John Cena debuted in WWE on June 27, 2002 by answering an open challenge from Kurt Angle. Before the match, Kurt posed the question “what is the one quality that you possess, that makes you think that you can walk out here and come into the ring and face the very best in the business?” John answered by saying “ruthless aggression” and slapping Kurt in the face.
When John debuted I had been watching wrestling for about three years and I was 14 years old. I had never seen so many new faces debut in such a short amount of time. The first brand split had taken place a few months earlier. Many people debuted around this time so John didn’t seem all that special to me at first.
He got my attention when he defeated Chris Jericho at Vengeance shortly after debuting. Nonetheless, he fell down the card rather quickly after that. It wasn’t until he became the Dr. of Thuganomics that I became a fan of his. The last time I went trick or treating as a kid, I dressed up as John Cena. It was, as a matter of fact, a memorable experience. The costume wasn’t much, just his jersey, but it still counts. It makes the story I’m trying to tell better.
He won the United States Championship at WrestleMania 20. He would win the title two more times, closing out 2004 as US Champion. He lost the title to Orlando Jordan. This happened on his way to dethroning JBL for the WWE Championship. For the entirety of the early Dr. of Thuganomics run I was firmly in the “Lets go Cena” camp before that had even become a thing.
After he won the WWE Championship, something changed. He became “Super Cena.” For the next decade, I threw dirt at him, chanting “Cena sucks” at every opportunity. It’s important to note that I never disliked John Cena as a person. Quite the opposite in fact. The guy is a workhorse and I believe he holds the record for granting the most Make a Wish’s ever. Hard to dislike someone so selfless.
I started warming up to him again in 2015. That was the year he defeated Rusev at WrestleMania 31 for the United States Championship. He started holding the US Title Open Challenge. It looked like he was enjoying himself. That was something I hadn’t seen from him in years.
Fast forward to 2017 when John took on a lighter schedule and began accepting more acting roles. I realized something. It was akin to my realization when the Rock did the same thing. I understood that we didn’t know what we had until it was gone.
And that brings us to 2024 when John announced his retirement tour for 2025. The emotion that I’m feeling now hadn’t hit me yet. It wouldn’t until I could count on one hand the number of dates he had left. Now John will wrestle for the last time in a few hours and that emotion is hitting quite hard. As I’m writing this I’m honestly getting goosebumps.
John turned heel at Elimination Chamber 2025. Something I had been waiting for him to do for 20 years or so. The initial heel turn was fantastic, rivaling when Hulk Hogan turned in 1996 forming the nWo in the process. What followed wasn’t the greatest, it wasn’t terrible by any means but something was missing. Ironically, I found myself longing for “Super Cena” the old John, the one I had booed for so many years. They flipped the script on me. They made me go from “Let’s go Cena” to “Cena Sucks” and back to “Let’s go Cena”. For the first time in over twenty years I can honestly say I’m a fan of John Cena the character.
My fandom of the G.O.A.T. has come full circle. I realized that John was a huge part of my childhood. Now he’s retiring. WWE is Sports Entertainment. Wrestling is choreographed and predetermined but there is nothing fake about the emotion I’m now feeling. I wouldn’t be shocked if I start bawling like a little bitch after Cena takes his final bow. Hell, I’m tearing up just writing about it.
I’m rather confident that John will never read this but just in case I’d like to say thank you John. Thank you for the memories, thank you for my childhood, thank you for the Hustle, Loyalty, and Respect. I apologize sincerely. For years, I chanted “Cena Sucks” while you were working hard to entertain us.
Your time is up. My time is now…to chant one final time…“Let’s go Cena.”
Thank you John.