus was a villainous professional wrestling stable in the professional wrestling promotion, WWE, that competed on its Raw brand. The group originally consisted of all eight rookies of NXT season one and shifted their roster several times throughout their existence...
.
At June's Fatal 4-Way
WWE Fatal 4-Way
Fatal 4-Way was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on June 20, 2010 at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York...
event, Cena lost the WWE title to Sheamus in a fatal four-way match that also involved Edge and Randy Orton due to interference by Nexus. The following month, in a WWE title rematch against Sheamus in a steel cage match at the Money in the Bank
WWE Money in the Bank
Money in the Bank was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on July 18, 2010 at the Sprint Center in Kansas City, Missouri. The concept of the event was based around the Money in the Bank ladder match, with two matches held at the...
pay-per-view, the group interfered, thus costing Cena the chance of regaining the championship. Cena later formed an alliance with Edge, Chris Jericho, John Morrison, R-Truth
Ron Killings
Ronald Aaron "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand. Since working for the company, he has been a one time United States Champion under the ring name R-Truth and a two time Hardcore Champion under the ring name K-Kwik...
, The Great Khali and Bret Hart
Bret Hart
Bret Hart is a Canadian on-screen personality, writer, actor and Semi-retired professional wrestler. Like others in the Hart wrestling family, Hart has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling at Ernest Manning High School and Mount Royal College...
to face the Nexus at SummerSlam
SummerSlam (2010)
SummerSlam was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , that took place on August 15, 2010 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California for the second consecutive year...
, where Cena's team defeated Nexus with the returning Daniel Bryan
Bryan Danielson
Bryan Danielson is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE where he wrestles on its SmackDown brand as Daniel Bryan, and currently holds the SmackDown Money in the Bank briefcase, which enables him to have a World Heavyweight Championship match at any time of his choosing...
, a former member of Nexus, who replaced Khali after getting injured.
Nexus's actions, however, did not stop after SummerSlam. Hoping to end Nexus for good, Cena challenged Wade Barrett to a match at "Hell in a Cell
Hell in a Cell (2010)
Hell in a Cell was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment that took place on October 3, 2010 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. It was the second annual Hell in a Cell event. Like the 2009 event, the event featured the Hell in a Cell...
" only to lose due to interference by two fans, later identified as Husky Harris
Windham Rotunda
Windham Lawrence Rotunda is an American professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE and is working as Husky Harris. Harris is competing in Florida Championship Wrestling , WWE's developmental territory....
and Michael McGillicutty
Joe Hennig
Joseph "Joe" Hennig is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE and working on the Raw brand, under the ring name Michael McGillicutty. He previously wrestled at their developmental territory Florida Championship Wrestling...
. Due to the stipulations in place, Cena was forced to join Nexus. Cena had originally planned to destroy Nexus from within as a member of the group, but the Raw general manager ordered him to follow orders from Barrett, or else he would be fired. At Bragging Rights, Cena and Nexus member David Otunga
David Otunga
David Daniel Otunga is a professional wrestler and former reality television actor. He is signed to WWE, appearing on the Raw brand under his real name. He's a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion, having one reign each with Michael McGillicutty and John Cena. He was the runner-up on the first season...
defeated "Dashing" Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre to win the Tag Team Championship
WWE Tag Team Championship
The WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship...
.
Later in the show Cena was forced to help Barrett to win his WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
match against Randy Orton. If Barrett didn't win the match Cena would be fired. Cena twisted his words around and attacked Barrett, giving Barrett the win via disqualification but not Orton's title. The following day, Cena and Otunga lost the Tag Team Championship to fellow Nexus members Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel, when Barrett ordered Otunga to lay down and lose the title. At Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2010)
Survivor Series was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , that took place on November 21, 2010 at the American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida...
, Cena officiated a match for the WWE Championship between Wade Barrett and Randy Orton. As a part of a pre-match stipulation, if Barrett didn't win the championship, Cena would be fired from the WWE.
Orton defeated Barrett to retain the title, thus ending Cena's career in the WWE. The following day on Raw, Cena gave a farewell speech, before costing Wade Barrett the WWE Championship by interfering in his rematch with Randy Orton. A week later, Cena invaded Raw, first as a spectator, but he then attacked members of Nexus, explaining that he would still take down Nexus one by one, despite not having a job in the WWE anymore. On the December 13 episode of Raw, Cena was rehired by Barrett, in exchange that he would face him at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs (2010)
TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on December 19, 2010 at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. It was the second annual TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs event...
in a Chairs Match. Prior to TLC, Cena teamed up with Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
and Rey Mysterio to defeat Wade Barrett
Wade Barrett
Wade Barrett is a retired American soccer player. He is currently an assistant coach at Major League Soccer club Houston Dynamo-College:...
, The Miz and Alberto Del Rio at The WWE Tribute to the Troops. On December 19 at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs, John Cena was victorious against Wade Barrett in a Chairs match in the main event of the evening.
On the December 27 edition of Raw, The Nexus, minus Wade Barrett, announced they were under new management and offered to bury the hatchet with John Cena, to which Cena refused. The Nexus attacked Cena, leaving a Nexus armband in the ring during the process. As the group retreated, CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
, who had attacked Cena with a steel chair twice the week before, came to the ring to, what looked like attack John Cena, but instead put on the armband left behind to symbolically announce his allegiance with The Nexus. The next week, Wade Barrett returned to Raw and confronted CM Punk over the issue of who the leader of The Nexus was and who was responsible for Cena's attack the week before. Barrett was placed into a Triple Threat Steel Cage Match that night that would determine the No. 1 contender for the WWE Championship. CM Punk added his own stipulation to the match saying if Barrett lost, he would be banished from the group, but if he won he would remain leader. Wade Barrett would lose the match after CM Punk interfered by ripping of Barrett's armband.
On the January 17 edition of Raw, Cena returned and faced Punk in a match. During the match, a man, who would later be revealed to be Mason Ryan, attacked Cena. At the 2011 Royal Rumble
Royal Rumble (2011)
Royal Rumble was the 24th annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on January 30, 2011 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts....
Cena eliminated the majority of the Nexus members and ended their feud.
Record Breaking WWE Champion & Feud with The Rock (2011-present)
In the 2011 Royal RumbleRoyal Rumble (2011)
Royal Rumble was the 24th annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on January 30, 2011 at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts....
John Cena made it to the final five before being eliminated by The Miz, who was not officially a participant in the match. On the January 31 edition of Raw, John Cena was placed in a battle royal with six other superstars to determine who would face The Miz for his WWE Championship at the Elimination Chamber
Elimination Chamber (2011)
Elimination Chamber was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on February 20, 2011 at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California...
pay-per-view. Cena would lose the battle royal, and as a result of the anonymous general manager's stipulation, he was placed in the Elimination Chamber match
Elimination Chamber
The Elimination Chamber is a professional wrestling elimination-based match held in the WWE promotion. It features a large chain-linked circular steel structure or "chamber" which encloses the ring. The chamber's floor is platformed over the ringside area which elevates it to ring level and within...
that would determine the number one contender to the WWE Championship. At Elimination Chamber, The Miz retained his title against Jerry "The King" Lawler
Jerry Lawler
Jerry O'Neil Lawler is an American professional wrestler, wrestling commentator, musician, businessman, commercial artist and film actor, known throughout the wrestling world as Jerry "The King" Lawler. He is currently signed to WWE, working on its Raw brand as the color commentator and occasional...
, and Cena won the Elimination Chamber match, thus earning a WWE Championship match at WrestleMania XXVII
WrestleMania XXVII
WrestleMania XXVII was the twenty-seventh annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , held on April 3, 2011 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia...
. On the February 21 edition of Raw, Cena rapped on The Rock, the guest host of WrestleMania, in response to some comments against him the week before. The Rock had mocked Cena's colorful shirts by calling him a "big fat bowl of Fruity Pebbles" and his "You Can't See Me" gimmick by referring to it as him playing peek-a-boo. Later that night, by order of the Raw general manager, Cena was placed into a WWE Tag Team Championship
WWE Tag Team Championship
The WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship...
match against newly crowned champions Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel, with his partner being The Miz. The duo successfully defeated the two members of The Corre, becoming the new Tag Team Champions. They were immediately challenged to a rematch during which The Miz betrayed Cena, resulting in The Corre winning back the Tag Team Championship. On the February 28 edition of Raw, The Rock mocked Cena's rap and continued insulting him, including calling him a "Yabba Dabba bitch", referring to the Fruity Pebbles remark made two weeks before. Cena and The Rock finally met face-to-face on the March 28 edition of Raw, which ended with Cena hitting The Rock with the Attitude Adjustment. On April 3 at WrestleMania XXVII the match ended in a double count out, which meant The Miz retained the WWE Championship. The Rock then restarted the match, only to slam Cena and cost him the match. The next night on Raw, Cena called out The Rock leading to The Rock challenging Cena to a match at Wrestlemania XXVIII
WrestleMania XXVIII
WrestleMania XXVIII is the forthcoming twenty-eighth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE. It is scheduled to take place on April 1, 2012 at Sun Life Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida...
which Cena accepted making it the first time ever that the WrestleMania Main Event had been set a year in advance.
The next week, Cena participated in a 5 man gauntlet match to determine the No.1 contender to face The Miz at Extreme Rules
Extreme Rules (2011)
Extreme Rules was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE, which took place on May 1, 2011 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida...
. Cena was the last to come out against R-Truth. The Miz then interfered in the match, resulting in a disqualification; however, it was then announced that they would both face the latter in a triple threat Steel Cage match at Extreme Rules. However, the following week, John Morrison defeated R-Truth to take his place in the match per the pre match stipulation. On the 2011 WWE Draft
2011 WWE Draft
The 2011 WWE Draft was the eighth annual draft held by WWE, which took place on April 25. With a core business of professional wrestling, the corporation held a draft to exchange personnel assigned to one of its two television programs that are independent brands that represent WWE...
, Cena was drafted back to SmackDown in the overall first pick, only to end up drafted back to Raw with the final draft pick of the night.
At Extreme Rules
Extreme Rules (2011)
Extreme Rules was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE, which took place on May 1, 2011 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida...
, John Cena defeated John Morrison
John Morrison
-In politics:* John Morrison , politician in Manitoba, Canada* John Morrison , Canadian Member of Parliament* John Morrison...
and The Miz in a Triple threat Cage Match to become the WWE Champion once again. He defended the WWE Championship against The Miz at Over The Limit
Over the Limit (2011)
Over the Limit was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE, which took place on May 22, 2011 at the KeyArena in Seattle, Washington. It was the second Over the Limit event...
in an I Quit match and would later defeat R-Truth at Capitol Punishment
WWE Capitol Punishment
Capitol Punishment was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE, which took place on June 19, 2011 at the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C....
.
Cena was then scheduled to face number one contender CM Punk
CM Punk
Phillip Jack "Phil" Brooks , better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler currently signed to WWE and working on its Raw brand currently serving his second title reign as WWE Champion....
for the WWE Championship
WWE Championship
The WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
at Money in the Bank
Money in the Bank (2011)
Money in the Bank was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE, which took place on July 17, 2011 at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. It was the second annual Money in the Bank pay-per-view...
. However, Punk would, on the June 27 edition of Monday Night RAW, deliver a scathing on-air speech concerning the way in which WWE is run and its owner Vince McMahon
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy "Vince" McMahon is an American professional wrestling promoter, announcer, commentator, film producer, actor and former occasional professional wrestler. McMahon is the current Chairman, CEO and Chairman of the Executive Committee of professional wrestling promotion WWE...
. This resulted in Punk's suspension from televised WWE events. McMahon would later reinstate CM Punk on the condition that John Cena, who heavily petitioned for Punk's reinstatement, would be fired on site if defeated for the championship. In his hometown of Chicago, in front of nearly 15000 fans, most of whom cheered Punk and heavily booed Cena before and through the match, CM Punk would go on to win the match and flee the arena with the WWE Championship. The following night on Raw, after an emotional speech by Cena, before McMahon could fire him, Triple H announced he was named as new COO and head of day-to-day operations in WWE and reinstated Cena. On the July 25th edition of RAW, Cena defeated newly-crowned WWE Champion Rey Mysterio to regain the title for a record breaking nineth time. Soon after, CM Punk returned to the WWE with his title in hand causing both Cena and Punk to be recognized as WWE Champions at the same time. Triple H announced that both champions would face off against one another at Summerslam
SummerSlam (2011)
SummerSlam was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE that took place on August 14, 2011. For the third consecutive year, SummerSlam was held at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, and it was the 24th annual SummerSlam event...
to determine the "undisputed" WWE Champion with Triple H as the referee. During the match, Triple H didn't see Cena's leg on the bottom rope
during the pin, causing Cena to lose the match. but Punk would lose it immediately to Alberto Del Rio after he cashed in his Money in the Bank contract.
On the August 22nd edition of Raw, Cena defeated Punk to become the number one contender for the WWE Championship held by Alberto Del Rio. After the match, Del Rio savagely attacked Cena. On the August 29th edition of Raw, Cena would call out Del Rio, but Del Rio would not appear. On the August 30th edition of Smackdown, Cena would call out Del Rio again. This time, Ricardo Rodriguez
Ricardo Rodriguez (wrestler)
Jesús Rodríguez is a Mexican-American professional wrestler and ring announcer, currently signed to WWE, performing on its RAW brand under the ring name Ricardo Rodriguez as Alberto Del Rio's personal ring announcer and occasional wrestler.-Early career:Rodriguez formerly wrestled for promotions...
, Del Rio's personal ring announcer, appeared claiming that Del Rio was unable to attend before being attacked by Cena. At Night of Champions
Night of Champions (2011)
Night of Champions was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE that took place on September 18, 2011 at the First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York. It was the 4th annual WWE Night of Champions event and the 11th in the WWE Vengeance overall timeline. Seven matches took...
, Cena defeated Del Rio to win the WWE Championship for a record tenth time. He would lose the title two weeks later to Del Rio at Hell in a Cell
Hell in a Cell (2011)
Hell in a Cell was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE that took place on October 2, 2011 at the New Orleans Arena in New Orleans, Louisiana. It was the third annual Hell in a Cell event. Like the 2009 and 2010 events, this event also featured the Hell in a Cell match...
in a Triple Threat Hell in a Cell match that also involved CM Punk, after Ricardo Rodriguez and Del Rio locked him out of the cage.
On the October 11th edition of Raw, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim Raw Manager John Laurinaitis
John Laurinaitis
John Joseph Laurinaitis is the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations for WWE and appears on WWE's Raw Brand as interim General Manager. He was previously a professional wrestler under the ring name Johnny Ace, and wrestled for such promotions as the National Wrestling Alliance and All...
announced that Cena would have a rematch with Del Rio for the title at Vengeance. A week later, Cena teamed up with WWE announcer Jim Ross
Jim Ross
James William "Jim" Ross is a professional wrestling commentator, former professional wrestling referee, restaurateur, occasional wrestler, and former company executive of WWE, where he currently works as a commentator on the WWE Raw brand...
to defeat Del Rio and fellow announcer Michael Cole
Michael Cole
Michael Sean Coulthard , better known by his ring name Michael Cole, is an American professional wrestling commentator, currently signed to WWE on both its Rawand SmackDown brands. Coulthard is a former news journalist....
. As the winner, Cena has the right to select a stipulation for the rematch, which Cena made a Last Man Standing Match. At Vegeance, Del Rio defeated Cena followed by interference from The Miz and R-Truth.
On the October 24th edition of RAW, Cena won the match via disqualification when R-Truth hit his bottle on Cena's head. After Truth and Miz brutally beat Cena, they were interrupted by WWE Executive Vice President of Talent Relations and Interim Raw Manager John Laurinaitis
John Laurinaitis
John Joseph Laurinaitis is the Executive Vice President of Talent Relations for WWE and appears on WWE's Raw Brand as interim General Manager. He was previously a professional wrestler under the ring name Johnny Ace, and wrestled for such promotions as the National Wrestling Alliance and All...
, who let Cena choose his partner against Awesome Truth at Survivor Series
Survivor Series (2011)
Survivor Series was a professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by WWE that took place on November 20, 2011 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It was the 25th annual Survivor Series event and the first one to take place in Madison Square Garden since the 2002 event...
. Cena said that the WWE locker room is no longer safe as Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
and Zack Ryder
Zack Ryder
Matthew Joseph Cardona, Jr. better known by his ring name Zack Ryder, is an American professional wrestler. He is currently signed to WWE and works on the Raw brand as a wrestler and the SmackDown brand as an assistant to SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long.Cardona wrestled mostly with his tag...
were attacked brutally. He said is partner at Survivor Series will be someone who will "Bring It" and chose his WrestleMania opponent The Rock as his partner. At Survivor Series The Rock & Cena defeated Awesome Truth but Cena was given the Rock Bottom after the match.
Film
The Marine
The Marine is a 2006 American action film starring wrestler John Cena. The film was directed by John Bonito, written by Michelle Gallagher and Alan B...
, which was distributed theatrically by 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
America beginning on October 13, 2006. In its first week, the film made approximately US$7 million at the United States box office. After ten weeks in theaters, the film grossed $18.7 million. Once the film was released on DVD, it fared better, making $30 million in rentals in the first twelve weeks.
His second film, also produced by WWE Studios, was 12 Rounds
12 Rounds (film)
12 Rounds is a 2009 American action film directed by Renny Harlin and produced by WWE Studios. The cast is led by professional wrestler John Cena, alongside Steve Harris, Gonzalo Menendez, Aidan Gillen, Brian J. White, Ashley Scott, and Taylor Cole...
. Filming began on February 25, 2008 in New Orleans; the film was released on March 27, 2009.
Cena co-starred in his third film produced by WWE Studios, titled Legendary
Legendary (film)
Legendary is a 2010 drama film directed by Mel Damski. The film stars Devon Graye as a high school wrestler, in a cast that features John Cena, Patricia Clarkson, Danny Glover, Madeleine Martin, and Tyler Posey...
, which was played in selected theaters starting on September 10, 2010, for a limited time, then it was released on DVD on September 28, 2010.
That same year, Cena starred in the children's film Fred: The Movie
Fred: The Movie
Fred: The Movie is a 2010 independent comedy film written by David A. Goodman, directed by Clay Weiner, and produced by Brian Robbins. The film is based on the adventures of Fred Figglehorn, a character created and played by Lucas Cruikshank for Cruikshank's YouTube channel...
, a film based on Lucas Cruikshank
Lucas Cruikshank
Lucas Cruikshank is an American comedic actor. Living in Columbus, Nebraska, he created the character Fred Figglehorn for his channel, named "Fred", on the video-sharing website YouTube...
's YouTube videos of the same name, where he plays Fred's father. The movie was released on the Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (TV channel)
Nickelodeon, often simply called Nick and originally named Pinwheel, is an American children's channel owned by MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom International. The channel is primarily aimed at children ages 7–17, with the exception of their weekday morning program block aimed at preschoolers...
channel in September 2010.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Ready to Rumble Ready to Rumble Ready to Rumble is a 2000 American comedy film directed by Brian Robbins and written by Steven Brill, which is based on Turner Broadcasting's now defunct professional wrestling promotion, World Championship Wrestling... |
Gym Trainer | Extra |
| 2006 | The Marine The Marine The Marine is a 2006 American action film starring wrestler John Cena. The film was directed by John Bonito, written by Michelle Gallagher and Alan B... |
John Triton | Lead role |
| 2007 | Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race Fast Cars & Superstars: Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race was an ABC reality television series featuring twelve celebrities in a stock car auto racing competition... |
Himself | Reality TV series |
| 2009 | 12 Rounds 12 Rounds (film) 12 Rounds is a 2009 American action film directed by Renny Harlin and produced by WWE Studios. The cast is led by professional wrestler John Cena, alongside Steve Harris, Gonzalo Menendez, Aidan Gillen, Brian J. White, Ashley Scott, and Taylor Cole... |
Danny Fisher | Los Angeles Film Festival Award for Best Actor |
| 2010 | Psych Psych Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts... |
Ewan O'Hara | "You Can't Handle This Episode" (season 4: episode 10) |
| 2010 | True Jackson, VP True Jackson, VP True Jackson, VP is an American television sitcom that aired on Nickelodeon from November 8, 2008 to August 20, 2011. The series starred Keke Palmer, Ashley Argota, Matt Shively, Danielle Bisutti, Greg Proops, Robbie Amell and Ron Butler. The theme song was written by Toby Gad and Keke Palmer and... |
Himself | "Pajama Party" (season 2: episode 12) |
| 2010 | Legendary Legendary (film) Legendary is a 2010 drama film directed by Mel Damski. The film stars Devon Graye as a high school wrestler, in a cast that features John Cena, Patricia Clarkson, Danny Glover, Madeleine Martin, and Tyler Posey... |
Mike Chetley | Nominated—Nevada Film Critics Circle Award for Best Actor |
| 2010 | Hannah Montana Hannah Montana Hannah Montana is an American television series, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on the Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a double life as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real... |
Himself | "Love That Let's Go" (season 4: episode 7) |
| 2010 | Fred: The Movie Fred: The Movie Fred: The Movie is a 2010 independent comedy film written by David A. Goodman, directed by Clay Weiner, and produced by Brian Robbins. The film is based on the adventures of Fred Figglehorn, a character created and played by Lucas Cruikshank for Cruikshank's YouTube channel... |
Fred's (imaginary) Dad | TV film |
| 2011 | The Reunion The Reunion (2011 film) The Reunion is a 2011 action film directed by Michael Pavone. The film stars John Cena, Ethan Embry, Michael Rispoli, Boyd Holbrook, and Amy Smart... |
Sam Cleary | |
| 2011 | Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred Fred 2: Night of the Living Fred is a 2011 independent comedy film. The film is the sequel to the 2010 film Fred: The Movie, based on the adventures of Fred Figglehorn, a character created and played by Lucas Cruikshank for Cruikshank's YouTube channel. It is a Halloween themed sequel... |
Fred's (imaginary) Dad | TV film |
Guest appearances
Before his WWE debut, Cena made an appearance on the Internet streamWebcast
A webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers. A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand...
show Go Sick as Bruebaker, an angry, cursing wrestler in 2001.
During his WWE career, Cena has appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! three times. Cena has also appeared on morning radio shows; including the CBS
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
and XM
XM Satellite Radio
XM Satellite Radio is one of two satellite radio services in the United States and Canada, operated by Sirius XM Radio. It provides pay-for-service radio, analogous to cable television. Its service includes 73 different music channels, 39 news, sports, talk and entertainment channels, 21 regional...
versions of Opie and Anthony
Opie and Anthony
Opie and Anthony are the hosts of The Opie & Anthony Show, a talk radio program airing in the United States and Canada on XM Satellite Radio and Sirius Satellite Radio. Since the merger of the two satellite companies, this is now called Sirius/XM...
as part of their "walkover" on October 10, 2006. Other appearances have included Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien
Late Night with Conan O'Brien is an American late-night talk show hosted by Conan O'Brien that aired 2,725 episodes on NBC between 1993 and 2009. The show featured varied comedic material, celebrity interviews, and musical and comedy performances. Late Night aired weeknights at 12:37 am...
, Fuse's
Fuse TV
Fuse is an American national television network dedicated exclusively to music. It features original series and specials, exclusive interviews, live concerts and video blocks....
Celebrity Playlist, Fox Sports Net
Fox Sports Net
The Fox Sports Regional Networks, or simply Fox Sports Net , are a collection of cable TV regional sports networks in the United States owned and operated by News Corporation.- Beginnings :...
's The Best Damn Sports Show Period
The Best Damn Sports Show Period
The Best Damn Sports Show Period is an American sports television show on Fox Sports Net and Comcast SportsNet. The show regularly featured irreverent and opinionated interviews with top athletes, coaches, celebrities, and entertainers. It also aired Top 50 countdown shows and other sports...
, MADtv
MADtv
MADtv is an American sketch comedy television series. It licensed the name and logo of Mad, but otherwise had no connection with the humor magazine outside the animated Spy vs. Spy and Don Martin cartoon shorts and images of Alfred E. Neuman that the show featured during the late 1990s. Its first...
, G4's Training Camp
G4's Training Camp
G4's Training Camp was a TV show on G4 covering the world of sports-themed video games. In the show, football legend Eddie George visits one avid sports gamer and hooks him up with some of the biggest names in sports. The show began on November 15, 2005 on Tuesdays at 11:30pm ET/PT, but was then...
(with Shelton Benjamin
Shelton Benjamin
Shelton James Benjamin is an American professional wrestler and former amateur wrestler best known for his tenure in World Wrestling Entertainment. Benjamin has an amateur wrestling background, including wrestling in high school and at the University of Minnesota. In addition, Benjamin has acted...
), and two appearances on MTV's Punk'd
Punk'd
Punk'd is an American hidden camera/practical joke reality television series that first aired on MTV in 2003 and was created by Ashton Kutcher and Jason Goldberg, produced and hosted by Ashton Kutcher. It bore a resemblance to both the classic hidden camera show Candid Camera and to TV's Bloopers...
(August 2006 and May 2007), as the victim of a practical joke
Practical joke
A practical joke is a mischievous trick played on someone, typically causing the victim to experience embarrassment, indignity, or discomfort. Practical jokes differ from confidence tricks in that the victim finds out, or is let in on the joke, rather than being fooled into handing over money or...
. He also served as a co-presenter, with Hulk Hogan
Hulk Hogan
Terrance Gene "Terry" Bollea , better known by his ring name Hulk Hogan, is an American Semi-retired professional wrestler, actor, television personality, and musician currently signed to Total Nonstop Action Wrestling ....
, at the 2005 Teen Choice Awards
Teen Choice Awards
The Teen Choice Awards, are an annual awards show that air on the Fox cable channel, that honor the year's biggest biggest achievements in music, movies, sports, television, fashion and more, voted by teen viewers aged 14 through 17. Winners receive an authentic full size surfboard designed with...
, as a guest judge during the third week of the 2006 season of Nashville Star
Nashville Star
Nashville Star is an American reality television program. It was transmitted during mid-2008 on NBC, following five seasons on USA Network. It premiered on March 8, 2003, and its five seasons on USA made it the longest-running competition series on cable television. In Canada, the show aired on CMT...
, and appeared at the 2007 Nickelodeon UK Kids Choice Awards
Nickelodeon UK Kids Choice Awards 2007
The Nickelodeon UK Kids' Choice Awards was first announced in May 2007. It is the first ever Kids' Choice Awards for the UK Nickelodeon. The show was hosted at ExCeL Exhibition Centre, London which took place 20 October 2007 and was presented by pop band McFly....
.
In January 2007, Cena, Batista, and Ashley Massaro
Ashley Massaro
Ashley Marie Massaro is an American professional wrestler, currently signed to World Independent Ladies Division Wrestling. She is best known for her work with World Wrestling Entertainment and her appearance on Survivor: China....
appeared representing WWE on an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition is a reality television series providing home renovations for less fortunate families and community schools etc...
, giving the children of the family whose house was being renovated WWE merchandise and eight tickets to WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23
WrestleMania 23 was the twenty-third annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 1, 2007 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan...
. Two months later, he and Bobby Lashley appeared on the NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
game show Deal or No Deal
Deal or No Deal (US game show)
Deal or No Deal is the American version of the international game show of Dutch origin of the same name. The show was hosted by Howie Mandel, and premiered on December 19, 2005, on National Broadcasting Company . The hour-long show typically aired at least twice a week during its run, and included...
as "moral support" to long time WWE fan and front row staple, Rick "Sign Guy" Achberger. Edge and Randy Orton
Randy Orton
Randal Keith "Randy" Orton is an American professional wrestler and actor. He is signed to WWE wrestling on its SmackDown brand...
also appeared, but as antagonists. On April 9, 2008, Cena, along with fellow wrestlers Triple H
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque is an American professional wrestler, professional wrestling authority figure, WWE Executive Vice President of Talent and actor, better known by his ring name Triple H, an abbreviation of the ring name, Hunter Hearst Helmsley...
and Chris Jericho
Chris Jericho
Christopher Keith Irvine , better known by his ring name Chris Jericho, is an inactive Canadian-American professional wrestler, musician, songwriter, radio personality, television host, actor, author, and dancer...
, appeared on the Idol Gives Back
Idol Gives Back
Idol Gives Back is the name of a charitable campaign that spanned two episodes of American Idol during its sixth season. A second Idol Gives Back concert and fundraiser occurred on April 9, 2008, during the seventh season of the show. Idol Gives Back was not held in 2009 due to the ongoing...
fund-raising special. In March 2009, Cena made an appearance on Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
during the show's cold opening sequence. On March 7, 2009, he was a guest on NPR
NPR
NPR, formerly National Public Radio, is a privately and publicly funded non-profit membership media organization that serves as a national syndicator to a network of 900 public radio stations in the United States. NPR was created in 1970, following congressional passage of the Public Broadcasting...
's quiz show Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!
Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! is an hour-long weekly radio news panel game show produced by Chicago Public Radio and National Public Radio. It is distributed by NPR in the United States, internationally on NPR Worldwide and on the Internet via podcast, and typically broadcast on weekends by member...
in a Not My Job sequence titled "Sure, pro wrestling is a good gig, but when you win, do they throw teddy bears into the ring?"
Television
In 2001, between his training in Ultimate Pro Wrestling and Ohio Valley WrestlingOhio Valley Wrestling
Ohio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
, Cena was involved in the UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
produced reality show Manhunt
Manhunt (2001 TV series)
Manhunt was a reality television series that aired on UPN in the summer of 2001.The contestants on the show posed as fugitives who tried to escape actors who pretended to be bounty hunters. The one who eluded the bounty hunters the longest would receive a cash prize.Manhunt was plagued with...
. Cena portrayed Big Tim Kingman, leader of the group of bounty hunter
Bounty hunter
A bounty hunter captures fugitives for a monetary reward . Other names, mainly used in the United States, include bail enforcement agent and fugitive recovery agent.-Laws in the U.S.:...
s who chased down the contestants who acted as fugitives. The show, however, was mired in controversy when it was alleged that the portions of the show were rigged to eliminate certain players, scenes were re-shot or staged to enhance drama and contestants read from scripts.
Cena was also featured on the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
reality series Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race
Fast Cars and Superstars: The Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race
Fast Cars & Superstars: Gillette Young Guns Celebrity Race was an ABC reality television series featuring twelve celebrities in a stock car auto racing competition...
, which aired in June 2007, making it to the final round before being eliminated on June 24, placing third in the competition overall.
In 2007 Cena was also interviewed for the CNN Special Investigations Unit
CNN Special Investigations Unit
CNN Special Investigations Unit is an American investigative documentary program on CNN weekends.Expanding upon CNN Presents, SIU focuses on each episode being an in depth investigative report about news stories being covered, commonly featuring a number of interviews with experts on the issue and...
documentary, "Death Grip: Inside Pro Wrestling", which focused on steroid and drug use in professional wrestling. When asked if he had taken steroids he was heard to reply, "I can't tell you that I haven't, but you'll never prove that I have." The day after the documentary aired WWE accused CNN of taking Cena's comments out of context to present a biased point of view, backing up their claim by posting an unedited video of his answering the same question—filmed by WWE cameras from another angle—in which he is heard beginning the same statement with "Absolutely not". A text interview on the website with Cena later had him saying the news outlet should apologize for misrepresenting him, which CNN refused in a statement, saying they felt the true answer to the question began with the phrase "My answer to that question". They did, however, edit the documentary on subsequent airings to include the "Absolutely not".
Cena hosted the Australian Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards with Natalie Bassingthwaighte
Natalie Bassingthwaighte
Natalie Bassingthwaighte is an Australian actress, singer-songwriter and television personality. She began her career as an actress on the television series All Saints. She then starred in the American television movie Counterstrike...
on October 11, 2008 in Melbourne, Australia.
He guest starred as Ewan O'Hara in an episode of the fourth season of the comedy drama Psych
Psych
Psych is an American detective comedy-drama television series created by Steve Franks and broadcast on USA Network. It stars James Roday as Shawn Spencer, a young crime consultant for the Santa Barbara Police Department whose "heightened observational skills" and impressive detective instincts...
, as the brother of Juliet O'Hara
Juliet O'Hara
Junior Detective Juliet "Jules" O'Hara is a character on the American comedy Psych played by Maggie Lawson.-Fictional biography:Juliet O'Hara first appears in the show's second episode, "Spellingg Bee", as a recently-transferred junior detective from Miami Beach where she attended the University of...
, played by Maggie Lawson
Maggie Lawson
Margaret "Maggie" Lawson is an American actress who is best known for her role as Juliet O'Hara in the TV show Psych...
.
He also guest starred in the seventh episode of Disney Channel
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by the Disney-ABC Television Group division of The Walt Disney Company. It is under the direction of Disney-ABC Television Group President Anne Sweeney. The channel's headquarters is located on West Alameda Ave. in...
's Hannah Montana Forever
Hannah Montana
Hannah Montana is an American television series, which debuted on March 24, 2006 on the Disney Channel. The series focuses on a girl who lives a double life as an average teenage school girl named Miley Stewart by day and a famous pop singer named Hannah Montana by night, concealing her real...
as himself.
Make-A-Wish Foundation
John Cena has granted over 200 wishes for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and in 2009 was a recipient of the Chris Greicius Celebrity Award.Endorsements
Before his professional wrestlingProfessional wrestling
Professional wrestling is a mode of spectacle, combining athletics and theatrical performance.Roland Barthes, "The World of Wrestling", Mythologies, 1957 It takes the form of events, held by touring companies, which mimic a title match combat sport...
career, Cena appeared in an advertisement for Gold's Gym
Gold's Gym
Gold's Gym International, Inc. is an international chain of co-ed fitness centers originally started in California by Joe Gold. Each gym features a wide array of exercise equipment, group exercise classes and personal trainers to assist clients...
. As a wrestler he has endorsed the energy drink
Energy drink
Energy drinks are beverages whose producers advertise that they "boost energy." These advertisements usually do not emphasize energy derived from the sugar and caffeine they contain but rather increased energy release due to a variety of stimulants and vitamins....
YJ Stinger
YJ Stinger
Stacker 2 YJ Stinger is an energy drink manufactured by NVE Pharmaceuticals. It comes in four flavors , as well as two sugar-free versions ....
, appearing in commercials beginning in October 2003, and Subway
Subway (restaurant)
Subway is an American restaurant franchise that primarily sells submarine sandwiches and salads. It is owned and operated by Doctor's Associates, Inc. . Subway is one of the fastest growing franchises in the world with 35,519 restaurants in 98 countries and territories as of October 25th, 2011...
, for whom he filmed advertisements with their spokesperson Jared Fogle
Jared Fogle
Jared S. Fogle , also known as The Subway Guy, is a spokesman employed by Subway Restaurants in its advertising campaigns...
in November 2006 that began airing the next January. For a time in 2007 he also endorsed two "signature collections" of energy drinks and energy bar
Energy bar
Energy bars are supplemental bars containing cereals and other high energy foods targeted at people that require quick energy but do not have time for a meal...
s sold by American Body Builders. In 2008, Cena filmed a commercial as part of Gillette's
Global Gillette
Gillette is a brand of Procter & Gamble currently used for safety razors, among other personal care products. Based in Boston, Massachusetts, United States, it was one of several brands originally owned by The Gillette Company, a leading global supplier of products under various brands, which was...
"Young Guns" NASCAR
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...
campaign.
In 2009, Cena expanded his relationship with Gillette by introducing a new online campaign called "Be A Superstar" featuring himself alongside WWE Superstars Chris Jericho and Cody Rhodes. The campaign features motivation
Motivation
Motivation is the driving force by which humans achieve their goals. Motivation is said to be intrinsic or extrinsic. The term is generally used for humans but it can also be used to describe the causes for animal behavior as well. This article refers to human motivation...
al videos.
Fashion
For the extent of his WWE career, Cena's attire has attempted to reflect the most current thug fashions and stylings within the hip hop culture that his character represents. Cena started out wearing "throwback jerseysMitchell & Ness
Mitchell & Ness Nostalgia Co., is a sports apparel company in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania owned by Adidas which purchased the company in November 2007. Mitchell & Ness was established in 1904, and is the oldest sporting goods company in Philadelphia...
" until WWE produced specific Cena merchandise which he began wearing. While Cena was a member of the SmackDown! brand, one of his WWE produced t-shirts bore the suggestive spoonerism
Spoonerism
A spoonerism is an error in speech or deliberate play on words in which corresponding consonants, vowels, or morphemes are switched . It is named after the Reverend William Archibald Spooner , Warden of New College, Oxford, who was notoriously prone to this tendency...
"Ruck Fules". Whenever it appeared on television the image was censored, not by the network, but by WWE to sell more shirts under the premise that it was "too hot for TV." He also wore a chain with a large padlock
Lock (device)
A lock is a mechanical or electronic fastening device that is released by a physical object or secret information , or combination of more than one of these....
, occasionally using it as a weapon, until WrestleMania 21
WrestleMania 21
WrestleMania 21 was the twenty-first annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on April 3, 2005 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. It started off with an interpormotional battle royal, for which Booker T...
, when it was replaced with a chromed and diamond studded
Bling-bling
Bling is a slang term popularized in hip hop culture, referring to flashy, ostentatious or elaborate jewelry and ornamented accessories that are carried, worn or installed, such as cell phones or tooth caps....
"Chain Gang" spinner
Spinner (wheel)
A spinner is a type of hubcap that spins independently inside of a wheel itself when the vehicle is in motion, and continues to spin once the vehicle has come to a stop. Being an attachment to the car's wheel, spinners operate by using one or more roller bearings to isolate the spinner from the...
medallion—reminiscent of the ones worn by members of G-Unit
G-Unit
G-Unit is an American hip hop group originating from New York City formed by 50 Cents. G-Unit emerged on the New York scene by independently releasing several mix tapes...
—matching his spinner title belt.
Around the time The Marine
The Marine
The Marine is a 2006 American action film starring wrestler John Cena. The film was directed by John Bonito, written by Michelle Gallagher and Alan B...
was released, Cena began wearing attire more military related, including camouflage
Military camouflage
Military camouflage is one of many means of deceiving an enemy. In practice, it is the application of colour and materials to battledress and military equipment to conceal them from visual observation. The French slang word camouflage came into common English usage during World War I when the...
shorts, dog tags
Dog tag (identifier)
A dog tag is the informal name for the identification tags worn by military personnel, named such as it bears resemblance to actual dog tags. The tag is primarily used for the identification of dead and wounded and essential basic medical information for the treatment of the latter, such as blood...
, a Marine
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
soldier cap and a WWE produced shirt with the legend "Chain Gang Assault Battalion." Shortly after WrestleMania 23, when promotion for The Marine ended, the military attire diminished and was replaced with apparel bearing his new slogan "American Made Muscle" along with denim shorts, not seen since he was a member of the SmackDown roster. He then wore shirts that promoted Cenation and his trademark line "You Can't See Me." In late 2011, Cena again switched to wearing camo shorts (to honor the U.S. Armed Forces), coininciding with his new black "Rise Above Hate" T-shirt promoting WWE's "Be a Star" anti-bullying campaign.
Music
In addition to his wrestling career, Cena is a rapper and a hip hop musicHip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
ian. Cena performed his fifth WWE theme song
Music in professional wrestling
Music in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...
, "Basic Thugonomics," himself, and it was featured on the WWE soundtrack album WWE Originals
WWE Originals
WWE Originals is an album recorded by various World Wrestling Entertainment performers. They each recorded a song that was true to their musical tastes, with Stone Cold Steve Austin appearing on five short spoken tracks with Jim Johnston as interludes...
. He also recorded a song,"Untouchables", for the company's next soundtrack album WWE ThemeAddict: The Music, Vol. 6
WWE ThemeAddict: The Music, Vol. 6
WWE ThemeAddict: The Music, Vol. 6 is a compilation album released by World Wrestling Entertainment in 2004. It mostly features recent theme songs of wrestlers on the roster at the time...
. He collaborated on the song H-U-S-T-L-E remix
Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition
Murs 3:16: The 9th Edition is an album by Murs, an American hip hop artist, released on March 23, 2004 on the Definitive Jux label...
along with Murs, E-40
E-40
Earl Stevens , better known by his stage name E-40, is an American rapper, entrepreneur, and investor from Vallejo, California. He is also part of the rap group The Click and the founder of Sick Wid It Records. His solo debut album, Federal, was released in November 1992, after The Click's debut...
, and Chingo Bling
Chingo Bling
Pedro Herrera III in Houston, Texas of Mexican parents, better known by his stage name Chingo Bling, is a well known underground rapper and producer....
.
Cena's debut album, You Can't See Me
You Can't See Me
You Can't See Me is the debut album of WWE wrestler John Cena and his cousin Tha Trademarc. Released on May 10, 2005, the album debuted at #15 on the Billboard 200 charts with over 43,000 copies sold in the first week released...
, was recorded with his cousin Tha Trademarc. It features, amongst other songs, his entrance theme, "The Time is Now", and the single "Bad, Bad Man", for which a music video was made that parodied 1980s culture, including the television show The A-Team
The A-Team
The A-Team is an American action adventure television series about a fictional group of ex-United States Army Special Forces personnel who work as soldiers of fortune, while on the run from the Army after being branded as war criminals for a "crime they didn't commit". The A-Team was created by...
. A video was also made for the second single, "Right Now," and premiered on the August 8 Raw. Cena and Tha Trademarc were later featured on a track by The Perceptionists
The Perceptionists
The Perceptionists are an American hip hop group on the Definitive Jux label. The group is made up of MCs Akrobatik and Mr Lif, along with DJ Fakts One. They hail from Boston, Massachusetts...
named "Champion Scratch." Cena will appear on Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins' upcoming album Still Cool featuring other guests.
Albums
- You Can't See MeYou Can't See MeYou Can't See Me is the debut album of WWE wrestler John Cena and his cousin Tha Trademarc. Released on May 10, 2005, the album debuted at #15 on the Billboard 200 charts with over 43,000 copies sold in the first week released...
- Released: May 10, 2005
- Chart positions: 15 U.S. Billboard 200Billboard 200The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, 10 U.S. Top R&B/Hip-Hop AlbumsTop R&B/Hip-Hop AlbumsTop R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999...
, 3 U.S. RapTop Rap AlbumsTop Rap Albums is a record chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks Rap and hip-hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart began publication for the week of November 13, 2004....
, 103 UK Albums ChartUK Albums ChartThe UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... - Singles: "The Time Is Now", "Bad Bad Man" (featuring Bumpy Knuckles), "Right Now"
Personal life
Cena writes left-handedLeft-handed
Left-handedness is the preference for the left hand over the right for everyday activities such as writing. In ancient times it was seen as a sign of the devil, and was abhorred in many cultures...
. He is a fan of Japanese animation and has mentioned that his favorite animated movie is Fist of the North Star
Fist of the North Star
is a Japanese manga series written by Buronson and drawn by Tetsuo Hara that was serialized in Weekly Shōnen Jump from 1983 to 1988, spanning 245 chapters, which were initially collected in a 27-volume tankōbon edition by Shueisha...
. He has also said he is a fan of the video game series Command & Conquer
Command & Conquer
Command & Conquer, abbreviated to C&C and also known as Tiberian Dawn, is a 1995 real-time strategy computer game developed by Westwood Studios for MS-DOS and published by Virgin Interactive. It was the first of twelve games to date to be released under the Command & Conquer label, including a...
and noted that it was his favorite game. Cena is also a fan of the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
, Tampa Bay Rays
Tampa Bay Rays
The Tampa Bay Rays are a Major League Baseball team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The Rays are a member of the Eastern Division of MLB's American League. Since their inception in , the club has played at Tropicana Field...
, New England Patriots
New England Patriots
The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
, and Boston Celtics
Boston Celtics
The Boston Celtics are a National Basketball Association team based in Boston, Massachusetts. They play in the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference. Founded in 1946, the team is currently owned by Boston Basketball Partners LLC. The Celtics play their home games at the TD Garden, which...
. Cena collects muscle cars and has over 20, some of which are one-of-a-kind.
While promoting his 2009 film, 12 Rounds
12 Rounds (film)
12 Rounds is a 2009 American action film directed by Renny Harlin and produced by WWE Studios. The cast is led by professional wrestler John Cena, alongside Steve Harris, Gonzalo Menendez, Aidan Gillen, Brian J. White, Ashley Scott, and Taylor Cole...
, Cena announced his engagement to his girlfriend Elizabeth Huberdeau. They were married on July 11, 2009.
In wrestling
- Finishing moves
-
- Attitude Adjustment (formerly FU) (Fireman's carry transitioned into a takeover or a powerslam, sometimes from the second rope) – 2003–present
- STF (formerly STFU) – 2005–present
- Signature moves
-
- Diving leg drop bulldog
- DropkickDropkickA dropkick is an attacking maneuver in professional wrestling. It is defined as an attack where the wrestler jumps up and kicks the opponent with the soles of both feet; this sees the wrestler twist as he or she jumps so that when the feet connect with the opponent one foot is raised higher than...
, sometimes from the top rope - Emerald Flowsion
- Fisherman suplex
- Five Knuckle Shuffle (Running delayed fist drop, with theatrics)
- Gutwrench suplex
- Protobomb (Spin-out powerbomb)
- Running leaping shoulder block
- Running one–handed bulldog
- Sitout hip toss
- Rapper Punch ("You can't see me!" taunt followed by haymaker)
- Spinebuster - 2002 - 2005 used rarely there after
- Throwback (Running neck snap to a bent–over opponent)
- Twisting belly to belly suplex
- Nicknames
- "The Doctor of Thuganomics"
- "The Champ" (as either the WWE ChampionWWE ChampionshipThe WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
or the World Heavyweight ChampionWorld Heavyweight Championship (WWE)The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
) – 2005–present - "The Chain Gang Commander"
- "The Chain Gang Soldier"
- "The CeNation Commander-in-Chief"
- "The Marine"
- "SupermanSupermanSuperman is a fictional comic book superhero appearing in publications by DC Comics, widely considered to be an American cultural icon. Created by American writer Jerry Siegel and Canadian-born American artist Joe Shuster in 1932 while both were living in Cleveland, Ohio, and sold to Detective...
" - "The Voice of Little Jimmys" (while feuding with R-TruthRon KillingsRonald Aaron "Ron" Killings is an American professional wrestler and rapper. He is currently signed to WWE working on its Raw brand. Since working for the company, he has been a one time United States Champion under the ring name R-Truth and a two time Hardcore Champion under the ring name K-Kwik...
)
- ManagersManager (professional wrestling)In professional wrestling, a manager is a secondary character paired with a wrestler for a variety of reasons. The manager is often either a non-wrestler, an occasional wrestler, an older wrestler who has retired or is nearing retirement or, in some cases, a new wrestler who is breaking into the...
- Kenny BolinKenny BolinKenny Bolin is a professional wrestling manager, best known as the lead villainous manager in Ohio Valley Wrestling as the manager of Bolin Services. Hit podcast Radio show called "The Bolin Alley" he does with his son Chris...
- B–2Barry BuchananBarry Buchanan is an American professional wrestler, best known for his appearances as Bull Buchanan and B-2 in the World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment.-National Championship Wrestling :...
- Redd DoggRodney BegnaudRodney Begnaud is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his stint in World Wrestling Entertainment and for his work on its Raw brand under the ring name Rodney Mack.-Debut :...
- Kenny Bolin
- Entrance themesMusic in professional wrestlingMusic in professional wrestling serves a variety of purposes. The most common uses of music in professional wrestling is that of the entrance theme, a song or piece of instrumental music which plays as a performer approaches the ring...
- "Slam Smack" by R. Hardy (FirstCom Production Music) (June 27, 2002–November 7, 2002)
- "Insert Bass Here" by DJ Case (FirstCom Production Music) (November 14, 2002–February 13, 2003)
- "Basic Thuganomics" by John Cena (March 27, 2003–March 10, 2005; April 5, 2009 for his entrance at WrestleMania XXVWrestleMania XXVWrestleMania XXV was the twenty-fifth annual WrestleMania professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment , which took place on April 5, 2009 at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas...
) - "We Are One" by 12 Stones12 Stones12 Stones is a rock band that was formed in 2000 in Mandeville, Louisiana. They have collectively sold more than 2 million records.-History:The four band members met in Mandeville, Louisiana, a small suburb north of New Orleans, and within 15 months were signed to a record deal with Wind-up Records...
(WWE; October 3, 2010-November 21, 2010; Used While a part of NexusNexus (professional wrestling)The Nexus was a villainous professional wrestling stable in the professional wrestling promotion, WWE, that competed on its Raw brand. The group originally consisted of all eight rookies of NXT season one and shifted their roster several times throughout their existence...
) - "The Time is NowThe Time Is Now (John Cena song)"The Time is Now" is the current entrance theme of professional wrestler John Cena, who currently wrestles for World Wrestling Entertainment. The rap song originates from Cena and Tha Trademarc's debut album, You Can't See Me, released on the WWE Records label in 2005.The song was released on...
" by John Cena and Tha Trademarc (March 17, 2005–present)
Championships and accomplishments
- Ohio Valley WrestlingOhio Valley WrestlingOhio Valley Wrestling is an American independent professional wrestling promotion based in Louisville, Kentucky. OVW is run by owner Danny Davis and was a member of the National Wrestling Alliance from 1997 until 2000...
- OVW Heavyweight ChampionshipOVW Heavyweight ChampionshipThe OVW Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling heavyweight championship owned by the Ohio Valley Wrestling promotion. The title was introduced on August 17, 1997 at an OVW live event, then known as the NWA-OVW Heavyweight Championship due to OVW's relationship with the National...
(1 time) - OVW Southern Tag Team ChampionshipOVW Southern Tag Team ChampionshipThe OVW Southern Tag Team Championship is the tag team titles of Ohio Valley Wrestling. Created in 1997, the first champions were Nick Dinsmore and Flash Flanagan. As of 2011, the current champions are Ted McNaler and Adam Revolver, known as The Elite in their fourth reign...
(1 time) – with Rico ConstantinoRico ConstantinoAmerico Sebastiano Costantino is a retired American professional wrestler and wrestling manager of Italian origin. He is best known by his ring names Rico Costantino and Rico in World Wrestling Entertainment from 2001 to 2004...
- OVW Heavyweight Championship
- Pro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling IllustratedPro Wrestling Illustrated is a professional wrestling magazine. PWI is currently based in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania and published by Kappa Publishing Group.-History:The first issue of Pro Wrestling Illustrated was released in 1979...
- PWI Feud of the Year (2006)
- PWI Match of the Year (2007)
- PWI Most Improved Wrestler of the Year (2003)
- PWI Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2004, 2005, 2007)
- PWI Wrestler of the Year (2006, 2007)
- PWI ranked #1 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2006 and 2007
- Ultimate Pro Wrestling
- UPW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)
- World Wrestling EntertainmentWorld Wrestling EntertainmentWorld Wrestling Entertainment, Inc. is an American publicly traded, privately controlled entertainment company dealing primarily in professional wrestling, with major revenue sources also coming from film, music, product licensing, and direct product sales...
- World Heavyweight ChampionshipWorld Heavyweight Championship (WWE)The World Heavyweight Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the SmackDown brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the WWE Championship of the Raw brand...
(2 times) - World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Shawn Michaels (1) and Batista (1)
- WWE ChampionshipWWE ChampionshipThe WWE Championship is a professional wrestling world heavyweight championship in WWE. It is the world title of the Raw brand and one of two in WWE, complementing the World Heavyweight Championship of the SmackDown brand. It was established under the then WWWF in 1963...
(10 times) - WWE Tag Team ChampionshipWWE Tag Team ChampionshipThe WWE Tag Team Championship is a professional wrestling world tag team championship in WWE. It was established as a second title for tag teams in WWE in 2002 to complement the original World Tag Team Championship...
(2 times) – with David OtungaDavid OtungaDavid Daniel Otunga is a professional wrestler and former reality television actor. He is signed to WWE, appearing on the Raw brand under his real name. He's a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion, having one reign each with Michael McGillicutty and John Cena. He was the runner-up on the first season...
(1), and The Miz (1) - WWE United States ChampionshipWWE United States ChampionshipThe WWE United States Championship is a professional wrestling championship in WWE. It was originally a National Wrestling Alliance and World Championship Wrestling championship, and is currently the secondary championship of the Raw brand....
(3 times) - Royal RumbleRoyal RumbleThe Royal Rumble is a professional wrestling pay-per-view event, produced every January by WWE, a professional wrestling promotion based in Connecticut. The event was created in 1988, with its inaugural event taking place on January 24, 1988 at the Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, Ontario...
(2008Royal Rumble (2008)Royal Rumble was the twenty-first annual Royal Rumble professional wrestling pay-per-view event produced by World Wrestling Entertainment . It took place on January 27, 2008 at Madison Square Garden in New York, New York and featured talent from the Raw, SmackDown and ECW brands. The event was...
) - Slammy Award winner – 2009 and 2010 Superstar of the Year
- Slammy Award for Holy $#!+ Move of the Year (2010)
- World Heavyweight Championship
- Wrestling Observer Newsletter
- Wrestler of the Year (2007, 2010)
- 5 Star Match vs. CM Punk at WWE Money in the Bank on July 17, 2011
- Best Box Office Draw (2007)
- Best on Interviews (2007)
- Most Charismatic (2006–2010)
- Most Charismatic of the Decade (2000–2009)
- Best Gimmick (2003)