TJR: Ranking John Cena’s 16 WWE World Title Wins
A look back at John Cena’s legacy with reviews of all 16 of his WWE World Title victories.
The main event of WrestleMania 41 Sunday will see Cody Rhodes defend the Undisputed WWE Title against John Cena, who is going for his 17th WWE World Title win. The number is significant because it would put Cena in first place for most all-time World Title wins. The 16 title reigns are shared by the great WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair, who says he has more than that because there were some shady title changes back in the day, but 16 is the recognized number.
What’s different between Flair is that while his World Title reigns took place in the NWA, WCW and WWE), only two of those World Title wins were in WWE. In the case of John Cena, obviously all of his 16 World Title wins were in WWE.
John Cena held the WWE Championship for a combined 1254 days over 13 reigns and the World Heavyweight Title three times for a total of 154 days. Add those numbers up and it’s 16 reigns for 1408 days.
For this column, what I’m going to do is list every title change in the order that they happened and then at the end I’ll rank the 16 WWE World Title wins in John Cena’s career from worst to best. I’ll keep in my original play by play along with analysis and I’ll add some updated 2025 thoughts in blue font too. Throughout the column, I’ll post images as well to break up some of the text. Let’s get to it.
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WWE World Title Win #1: WrestleMania 21 – April 3, 2005 @ Staples Center in Los Angeles, California
WWE Championship (Smackdown): John Bradshaw Layfield vs. John Cena
Lockup to start. JBL kicks him around a bit, then hits a swinging neckbreaker and another one for two. JBL chokes him in the ropes, then slingshots him neck first into the middle rope. Cena boots him in the face, then charges in and takes a hard Spinebuster in the middle from JBL that gets two. Another neckbreaker for JBL gets two and then he boots Cena in the face. Corner whip followed by a big clothesline in the corner. I guess that clothesline did not come from hell. Short arm clothesline gets two as Cena gets to the ropes. JBL works over his back. Sleeper hold. The crowd is quiet by this point and this hold isn’t helping. Back suplex for Cena leads to a five count double knockout spot and a double clothesline puts them down again. We’re only seven minutes in and they’re already doing double knockout spots. Out on the floor, JBL hits his fourth neckbreaker of the match. That gets two. Cole theorizes that it’s to weaken Cena for the Clothesline from Hell, which makes sense. The problem with that is that JBL already hit him with some clotheslines. JBL sets him on the top, then hits him with punches and nails a nice superplex off the top for two. Crowd either didn’t buy that nearfall, or they’re just not into this match. JBL goes to the top rope, which of course leads to nothing but good things as Cena catches him and powerslams him. Clotheslines from Cena and here comes the crowd with him. Back bodydrop, shoulder tackle, hip toss and spinning sideslam from Cena. Five knuckle shuffle time for Cena. He charges in, JBL gets the boot up. Clothesline from Hell, Cena ducks and hits the FU for the three. The match went 11:26. Cena is the new WWE Champion.
Winner by pinfall and new WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: ** Very underwhelming match. There weren’t many nearfalls here. If you’re a fan of clotheslines then this was the title match for you! I was surprised by how short it was, but considering the limitations of the workers, it was the right call. It came off like a TV match, though, rather than a WrestleMania match for a major title. JBL couldn’t have good matches very often and with a bigger guy like Cena it was going to be even more difficult for him. Cena’s never been a great worker, but as we’d see over the years he had some good matches in big match situations. This wasn’t one of those good matches. This was the first World or WWE title match Cena was in at a WrestleMania. He would go on to wrestle in 7 WWE or World Title matches in a row at WrestleManias after this.
(It’s a historically important match in Cena’s career since it’s his first WWE Title win. He went on to have some better matches with JBL when they had stipulations to allow for more brawling, but I stand by my 2005 analysis that it was an underwhelming match. It was an obvious title change.)
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WWE World Title Win #2: Royal Rumble – January 29, 2006 @ American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida
WWE Championship: Edge (w/Lita) vs. John Cena
Cena with a clothesline, Edge to the floor and Cena sent Edge into the ring apron. Back in the ring, Edge whipped Cena face first into the turnbuckle. Cena hit a sidewalk slam on Edge for a two count. Edge left the ring, so Cena followed with punches and he sent Edge into the steel steps. Edge hid behind Lita, he shoved Lita into Cena and Edge hit a Spear into the steel steps. That looked like a painful bump for Cena, who was out on the floor for a few moments selling the lower back injury. Edge with a baseball slide dropkick that sent Cena over the barricade into the crowd. Cena got back in the ring just before the ten count. Edge was relentless with knee drops followed by a boot to the throat to keep Cena down. The crowd did their “Let’s Go Cena/Cena Sucks” routine. When Cena tried to get some momentum, Edge hit him with a spinning heel kick. Cena tried to fight back, but Edge connected with a suplex. Eye gouge by Edge followed by a standing dropkick. Lita applauded her man while I applauded the director for showing Lita. Edge punched Cena out of the ring followed by Edge whipping Cena shoulder first into the steel steps. Edge sent Cena throat first into the barricade at ringside. Back in the ring, Edge went up top and he connected with a missile dropkick for two. Running clothesline by Edge allowed him to remain in control. Edge set up Cena on the top rope, but Cena shoved him off and Cena went for a lefty leg drop, Edge moved and Cena hit the mat hard. Edge got a two count out of that. Edge worked over Cena with jab punches.
Cena whipped Edge into the ropes, Edge avoided an attack, Cena had Edge on his shoulders and Edge gouged Cena’s eyes. Edge hit a running boot to the face of Cena. Edge went up top, Cena struggled to his feet and Edge hit a cross body block into a Cena roll into a pin for two. Edge slapped on a sleeper hold and a body scissors. That lasted about one minute until Cena drove Edge into the turnbuckle. Edge charged into the corner, Cena moved and Edge hit the turnbuckle headfirst. Cena with a running shoulder tackle, two clotheslines and the spinning sitout slam. Cena with the Five Knuckle Shuffle with the first drop. Lita was on the apron to distract. Edge charged, Cena moved and Edge knocked Lita off the apron. Cena hit the FU. Cena slapped on the STFU submission for the tapout victory at 15:01.
Winner and New WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: *** The match was solid with Edge controlling most of it, Cena making the big comeback and the ending was straight out of a finish you would get from a house show. It really wasn’t that creative at all. I think the lack of believable nearfalls hurt the match a lot. If you want to see a better match from them I recommend the TLC match at Unforgiven 2006 because that was outstanding. I kept waiting for this match to get into that next year where I could call it great, but it never got there. This was early in their rivalry, though, so there were a lot more matches for them.
(Good match, but they would have better ones, as I said. I don’t know how many times they wrestled in 2006 on TV/PPV plus live events, but they really developed great chemistry by the time they got to Unforgiven in September 2006. Looking back on this, I shouldn’t have been surprised that Cena won the title back although I remember being mad that Edge’s title reign was less than one month. At least they turned it into a good story that led to the awesome Edge vs. Mick Foley match at WrestleMania 22 that was arguably the best match at WrestleMania that year. Then after that was over, it was back to Edge’s rivalry with Cena again.)
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WWE World Title Win #3: Unforgiven – September 16, 2006 @ Air Canada Centre in Toronto, Ontario
WWE Championship – Tables, Ladders & Chairs Match: Edge vs. John Cena
They brawled early on as Cena hit shoulder tackles, Edge with a hard slap, Cena punched him and Edge nailed a neckbreaker with the crowd cheering for that. Cena avoided a chair shot and hit a suplex. Edge avoided a corner charge and hit the Edgecution DDT. Edge opened up two chairs in the ring, Cena went for a move, Edge slipped out and hit a reverse DDT onto the chairs. That looked rough. Cena knocked Edge down when he climbed a ladder, but Edge came back with a clothesline. Edge hit a dropkick off the barricade while a ladder was set up against Cena’s face. A ladder was set up against the turnbuckle, so Cena hit a hip toss that sent Edge onto the ladder. Cena teased putting Edge through two tables outside the ring, they brawled on the apron, Edge nailed a forearm and Cena tripped him up on the top turnbuckle. Loud “Cena Sucks” chant from the crowd. They did a spot out of the corner where it was going to be an Edge powerbomb through a table, but they messed it up. With the table still there, Edge gave Cena a powerslam through the table. Cena was on the floor, so Edge ran across a ladder that was against the turnbuckle and jumped over the top to take him out. That was risky because he almost fell when trying to step on the ladder.
Back in the ring, Edge hit Cena in the back with a hard chair shot. Edge set up the Conchairto, but Cena tripped him up to avoid it. Cena with a flipping neckbreaker sent Edge face first into a steel chair that was on the mat. Cena applied the STFU on Edge while he was trapped in between the ladder. Edge tapped out, but it doesn’t mean anything in this match. Cena hit Edge in the face with the top of the ladder and then Cena slammed the ladder onto Edge. Spinning slam by Cena, then he teased a Five Knuckle Shuffle and stopped. Cena climbed the ladder and hit his fist drop off the ladder. Cena set up a table in the ring. Edge had a chair and nailed Cena in the head with a stiff chair shot. Ouch! There’s another thing on this show that you won’t see in WWE today. Cena was on a table, Edge put another table on him and went up top, but Cena punched him to stop that.
Cena grabbed a bigger ladder from under the ring. He set it up in the middle of the ring while Edge was still in the floor. Cena slowly climbed, Edge jumped off another ladder and hit a Spear to knock Cena down. Cool spot with the crowd cheering. Edge up the ladder, Cena got up, Edge jumped in his arms and Cena gave Edge a Powerbomb into a ladder that was set up in the corner. With Edge on the floor, Cena nailed him in the head with a chair shot although not with as much force as Edge hit Cena with. Cena climbed the ladder, got his hands on it and Lita showed up. Lita tilted the ladder so that Cena fell back backwards right into a conveniently placed table outside the ring. That’s a risky bump, but it turned out fine. Edge crawled back into the ring first. Cena got back into the ring as Edge reached near the top of the ladder. Lita hit Cena in the back with a chair, but Cena bounced into the ladder and that sent Edge crashing through two tables that were outside the ring (he missed the first one) outside the ring. Damn! That one looked bad too. Cena picked up Lita and hit the FU (later named the Attitude Adjustment) to send her out of the ring. Cena set up the ladder for the climb. Edge was able to crawl back up. Two refs were in the ring even though they wouldn’t normally be there in a match like this. What they were really doing was steadying the ladder for the big ending. Cena put Edge on his shoulders and gave him the FU through two stacked tables that they set up beside the ladder. Huge bump! One of the biggest bumps I’ve ever seen in WWE. This followed a crazy bump that Edge did outside the ring a few minutes earlier. Cena grabbed the title, looked down at Edge and brought the title down to win the match after 26:28 of action. JR: “Good God what a match!” Damn right.
Winner and New WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: ****1/2 That was an awesome match. I think it’s the best match these two ever had and they had a lot of good ones. I didn’t remember the match going 30 minutes. It makes me appreciate the effort that both guys put in to deliver a classic matchup. That final spot was one of the most definitive endings to a WWE Title match that you’re ever going to see. Edge always got a lot of credit for coming up with creative spots in these kinds of matches, so I’m sure a lot of it came from him. Cena definitely played his part in making it a classic match as well. Lita was a factor in saving Edge, but she also played a part in costing Edge the match. She retired from WWE two months after this. Matches like this really helped to make TLC one of the best gimmick matches that the WWE does. This was one of the first Cena matches where he really proved that he could come up with awesome performances in big matches. It didn’t happen all the time, but he delivered in this case because Edge helped to bring out the best in him.
(It was one of the best matches of Cena’s career and one of the best singles matches in Edge’s career. I say that because I think his TLC tag team matches were the best matches in his career. This one was built up so well, it had the story of being in Edge’s hometown of Toronto, so Cena was hated by the fans and he was still able to win. That finish is legendary and also looked very painful. I really liked this match a lot and I’m glad they got through it without serious injury.)
That title win was also the start of Cena’s longest WWE Title reign, which was 380 days meaning it was over one year.
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WWE World Title Win #4: Survivor Series – November 23, 2008 @ TD Banknorth Garden in Boston, Massachusetts
John Cena suffered a neck injury coming out of SummerSlam 2008 against Batista. There was a fear that he could miss six months of action, but he was back in three months. This was for the World Heavyweight Title rather than the WWE Title that Cena held three times previously, but they both count the same.
World Heavyweight Championship: Chris Jericho vs. John Cena
There was a close-up on the scar that Cena had on his neck for the surgery he had. Jericho with a shoulder block leading to Cena going to the floor to take a breather. Cena went back into the ring with a suplex for two. Jericho fought back with a boot to the face followed by forearms. Cena came back with a clothesline. A body slam followed by an elbow drop earned a two count for Cena. Jericho avoided a charge and sent Cena face first into the turnbuckle. Cena hit the throwback neck snap move. He was hesitant to go to the top rope, so Jericho took advantage with a DDT for two. The announcers noted that Cena’s top rope move led to the Batista Bomb that caused Cena’s neck injury three months earlier. Jericho kicked Cena in the head while his head was near the ring post, so it was a nasty looking neck bump. Cena went back into the ring and Jericho dumped him over the top to the floor. Jericho with a dropkick on the floor. Jericho sent Cena shoulder first into the steel steps. Jericho wrenched on the neck of Cena. Back to his feet, Cena ran the ropes, Jericho moved out of the way and Cena’s cross body block attempt saw him go crashing into the mat. Jericho applied a Full Nelson, which he never does, but it was a move that worked on the neck of Cena. It was on for about two minutes when Cena finally broke it. Cena countered a bulldog by shoving him into the turnbuckle. Cena hit his two shoulder tackles, but Jericho countered a slam into a bulldog. Jericho missed a Lionsault and Cena hit his spinning slam. You Can’t See Me taunt from Cena, Jericho got back up. Jericho applied the Walls of Jericho with his knee on the back of neck of Cena’s head, but Cena powered out of it. Jericho came back with a clothesline.
Jericho went for the Walls of Jericho although this time it looked more like a Boston Crab. Cena sold it for about minute or so before grabbing the bottom rope to break the hold. Cena got back to his feet, Jericho walked right into the FU, which was not renamed to the Attitude Adjustment by this point. Cena was down after hitting the move, so it took about 30 seconds to make the cover. That delay allowed Jericho to kick out at two. They battled on the top rope with Cena shoving him down. Cena up top, he paused, stuck his arm in the air, did the “you can’t see me” hand gesture and hit the leg drop to the back of the head of Jericho. Cena went for FU, Jericho hit elbows to break free and hit a Codebreaker. Slow cover by Jericho got two. Jericho came back with a clothesline. When Cena got back up, Jericho hit him with another clothesline. Cena was back on his feet, tripped up Jericho and applied the STFU submission hold. Cena let up when Jericho was close to the ropes. Jericho with a small package. Cena fought out of that, hoisted Jericho up to his shoulders and Cena hit the FU for the pinfall win after 21:19 mark. Good ovation for the win, but not a huge reaction.
Winner by pinfall and New World Heavyweight Champion: John Cena
Analysis: *** It was a solid three-star match, but nothing more than that. They didn’t get to another level in terms of building up the nearfalls and making it a special match. I know both guys were capable of that. It just didn’t happen here. Perhaps the reason for that was because Cena was off for three months and likely came back early from the injury so he can perform in his hometown. There wasn’t anything that noticeable from Cena in terms of being off in his performance. It’s likely that he was a bit reluctant due to his injury. Jericho working on the neck for the majority of the match was the right strategy for him, but I don’t think anybody believed Jericho was going to win. It was an obvious title win for Cena – one of the most obvious title wins there’s ever been.
(I remember being upset at the time because I wanted Jericho to have a long title reign since he was the best wrestler in the world at the time and at his peak in 2008 coming off the amazing Shawn Michaels feud. Jericho just won the World Title over one month earlier and here he was losing it to Cena. I understand WWE wanting to put over Cena in his hometown, but I still wish 2008 Jericho had a longer title reign.)
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WWE World Title Win #5: WrestleMania 25 – April 5, 2009 @ Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas
World Heavyweight Title: Edge vs. John Cena vs. Big Show
This was written awhen the show happened. The style of my writing was a bit different to what I do now, but it covers it all.
Edge was married to Vickie Guerrero. The story was that Vickie was in love with Big Show and Edge, so they were fighting for her love. It was a weak angle. There were about 100 Cena clones standing in the aisle as he made his entrance. They were all doing the “you can’t see me” hand gesture. The match wasn’t very memorable no matter what they tried. Maybe it would have been more memorable if they went on before Michaels/Undertaker. This was your typical three-way match with each guy getting in their usual array of nearfalls. The big spot was when Edge went to spear Cena, but he moved and then Vickie ended up taking it while she was standing on the apron. At least Chavo Guerrero was there to catch her. They could have used him in the Undertaker match for that. Show recovered from being tied in the ropes to give a chokeslam to Edge and then he knocked out Cena, but both guys fell out of the ring. In another memorable spot, Edge gave Show a spear through the security wall, which broke it and they were in the crowd. Later on, Cena went to the top, Show shoved him off and Edge gave Cena a Spear for two because Show prevented the pin. For the finish, Cena gave Big Show an Attitude Adjustment while Edge was on Show’s shoulders giving him a sleeper. The move was no longer known as the FU since WWE went PG in 2008. Cena gave Edge an AA onto Show. Cena covered Show for the win at 14:45.
Winner by pinfall AND NEW World Heavyweight Champion: John Cena
Analysis: *** The titles got passed around so much in 2009. Cena had the title at No Way Out, Edge snuck his way into the Elimination Chamber match and then Cena won it back here. Three weeks after this, Cena lost it back to Edge because Show gave Cena a chokeslam into a lighting structure. I would have preferred Cena vs. Edge here because they had better singles matches, but they had a lot of them too. It’s just that triple threat matches were overdone at WrestleMania by this point. The finish was pretty damn good, at least.
(It was an average title match in a tough spot following the Undertaker/Michaels classic. Cena and Edge were always awesome together while they were able to incorporate Show when needed. It was the second straight year where Cena was in a triple threat match for a major World Title and this time he walked out with some gold.)
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WWE World Title Win #6: Breaking Point – September 13, 2009 @ Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, Canada
I didn’t review this show, so this writeup is from April 2025.
WWE Championship – I Quit Match: Randy Orton vs. John Cena
This is shaved head, skinny Randy Orton. He’s in shape of course, but watching this in 2025, he’s not as muscular as he is this year. It was an I Quit Match and if anybody interfered for Orton, he would lose the title.
It was a loud crowd in Montreal with mixed reactions for Cena. There was a belly-to-belly slam by Cena along with a suplex. Cena went for a shoulder tackle, but Orton ducked it and Cena hit the mat. Orton knocked Cena off the apron into the commentary tables. There are no countouts and no disqualifications, so Orton hit Cena in the head with a monitor although Cena got his hands up to block it. Orton gave Cena the draping DDT off the ropes. Orton teased an RKO on the steel chair, but Cena avoided it. Cena hit the flying shoulder tackles and the spinning suplex. The fans were loud with a lot of booing and cheering as Cena hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle fist drop. Orton avoided the AA and managed to snap Cena’s neck against the top rope. Cena avoided The Punt and went for the STF, but Orton got out of that. They were out on the floor where Orton reversed Cena to send Cena crashing into the steel steps. Orton picked up the steel steps and hit Cena with the steps. Cole was putting over the story that Cena was knocked out on the previous Raw, so Orton was attacking Cena’s head throughout the match. Orton placed Cena’s head against the top of the steel steps and Orton stomped on his head. Referee Mike Chioda asked Cena if he wants to quit, but Cena said no. Orton stomped on Cena’s head and Cena said no again. Orton brought handcuffs in the ring and he put the key around his neck. Orton handcuffed Cena’s left wrist to the top rope. Orton punched and kicked Cena several times while Cena refused to quit. Orton smashed Cena in the head with the microphone. Orton uncuffed Cena from the rope and handcuffed Cena’s hands together. Orton hug up Cena so that Cena’s hands were on the ring post. Orton kept punching Cena. Orton threw water on Cena saying he’s not going to pass out on him, so Cena spit water into Orton’s face. Orton used the kendo stick (or Singapore cane) to hit Cena’s upper body and legs repeatedly. Orton hit Cena in the head a kendo stick shot, but Cena refused to quit. Cena did a low blow kick to the groin to break free. Cena lifted his arms up so he was free from the ring post. There were visible scars on Cena’s ribs. Cena approached Orton, so Orton hit him with a chair. I think Cena got his hands up, but they didn’t shoot it from a great angle. Orton uncuffed Cena and put Cena so his right hand was cuffed to the bottom turnbuckle. Orton hit Cena with a chair shot to the back, Cena screamed out in pain and Cena refused to quit. Orton went for a chairshot, Cena moved and Orton hit the ring post with the chair. Cena gave Orton a back body drop on the floor. Cena unlocked himself from the turnbuckle and cuffed himself to Orton.
Cean worked over Orton with punches and sending Orton into the commentary tables. The crowd came alive as Cena gave Orton a belly-to-back suplex. Cena tried to lift Orton into an Attitude Adjustment, but Orton countered it to an RKO. Orton crawled over reaching for the key that was across the ring. The crowd was loudly chanting “Let’s Go Cena/Let’s Go Orton” at the same time. Cena crawled on top of Orton and choked him with the handcuffs in an STF position. Orton couldn’t take it so he shouted “I Quit” a few times and that was it. It went 19:46. Cena said “I did not quit” and held up the WWE Title to celebrate.
Winner by submission and NEW WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: **** I thought it was an excellent match. They were helped by being able to use weapons throughout the match. The handcuffs were a big part of the story with Orton unleashing a relentless assault throughout the match, but Cena found a way to come back and came up with a creative way to beat Orton. Cena put on a great performance selling the attack throughout the match, yet he was able to overcome it all to become the WWE Champion again.
(That match holds up really well 16 years after it happened. This was the second WWE World Title reign in a row where Cena only held the title for 21 days. There were a lot of short title reigns in this era. I can remember writing an article in 2010 about how there were way too many title changes for a few years.)
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WWE World Title Win #7: Bragging Rights – October 25, 2009 @ Mellon Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
John Cena won the WWE Title from Randy Orton at Breaking Point on September 13, Orton won the title from Cena at Hell in a Cell at October 4 and here’s Cena winning the title back on October 25th at Bragging Rights. The stipulation going into this was that if Cena lost then he must leave Raw.
Anything Goes 60-Minute Ironman Match for the WWE Championship: Randy Orton vs. John Cena
There was a countdown clock counting down from 60:00 with a scoreboard on screen as well. Cena grounded Orton with a headlock, Orton with some punches and it was Orton’s turn to grab a headlock. Cena got some momentum with a hiptoss, but Orton came back with a hard whip into the turnbuckle. Cena went for a bulldog, but Orton shoved him off. Orton worked over Cena with punches. Cena tripped up Orton and applied the STF. Orton tapped out quickly. They were less than four minutes into the match.
Cena 1-Orton 0
There was a 30 second clock between falls. Orton was fresh with a powerslam and a knee drop to the chest. Orton did some blatant choking by the ropes. Orton with a suplex on Cena leading to another chinlock for a couple of minutes. Cena with a kick to the gut followed by the Throwback neckbreaker. Cena jumped off the top with a leg drop to the back of the neck. Cena wanted the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Orton popped up and hit an RKO for the pinfall.
Cena 1-Orton 1
Orton with a running body attack that knocked Cena off the apron to the floor. Orton grabbed a hold of Cena on the floor and sent him into the ring apron. Orton cleared off the commentary table. Orton hit Cena in the head with a TV monitor leading to a two count on the floor. Back in the ring, Orton hit Cena with a microphone to the head for a two count. The microphone shot cut Cena’s head open. This was when WWE did not want blood on wrestlers. That led to Dr. Sampson checking on Cena, so the clock stopped at 47:04. The fans booed this as the clock counted down again. Cena tossed Orton over the top to the floor. Cena was bleeding a lot more. Orton whipped Cena into the steel steps, so Cena was down on the floor. Orton covered Cena for a two count. Orton and the referee Mike Chioda were both talking to Cena, who was dealing with the cut on his head. Orton stomped on Cena’s head on the steps leading toa two count. Orton worked over Cena with punches. Orton wanted an RKO, Cena pushed him off leading to two shoulder tackles and the spinning slam. Cena hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle fist drop. Cena went for the Attitude Adjustment, but Orton countered it into a RKO! Both guys had their shoulder shoulders down, so the referee counted both guys down.
Cena 2-Orton 2
There were two doctors that went into the ring to try to clean Cena’s cut. It was longer than 30 seconds, but Cena looked like he was cleaned up and the blood was stopped. Lawler said that it looked like the doctors glued Cena’s head shut. Cena had control of Orton on the turnbuckle and Cena hit the Attitude Adjustment off the middle rope so it was a Super AA for the pinfall.
Cena 3-Orton 2
Ted Dibiase and Cody Rhodes of the Legacy group went to the ring and they beat on Cena with punches and kicks. Dibiase hit his Dream Street slam finishing move and they put Orton on Cena for a pinfall with under 39 minutes left, so they did six falls in 21 minutes.
Cena 3-Orton 3
Kofi Kingston ran out to the ring with a steel chair, so he chased Dibiase and Rhodes to the back. Cena and Orton got back with a double clothesline. They left the ring to get into a brawl in the aisle. Orton sent Cena into a railing. Orton took Cena over to the tech area. Orton sent Cena into one of the pyrotechnic boxes and then some pyro went off on the stage. Orton was freaked out by it a bit and then he focused on Cena. Orton tossed Cena into a lighting grid that was part of the set. Orton turned Cena over and pinned him on the floor by some cables near the lighting grid.
Cena 3-Orton 4
Orton went over to the tech area where a guy told him not to touch anything. Orton pushed a button and some pyro went off on the stage. Orton pushed another button, so more pyro went off on the stage. The tech guy told Orton not to do that. Orton hit Cena in the back with a steel chair. Orton placed Cena across the ramp, the crowd was screaming because they could tell what was coming, Orton went back over to the tech area and told the tech guy: “You don’t tell me what to do!” Orton shoved him. Chioda told Orton not to do it. Orton pushed a bunch of the buttons and some of the pyro went off, but we never saw if it hit Cena. Orton checked Cena for marks on his body, but Cena had no visible scars and Orton was mad about it. Orton worked over Cena with punches. They went back down to ringside with Orton hitting Cena with uppercuts. Orton whipped Cena shoulder first into the steel steps. The clock was at the 30-minute mark, so they were halfway through the match. Orton threw the steel steps at Cena’s head. Cena got his hands up to block. Orton used a steel chair to hit Cena’s right arm while it was up against the ring post. It was mostly Orton hitting the ring post. They were back in the ring, Orton went for a lift, Cena got an inside cradle and it was enough for a shocking pinfall.
Cena 4-Orton 4
Orton was furious about it as he attacked Cena with punches, but Chioda pulled Orton off and made him back away because it was supposed to be 30 seconds between falls. Orton was swearing at ringside yelling “f**k” a few times, I think. Cena was still selling like he was out of it, Orton pulled him off the apron and Orton hit a draping DDT on the apron to the floor. Orton covered Cena for the pinfall.
Cena 4-Orton 5
After the 30 second break, Orton covered Cena again and got a two count. Back in the ring, Orton stomped on Cena’s limbs repeatedly followed by forearms to the chest. Orton with a knee drop for two. Orton with a punch, then he sold the punch after and Cena went down with Orton getting a two count. Cena with another punch for a two count. Orton charged at Cena with a punch, Cena ducked out of the way, Cena with a punch and Orton bailed up the ramp. There were 20 minutes left as Orton stood on the ramp, so Cena walked up toe ramp to go for Orton. There were punches and kicks from Orton. Cena with a couple of punches, so Orton went down the ramp and back into the ring. Cena took his time to go back into the ring where Orton stomped on Cena’s back again. Orton wanted a draping DDT, Cena slipped out, he wanted the AA again, but Orton left through the crowd. Orton went up the steps with Cena going after him. Cena hit Orton with a garbage can. Cena with punches leading to Orton going down the steps towards the ring. They were back to the lower level in front of the hockey boards. Cena worked over Orton with punches and the match had about 15 minutes left. Cena covered Orton on the floor by the ring for a two count. Cena sent Orton into the steel steps for a two count. Cena whipped Orton’s left shoulder into the barricade. Cena sent Orton into the barricade again. Cena whipped Orton hard into the barricade by the ring announcer/timekeeper and Orton went crashing through the barricade. Cena brought the bottom half of the steel steps toward the commentary table. Cena cleared the monitors off the commentary table. Cena ran the steel steps into Orton’s face. Cena put both parts of the steel steps by the commentary table. There were about 10 minutes left. Cena lifted Orton onto his shoulders, walked up the steps and delivered an Attitude Adjustment slam through the commentary table! The fans popped huge for that while Cena let out a yell as well. Cena covered Orton on the floor for the pinfall with about 9:10 left.
Cena 5-Orton 5
After the 30 second interval, Cena went after Orton right away with a pin attempt on the floor, but Orton kicked out at two. Cena grabbed a table from under the ring and brought it into the ring. Cena set up the table in the ring. Cena went out to Orton on the floor, then he lifted Orton up and carried Orton into the ring. Cena put Orton across the table in the ring, Cena went up top for a leg drop, Orton rolled out of the way and Cena went crashing through the table. Ouch. There were about five minutes left. The fans were getting into it a lot more in the final minutes. Both guys were selling fatigue, they exchanged punches while on their knees, Orton with an uppercut, Cena a body punch, more punches to the head by both guys. Cena got some momentum with repeated punches. Cena with a shoulder tackle, he went for another, Orton moved and Cena hit referee Mike Chioda to knock him down. Cena turned around and Orton hit an RKO. No referee to count, so then referee Charles Robinson was there and Cena kicked out. Orton shoved referee Robinson on his ass. There were two minutes left. Orton wasted about a minute thinking of what to do. Orton charged with The Punt, Cena moved and Cena applied the STF submission. Referee Chioda was back in action, so he checked on Orton as Cena was basically choking him with the forearm. Orton tried to fight it, Cena kept on pulling and the fans were chanting, so Orton tapped out. Orton tapped out with above five seconds left. John Cena got the win after 60:00.
Cena 6-Orton 5
Winner by 6 falls to 5 AND NEW WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: ***3/4 It was a very good match that was also really long. It’s a tough match to do because you have to try to keep the crowd invested even though the fans know it’s going to go 60 minutes. They did book it in a smart way with Orton controlling for most of the match, Orton had a 5-4 lead with about 25 minutes left and Cena managed to get two more falls to find a way to win. There were times where the action got so slow that I think it hurt the match, but again when you have 60 minutes, it’s going to be like that sometimes. There were seven falls in the first half of the match and then four more in the second half. I think there were times in the match where they were going too slow to the point that the crowd was having a tough time getting into it. When Cena made his big comeback in the last 15 minutes, the fans really did get into it, so that was a good sign. That’s why these matches are often booked with the heel in control for most of it until the face makes the big comeback and either finds a way to win or comes close. It’s the right way to book an Ironman match.
(It’s not easy going 60 minutes, so credit to both guys. I think Orton tapping out with five seconds left was a dramatic way to end it even though a guy would probably be thinking if I can hang on five more seconds then I won’t lose, but sometimes we can’t think logically when it comes to pro wrestling. Based on the stipulation, it was obvious that Cena was going to win because they were not going to move him to SmackDown since he was WWE’s biggest star and Raw was the A show. I didn’t mind 11 falls in the match. I think ideally 7 or 9 is what I’d like to see in an Ironman match, but I thought they did a nice job here.)
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WWE World Title Win #8: Elimination Chamber – February 21, 2010 @ Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri
Sheamus beat John Cena for the WWE Title at TLC in December 2009. This match at Elimination Chamber was for Sheamus’ WWE Title.
Elimination Chamber Match for the WWE Championship: Sheamus vs. John Cena vs. Ted Dibiase vs. Randy Orton vs. Triple H vs. Kofi Kingston
The heels were Sheamus, Ted Dibiase and Randy Orton, who could be called more of a tweener going into this match because the turn was in process. The faces were John Cena, Triple H and Kofi Kingston.
Kofi Kingston was aggressive early on with kicks against Sheamus followed by a dropkick for two. Cole noted there were 48 titles among these six men and 27 World Titles between them. Kingston worked over Sheamus with forearms. Running back elbow by Sheamus followed by a running shoulder tackle. Kingston came back with a jumping kick to the head followed by a springboard cross body block for two. Sheamus slowed down Kingston with punches. Sheamus shoved Kingston back first into the pod. Sheamus hit the backbreaker for a two count. The clock ticked down from there.
Triple H was up next at #3 with a long staredown for Sheamus. They were opponents at WrestleMania 26, so that’s what they were building up. Triple H with a running knee. Triple H tossed Sheamus over the top rope onto the steel. Hunter with a clothesline that sent Sheamus back into the ring. Hunter countered a Celtic Cross attempt and hit a DDT for a two count. Kingston was on the top rope and he took down Sheamus with a cross body block. Chops by Kingston for both guys followed by dropkicks for both. Kingston worked over Sheamus with punches followed by a running clothesline. Kingston with a Boom Drop over the top dropping the double leg drop on Triple H on the steel. Sheamus decked Kingston with a clothesline. The clock ticked down again.
It was Randy Orton at #4 with the crowd cheering as he went after Sheamus with punches and a clothesline for Triple H. Orton stomped away on all three guys to keep them down. Orton sent Sheamus out of the ring onto the steel. Orton sent Sheamus into the cage three times in a row, which used to lead to blade job, but not in PG WWE. Orton sent Triple H into the cage three times in a row as well. Kingston tagged in with a cross body block off the top rope onto the three guys. Back in the ring, Kingston with a springboard attack and Orton countered with a dropkick for two. Triple H back in with a facebuster on Orton, but Orton came back with a powerslam and Cole said that Orton had “sick eyes.” Triple H avoided an RKO, Orton came back with a back body drop that sent Triple H on the steel and Orton tossed Kingston onto the steel. Sheamus whipped Orton into the steel post as the clock counted down again.
It’s Ted Dibiase at #5 with a stun gun on Kingston against the ropes. Dibiase with a clothesline on Triple H. There was no reaction when Dibiase got in there. Everybody else in the ring was down as Dibiase had a staredown with Orton. Dibiase pulled Orton back to his feet. Orton and Dibiase stomped away on Triple H while a fan in the crowd has a sign that said “We Want Blood” on it. Sorry pal, not in the PG era. Orton whipped Sheamus into the steel ring post. Orton and Dibiase put Kingston’s head through some of the chain links, which had never been done before and Sheamus held Kingston in a Boston Crab like submission. Orton and Dibiase went back to double-teaming Triple H with punches. They sent Triple H back first into the cage two times in a row. Orton hit his draping DDT off the ropes onto Triple H on the steel. That looked nasty and drew a good reaction. The clock counted down with Orton and Dibiase waiting by Cena’s door.
Analysis: Orton and Dibiase took control during that five-minute period. It was boring with a lot of punches and kicks. The crowd was dead for a lot of it.
John Cena is #6 in the match. It’s the first time a Chamber match had all six guys in the match at the same time because every time in the past at least one guy was eliminated before the last man got in there. Cena fought his way out with punches and two shoulder tackles to Orton followed by a spinning slam and a Five Knuckle Shuffle. Cena with a throwback neckbreaker on Dibiase followed by a leg drop to the back of the neck of Dibiase. Cena gave Dibiase an Attitude Adjustment from inside the ring onto the steel, but Orton was back to send Cena out of the ring. Cena whipped Orton into the cage. Back in the ring, Cena put Dibiase in the STF in the middle of the ring, but Orton saved Dibiase. Backbreaker by Orton on Cena. Cody Rhodes ran down to the ring with a steel pipe. Orton didn’t want it, so Rhodes gave it to his buddy Dibiase. Cena had Orton up for the RKO, he turned Orton and Dibiase hit Orton with the pipe by accident (or was it?), Cena hit the AA on Orton and Dibiase hit Cena in the stomach with the pipe. Dibiase stood over both guys thinking about what to do. Dibiase covered Orton and eliminated him.
Randy Orton eliminated by Ted Dibiase
Analysis: That accelerated the face turn from Orton some more. It eventually led to Orton facing Dibiase and Rhodes in a triple threat at WrestleMania. I believe the original plan was for Dibiase to become the face, but the crowd got behind Orton a lot and Orton was the face.
As Orton left the cage, he had a long staredown with Dibiase. Kingston got back into it with a headscissors on Sheamus and Kingston hit Trouble in Paradise on Dibiase to eliminate him.
Ted Dibiase eliminated by Kofi Kingston
When Kingston turned around, Sheamus nailed Kingston with a Brogue Kick that was just called a “thunderous kick” by Cole because it wasn’t Sheamus’ finisher yet. Sheamus hit Kingston with a Razor’s Edge that they called the High Cross early in his career.
Kofi Kingston eliminated by Sheamus
Analysis: No eliminations for nearly 24 minutes and then three of them within two minutes.
Sheamus with a running knee lift attack on Cena. Sheamus came back with the backbreaker followed by a powerslam for two. Sheamus worked over Cena with knees to the chest. Triple H was still out on the steel from a few minutes ago when Orton hit that DDT on him. Sheamus went for the High Cross on Cena, but Triple H came back with a low blow punch to the groin. Triple H hit a Pedigree on Sheamus and covered him.
Sheamus eliminated by Triple H
Analysis: The WrestleMania 26 match was Sheamus vs. Triple H, so it made sense for Triple H to eliminate him there.
Cena jumped on Triple H’s back with the STF submission. Triple H tried to fight it as much as he could with the crowd cheering, but Triple H sold it like he was about to pass out and Triple H tapped out to lose the match. The match went 30:10.
Triple H eliminated by John Cena
Winner and New WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: ***1/2 It was a fun match that was booked well with several angles taking place that would set the stage for WrestleMania. I liked the Dibiase stuff with Orton. Looking back on it, Dibiase did not become the huge name that WWE wanted him to be, but the storytelling was still good. Kofi Kingston showed a lot of fight the entire match. Sheamus was dominant at times. The final sequence between Triple H and Cena, but that’s okay because Triple H was selling the nasty DDT on the steel for several minutes and it made sense that he didn’t have much left in the tank. I remember going into the match thinking Cena was going to win because he was rumored to face Batista at WrestleMania, so it made sense that it would be a championship match.
Right after that, Vince McMahon made Cena defend the WWE Title against Batista, who won the match and the title. That means this was Cena’s shortest title reign. That set up Batista against Cena at WrestleMania 26.
(There were a lot of title changes in this era. They certainly could have had Cena keep the title and not give Sheamus that three month reign, but it did feel like a big deal when Sheamus beat Cena. Anyway, this match was pretty good for a Chamber and Cena was obviously the star of the match. The post match angle with Batista taking the title was done to put over Batista in his heel role and set up their WrestleMania match.)
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WWE World Title Win #9: WrestleMania 26 – March 28, 2010 @ University of Phoenix Stadium in Phoenix, Arizona
WWE Championship: Batista vs. John Cena
I did this live and it wasn’t a full play-by-play recap, but it gets the job done. Batista was the heel champion after Vince and Batista screwed over Cena at Elimination Chamber.
They’re pointing out how methodical this is, which is wrestling speak for this is going to be a longer match. Sloppy looking suplex by Cena. Batista countered the Attitude Adjustment with a DDT that looked nasty. Seven minutes into the match, they did the standing punch exchange where each guy is really tired and the crowd reacted to it. Too early for that spot, no? The story is that Batista’s working on Cena’s surgically repaired neck. By the ten minute mark, Batista was still on offense pretty much the entire time. Batista put him on the top rope and they had a test of strength up there. Cena shoved him off and hit the top rope Five Knuckle Shuffle. Lawler marked out for it like a 13-year-old. Batista Bomb and Cena kicks out. Now you know Batista’s not winning if he hits that at the 11 minute mark. They get back up and Cena hits the Attitude Adjustment. Now Batista kicks out. Cena goes up top, he leaps and Batista counters into a Spinebuster. Similar spot to their Summerslam 2008 match. Batista goes for the Batista Bomb again, but Cena counters into a rollup. STF time. Batista’s near the ropes, but he eventually taps out at 13:30.
Winner by submission and NEW WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: ***1/2 It was an entertaining main event level match that wasn’t too long, but just long enough. They busted out the old Austin/Rock formula of kicking out of finishers at WrestleMania. The crowd was really into it and the last five minutes were very exciting even if you don’t like either guy. What bothered me was the title changed hands when it didn’t need to. Batista won the belt at Elimination Chamber, defended it successfully zero times on television and then it was on Cena again. I hate short title reigns. Props to the “Batista likes fish sticks” sign. South Park reference, people!
(John Cena got screwed out of the title by Vince McMahon giving Batista a title shot at Elimination Chamber, so it was obvious that Cena was getting the title back. They were also two of the biggest stars in WWE over the previous five years and Batista was in full heel mode at this point, which is why WWE probably felt like it was a big match to do at WrestleMania. I liked it. Good match.)
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WWE World Title Win #10: Extreme Rules – May 1, 2011 @ St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida
The review I had for this that was written in 2011 wasn’t very good, so I wrote this in 2025.
The Miz retained the WWE Title against John Cena at WrestleMania 27 due to The Rock getting involved and costing Cena that match. They added Morrison to change things up a bit and make it a triple threat match.
WWE Championship Steel Cage Match: The Miz vs. John Cena vs. John Morrison
The ways to win the match are by pinfall, submission and escaping the cage.
Cena and Morrison punched Miz and hit a back body drop on Miz at the same time. Morrison hit a dropkick on Cena along with a leaping leg lariat. Miz got back up with a clothesline on Morrison. Miz sent Cena into the cage and Miz sent Morrison into the cage as well. Miz threw Cena into the cage again and Morrison was sent into the cage too. Cean suplexed Miz and Morrison did a Russian legsweep on Cena for two. Miz tried to climb up the cage, Morrison went after him and Miz pulled Morrison down. Cena and Miz battled on the turnbuckle, so Cena hit a bulldog off the top rope. Cena hit Morrison with two shoulder tackles along with the spinning suplex. Cena hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle fist drop on Morrison. Miz gave Cena the Skull Crushing Finale. Morrison climbed to the top of the cage, so Miz went after Morrison and kept Morrison from leaving. Miz and Morrison exchanged punches on the top of the cage. Cena got back up, so that led to Cena and Morrison giving a double suplex off the top. That was a rough landing for Miz on the back of his head. The referee Mike Chioda checked on Miz to see if he was okay. That looked painful. Morrison climbed to the top of the cage, Cena went after him, Morrison got knocked down and Morrison hit a jumping kick on Miz. Morrison hit a standing Spanish Flay on Cena for two. Morrison tried to climb to the top of the cage, but Miz grabbed him and Miz gave Morrison a Powerbomb into the cage.
The Miz hit a running kick to keep Morrison down. Cena tripped up Miz and applied the STF. Miz crawled toward the door, Cena held onto the STF, Miz crawled with his hands touching the floor, but Cena prevented Miz’s feet from leaving the cage. Miz held onto Cena to stop him from leaving. Cena hit a gutwrench suplex on Miz. Morrison climbed to the top of the cage quickly, so Cena went after him. The two John guys battled on top of the cage while Miz went out the door and Morrison kicked the door to shut it on Miz’s head. Morrison probably could have dropped to the floor, but instead Cena punched him and Morrison was crotched on the top of the door. Miz grabbed Morrison by the leg and brought him back into the cage. Cena gave Morrison a monkey flip across the ring for two. Miz was back up with a DDT on Cena for two. Miz stomped on Cena to keep him down. Morrison tried to climb out, so Miz went after him and prevented Morrison from leaving. Morrison brought Miz back inside the cage, rammed Miz’s head into the cage and Miz bumped into the ring. Morrison hit a twisting cross body block off the cage onto both opponents in the ring. It looked like Morrison’s Starship Pain move. Morrison tried to crawl out of the ring, but R-Truth showed up and Truth hit a running knee attack against the steel steps. Truth sent Morrison back into the cage. Truth beat up Morrison some more with punches. Truth hit a Scissors Kick on Cena. Truth hit his jumping flatliner move on Morrison. Truth climbed up the cage over the top to the floor. The Miz climbed to the top of the cage, but Cena grabbed Miz before he could fall to the floor. Cena climbed up to pull Miz back inside the cage. Cena and Miz exchanged punches while on the cage. Miz tried for a Skull Crushing Finale off the top rope, but Cena blocked it. Cena gave Miz an Attitude Adjustment off the top rope for the pinfall win at 19:50.
Winner by pinfall: John Cena
Analysis: ***1/2 I thought it was a very good triple threat cage match, which isn’t easy to do, but I enjoyed the action. They did a nice job of having guys try to climb out of the cage while the other two guys were battling in the ring. That’s the right way to tell the story in a steel cage match. I had forgotten Truth getting involved in the match, but I remember his heel run during this time. Cena winning was the right call because they didn’t want him to win at WrestleMania due to the story with Rock, so it’s not a shock that Cena won the title here to end Miz’s title reign. Morrison was down for about five minutes after Truth attacked him. There really aren’t a lot of triple threat steel cage matches in WWE, so I think the guys deserve credit for pulling off an entertaining match.
(Looking back on it now, I think WWE added Morrison to make it a more exciting match. He had no chance to win, but we had seen Cena against Miz a lot and their WrestleMania match sucked, so it was a way to make it different. It was obvious that Cena was winning here since he failed at WrestleMania and it was Cena’s time to be WWE Champion again after nearly a year since he last held it.)
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WWE World Title Win #11: Monday Night Raw – July 25, 2011 @ Hampton Coliseum in Hampton, Virginia
CM Punk won the WWE Title at Money in the Bank, then he left the show that night and the company didn’t know if he was coming back (in the storyline). That led to Rey Mysterio beating The Miz earlier in the night to win the vacant WWE Title. That led to this match later in the show because Cena was the former champion.
I reviewed this in 2011, but my reviewing style was different, so this will be a 2025 review.
WWE Championship: Rey Mysterio vs. John Cena
Rey kicked Cena in the legs a few times. Cena knocked Rey down with a shoulder tackle. Rey did a sunset flip pin for two. Rey had Cena in a headlock, so Cena hit a belly-to-back suplex for two. Rey hit a bulldog after using the ropes for an assist and that got a two count. Cena charged at Rey, who moved, and Cena went crashing into the turnbuckle. The fans chanted “Let’s Go Cena/Cena Sucks” while Jerry Lawler pointed out the reactions and Jim Ross correctly stated that the bottom line is the seats are filled. Cena was on the floor, so Rey hit a somersault dive onto him on the floor. Cena avoided Rey on the floor and Cena nailed Rey with a clothesline on the floor. They went back into the ring where Cena got a two count. Cena had Rey grounded in a waistlock, so Rey countered by leaping up and hitting a DDT for two. Rey knocked Cena down by the ropes followed by Rey hitting a springboard moonsault for two. Rey went for 619, Cena caught him and Cena hit a powerslam for two.
Cena hit a running shoulder tackle. When Cena went for another one, Rey hit a dropkick to stop that. Rey countered Cena with a headlock takeover, Rey tried another move, but Cena countered with a slam like a Powerbomb. Cena hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle fist drop. Cena lifted Rey, who fought out of it, Rey jumped into Cena’s arms, Cena said “headscissors” and Rey hit a headscissors followed by a dropkick for two. Rey gave Cena a drop toe hold into the turnbuckle. Rey went up top and hit a seated senton for the pin attempt for two. Cena tried for the STF, but Rey countered it into his own STF and the fans popped big for it. Cena got back up to his feet and when Cena put Rey on his shoulders, Cena’s legs buckled so he collapsed to the mat. Cena was against the ropes, so Rey hit a 619 kick by the ropes. Rey jumped off the top with a Frog Splash, but Cena got his knees up and blocked it. They were both down selling for about a minute. Rey went for a hurricanrana and Cena countered it by tossing Rey across the ring and it was a rough landing for Rey on his head/shoulder. Cena went up top and hit an incredible leg drop across Rey’s throat for a two count. Normally Cena does that to the back, but Rey turned around to take it. Rey countered Cena again, which led to a dropkick into the ropes. Rey charged again, but Cena popped back up and caught Rey with the Attitude Adjustment for the pinfall win after 13 minutes.
Winner by pinfall AND NEW WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: ***1/2 That was a very good TV main event for the WWE Title. A competitive match between two babyfaces with some good nearfalls by both men before Cena found a way to win. They didn’t have the kind of match where they sold body parts or anything like that. It was all about Cena and Rey hitting their big moves for nearfalls.
(The win by John Cena wasn’t a surprise. This was Cena’s only WWE World Title win that happened on Raw rather than at a PPV event.)
After the match, CM Punk returned with his WWE Title to set up his SummerSlam match with the other WWE Champion John Cena.
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WWE World Title Win #12: Night of Champions – September 18, 2011 @ First Niagara Center in Buffalo, New York
Alberto Del Rio cashed in Money in the Bank on CM Punk at SummerSlam 2011 to win the WWE Title due to an attack by Kevin Nash. John Cena beat CM Punk on Raw (thanks to a distraction by Nash), so Cena got this WWE Title match. I’m writing this in 2025.
WWE Championship: Alberto Del Rio (w/Ricardo Rodriguez) vs. John Cena
Cena knocked down Del Rio with a shoulder tackle. The fans were doing the “Let’s Go Cena/Cena sucks” chant as Cena hit another shoulder tackle, so Del Rio went to the ropes for a break. Cena worked over Cena with punches and kicks. Cena came back with another shoulder tackle followed by a bulldog. Cena went to the ropes, Ricardo tripped him, so referee Charles Robinson sent Ricardo to the back. Cena missed a running attack against the turnbuckle and Del Rio kicked Cena in the ribs/kidney area. Del Rio kicked Cena off the apron to the floor. Del Rio sent Cena back first into the commentary table. There were louder mixed chants for Cena as Del Rio went up top and hit a forearm smash to knock Cena down. Del Rio applied a chinlock, Cena hit him with a knee to the gut and Cena hit a gutwrench suplex. Cena hit a Fisherman’s suplex for two. Del Rio came back with a double knee attack to the left arm of Cena for a two count. Del Rio knocked down Cena with three kicks as the “Let’s Go Cena/Cena Sucks” chants got even louder. Del Rio stomped on Cena’s left arm for a two count. Del Rio applied a chinlock, so Cena countered with a belly-to-back suplex. They got back to their feet at the same time leading to a double clothesline spot to knock eachother down. When they got back up, Del Rio kicked Cena in the back of the leg. Del Rio worked over Cena with punches, but Cena did a necksnap across the top rope. When Cena got back in the ring, Del Rio hit a clothesline for a two count. Del Rio went for a running attack, Cena moved and Del Rio bumped to the floor. That’s a bump that Del Rio did often in his matches and it looked nasty every time he did it. Cena suplexed Del Rio from the apron back into the ring.
Cena got back to his signature moves with two shoulder tackles, a spinning suplex and the Five Knuckle Shuffle fist drop. Del Rio avoided the AA and hit a Backstabber with the double knees to the back for a two count. Cena sent Del Rio into the turnbuckle, Cena hit a splash and Cena hit a dropkick for two. Cena went up top, so Del Rio went after him with a jumping enziguri kick. Del Rio went for another kick, Cena went for the STF, Del Rio got out of it and Del Rio hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for a two count. Del Rio set up Cena upside down against the turnbuckle, Cena pulled himself up and Del Rio went shoulder-first into the steel ring post. You could hear a thud when Del Rio hit the corner. Cena jumped off the top rope with the leg drop to the back of the neck for a two count. Great leap by Cena and he hit the move perfectly. Del Rio followed up with a bridging German Suplex for two. Del Rio went up top and hit a Senton Bomb for a two count. Del Rio went for Cross Armbreaker, but Cena powered out of it and turned it into a Powerbomb. Cena picked up Del Rio and hit an Attitude Adjustment, which wasn’t shown in full screen because they were showing a replay. Ricardo showed up at ringside and Cena threw Ricardo into the turnbuckle. Cena put Del Rio in the STF submission hold, the fans were screaming for the tap and Del Rio tapped out. It went 17:32.
Winner by submission AND NEW WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: ***3/4 This was a terrific match. I didn’t remember it that well, but it was very competitive with a lot of twists and turns throughout the match. Del Rio worked over Cena throughout the match by working on the ribs and got a bunch of nearfalls, but Cena found ways to come back. I would have liked to see Del Rio get a nearfall after Ricardo returned, but instead they went right to the finish. They built it up well and I liked the match.
This was Cena’s 10th time winning the WWE Title and 12th World Title overall. That title reign by Cena only lasted 14 days because Del Rio won the WWE Title back at Hell in a Cell in a triple threat match with Cena and CM Punk.
(I remember going to a bunch of house shows in this era. I saw Cena face Del Rio at three of those shows over a two-year span. That’s not a complaint because wrestlers are going to face similar opponents at house shows. They developed a great chemistry together. This match was very good and better than those matches due to all the exciting nearfalls throughout the match.)
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WWE World Title Win #13: WrestleMania 29 – April 7, 2013 @ MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey
WWE Championship: The Rock vs. John Cena
They worked at a really slow pace early on because the match began at 10:21pmET meaning they had at least 20 minutes to work a match. They basically did nothing in the first three minutes as JBL argued that Rock is the best wrestler of the modern era because he has beaten Hogan, Austin and Cena at WrestleMania. It’s true about those victories. Rock gave Cena a hard whip into the turnbuckle. Rock drove his forearm into Cena’s chest multiple times. Cena decked Rock with a hard clothesline. The slow pace continued as Rock applied a sleeper hold. Cena countered with his back suplex. By this point, it’s reached ten minutes and nothing of significance really happened. Cena hit a vertical suplex for two. The pace picked up a bit as Cena countered a spinebuster with the STF, but Rock got out of it. Cena hit two shoulder tackles, but Rock countered the spinning suplex with an arm drag. The Rock applied the Sharpshooter in the middle of the ring. Cena fought out of it with his vintage spinning slam. Mixed reaction for Cena like usual. Rock avoided the Five Knuckle Shuffle and hit a quick DDT. Cena countered the Rock Bottom into a Crossface. Rock countered into a pinfall attempt for two. Cena gave Rock a slingshot into the top turnbuckle followed by the spinning slam again and this time the Five Knuckle Shuffle connected. I guess he really wanted to hit that move huh? Rock slipped out of the Attitude Adjustment and hit a Spinebuster. Cena was able to come back with the STF. Rock powered out of it. Back to their feet, Rock hit a Rock Bottom in the center of the ring for two. Cena hit the Attitude Adjustment. Rock kicked out of that two.
Cena went to the top rope and he missed his leg drop to the back of the head. The Rock hit the Spinebuster followed by the People’s Elbow for a two count. The crowd started to make some more noise by this point in the match. Cena rolled out to the floor to buy himself some time. Rock brought him back in the ring where they exchanged punches in the middle of the ring with the crowd reacting to every punch. Cena caught Rock in his arms and went for the Attitude Adjustment, but Rock countered into Rock Bottom for another two count. Rock wanted another People’s Elbow, but he took too long and Cena caught him for another Attitude Adjustment. Rock kicked out at two. They exchanged punches again with the crowd saying “boo” when Cena throws a punch while Rock’s punches earn a “yay” of course. Cena hit a Rock Bottom for a two count. It looked okay, but not great. Cena signaled for the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but then he changed his mind. He went for the People’s Elbow just like last year when he got caught by Rock. This time, Cena held onto the ropes. He went for AA, Rock countered into Rock Bottom and that connected for a two count. They exchanged finishing move attempts again a few times, but neither guy could hit. Rock hit a DDT. Rock went for Rock Bottom, Cena slipped out, hit the Attitude Adjustment for the pinfall and that was enough to win the WWE Championship. The match went 23:59.
Winner by pinfall and NEW WWE Champion: John Cena
Analysis: *** They went a little excessive with kicking out of finishing moves. I thought they did it a little too much. Once in a while is fine, but when you do it as many times as they did it that can hurt the match a bit. It was too much of the “hit your finisher, kick out and repeat” formula. I would have liked to see them maybe work on body parts or at least sell moves a bit. It’s not like they did a poor job of getting the crowd involved because you could hear the people were into it. I just think that they could have built the match up in a different way that would have led to more of an exciting finish. For the haters of The Rock out there, he didn’t tire in the match. He did a good job as did Cena. I just didn’t think it was booked in a way that really benefitted both guys as much as it should have. The announcers may call it a classic, but that’s not it was. It was just an okay match for the WWE Championship.
(This was the rematch of the “Once in a Lifetime” match a year earlier, which was just a bullshit tagline they used to fool the fans since WWE knew they were doing it again a year later, this time for the WWE Title. This was one of the most predictable title changes in WWE history because we knew Cena was going to be around as WWE’s top star while Rock is busy from doing other things. I think the match was hurt a bit by going over 20 minutes because the story wasn’t that interesting and if they shaved off five or six minutes it would have helped. The Rock suffered some injuries during the match that likely affected his performance. He tore some muscles around his groin, which obviously is going to hurt a guy even as tough as The Rock.)
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WWE World Title Win #14: Hell in a Cell – October 27, 2013 @ American Airlines Arena in Miami, Florida
World Heavyweight Championship: Alberto Del Rio vs. John Cena
John Cena’s wearing an elbow pad covering up the elbow where he had surgery on the torn triceps. Del Rio went after the left arm right away. Cena hit a shoulderblock and sold the pain in his left arm. Bulldog by Cena earned him a two count. Del Rio regained the advantage with a kick to the left arm of Cena. German Suplex by Del Rio got a two count. Del Rio applied an armbar on the left arm of Cena. Armdrag by Cena followed by a dropkick (busting out the big moves!), but his offense didn’t last. Double axehandle by Del Rio for two followed by another armbar. They showed Damien Sandow watching on backstage as Del Rio continued to control the action until he missed a dive that sent him crashing to the floor. Del Rio jumped off the top, so Cena hit a dropkick to counter. Cena hit the shoulder tackles, the spinning suplex and then the You Can’t See Me leading to the 5 Knuckle Shuffle because masturbation references are fun. Del Rio came back with the Backstabber for two. Cena hit an impressive Tornado DDT off the middle rope. Cena went up top for the leg drop, but Del Rio hit the running enziguiri to knock him down. Del Rio hit a tilt-a-whirl backbreaker for two. Then he missed a corner charge after Cena avoided it. That set things up perfectly for a Cena cross body block for two. Del Rio applied an armbreaker using his knees to drive into Cena’s arm. Cena quickly came back with the STF, but Del Rio made it to the ropes. Del Rio hit a kick to the face for two. He went for the Cross Armbreaker on the injured left arm, but Cena did everything he could to fight out of it. He slammed Del Rio down to break out of the hold. Cena hit the Attitude Adjustment. Cena covered for the pinfall victory at 15:17.
Winner by pinfall and New World Heavyweight Champion: John Cena
Right after the match, Michael Cole mentioned it was Cena’s 3rd World Championship and 14th overall counting his 11 WWE Titles.
Analysis: ***1/4 Good match from two guys who know each other well. I wasn’t shocked with the booking decision. I’m sure many others felt the same way. They’ve wrestled so many times in the past that I could call a lot of the moves before they happened. They went the obvious route with Del Rio working on Cena’s left arm throughout the match I guess I was overthinking in the preview when I thought Cena wouldn’t win because he’s above the World Title. Of course, the positive of putting it on Cena is that the value of the title will go up because he’s holding it.
(It was two months before this when John Cena lost the WWE Title to Daniel Bryan and was off after having surgery on his arm. Cena was supposed to miss five or six months, but instead Cena only missed about two months because he had a history of recovering from injuries quickly. Two months after this, Cena lost to Randy Orton to merge the WWE & World Titles at the time.)
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WWE World Title Win #15: Money in the Bank – June 29, 2014 @ TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts
The WWE Championship was vacant due to Daniel Bryan being injured, so they did this 8-man Ladder Match.
WWE World Heavyweight Championship Ladder Match: John Cena vs. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Cesaro (w/Paul Heyman) vs. Roman Reigns vs. Kane
It’s a tough match to write about because there are eight guys involved and so many ladders around the ringside area. Sheamus & Reigns had ladders in their hands as they sandwiched Kane in between them. Several guys climbed up, but Kane dominated everybody in the ring with his usual power moves. Kane hit a weak Chokeslam on Del Rio and then a better one on Cena. The crowd did the dueling “Let’s Go Cena/Cena Sucks” chant. Kane held the ladder to help Orton climb up, but Reigns knocked down Orton. One armed slam by Wyatt on Reigns and then Cena hit the spinning suplex on Wyatt. Cesaro nailed Cena with a huge uppercut shot. Cesaro tried to climb up, but Sheamus met him. Wyatt did his crab walk. He shoved the ladder away as Sheamus & Cesaro were holding onto the title. Sheamus dropped. Cesaro was still hanging, but he couldn’t unclip it so he dropped. Running splash by Wyatt. A replay showed that Orton was cut open on the head after a ladder hit him. Orton pulled out a ladder from under the ring. They bridged the ladder from the apron to the Spanish announce table. Orton tipped up Sheamus so his back hit the bridge. Orton’s cut was on top of his head. Orton hit a DDT on Sheamus on the floor.
Orton tossed a smaller ladder outside the ring. I could hear him say “move” to the camera guy. That’s so thoughtful of him. Orton set up a giant ladder that nearly touched the bottom of the titles. Four others climbed up the ladder. It ended up being seven guys – everybody except Sheamus. Kane cleaned house. He threw Cesaro and Del Rio out of the ring. Sheamus came back with his signature moves on different guys in succession. Sheamus hit a Brogue Kick on Cena. He took so long to set up a ladder that Kane ended up preventing Sheamus from climbing. Cesaro set up a bridge from the top turnbuckle to one of the rungs of the ladder. He brawled with Sheamus on top of the ladder. Del Rio jabbed Reigns in the ring with a ladder. Cena took Del Rio out of the ring. Reigns lifted up the ladder from the bottom, but it didn’t tip over because of the ladder in the side. Cena flipped it back the other way. Sheamus & Cesaro were still on the ladder. Cena was suplexed into the side of a ladder by Wyatt. Kane cleaned house again although he had help from Orton as the two worked together again. Orton sent Sheamus out of the ring. Reigns nailed Kane with a Spear out of nowhere. Orton knocked down Reigns.
Reigns fought out of the RKO and hit a Superman Punch on Orton. Sheamus went to the top, so Orton nailed him with a Superman Punch. Reigns running dropkick on Del Rio on the apron and then one for Wyatt on the announce table. Spear by Reigns on Cesaro. That was a very impressive run for Reigns. Cena faced off with him in the ring for a big showdown. Reigns ended up winning that battle. He climbed up, but Orton nailed a backbreaker to knock Reigns down. Wyatt stopped an Orton climb by hitting Sister Abigail on him. Del Rio hit a leaping enziguiri on Wyatt followed a standing sidekick. Del Rio climbed up, but Sheamus shoved the ladder over. Sheamus nailed ADR with a Brogue Kick. Sheamus climbed up the giant ladder in the ring. Cesaro stopped him by hitting an uppercut. Neutralizer by Cesaro on Sheamus. With Cesaro near the top of the ladder, Orton yanked him off and hit a RKO off the ladder. Great move! Wow! Reigns climbed up to stop Orton as Orton’s head bled even more. Reigns was about three steps up the ladder, so Kane gave him a Chokeslam. Kane held the ladder so Orton could climb up. Cena gave Kane the Attitude Adjustment. Cena gave Orton the Attitude Adjustment on top of Kane. Cena climbed up and grabbed the WWE & World Title to win the match at 26:30.
Winner AND NEW WWE World Heavyweight Championship: John Cena
Analysis: ***1/2 The ending was good as a way to give Cena a decisive win. Cena haters are going to be angry about it, but all indications are that Cena’s going to face Lesnar at SummerSlam. That’s why he won here. It was a necessary step to get to a big match that they want to do at a major show. Give a lot of credit to Randy Orton for busting his ass after getting his head cut open by a ladder. They kept pushing the idea that Kane was going to help Orton win and it looked like it a few different times during the match, but in the end it was “Super” Cena that emerged the winner. I’m not sure why they kept having Sheamus & Cesaro get so close to winning. It seems like they were each up there two or three times. Wyatt wasn’t booked that strong. Del Rio was booked the worse by far, but that’s not a surprise. This match wasn’t as good as the first ladder match due to the lack of high risk spots. It was given a lot of time and I do appreciate the effort. If you’re mad that guys didn’t do crazy bumps, lighten up. Daniel Bryan was out of action with a serious neck injury. These guys aren’t going to crazy bumping off ladders in a main event match. Common sense has to take over.
The announcers said Cena is the greatest WWE Champion ever as they mentioned it was his 15th WWE/World Title.
(My 2014 thoughts were accurate because John Cena’s win was done to set up Brock Lesnar destroying Cena at SummerSlam. There was a ladder match earlier in the show that was won by Seth Rollins to get the Money in the Bank briefcase and it was a better match, but this was still a solid match. Cena winning a ladder match was rare for him. At this point in time, it made sense for Cena to win another WWE Title.)
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WWE World Title Win #16: Royal Rumble – January 29, 2017 @ The Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas
WWE Championship: AJ Styles vs. John Cena
Cena started off with punches. Styles slowed him down with a back elbow. Kicks by Styles to the back. Crowd was chanting for both guys as they started off at a slow pace. Styles missed a knee drop attack with Cena coming back with a back body drop. Styles came back with an enziguri kick to the back of the head. Cena was loud in calling spots as he did a couple of shoulder tackles and Styles took him down with a hurricanrana. Styles with a corner clothesline followed by a leaping forearm attack. Cena with a spinning suplex that he always does. Cena teased the Five Knuckle Shuffle, but Styles got back up, hit a German Suplex and a slam into a wheelbarrow facebuster (thanks Ranallo) for a two count. Styles nailed some strikes to the head, but Cena came back with a devastating running clothesline. Cena hit the Five Knuckle Shuffle fist drop only for Styles to fight out of the AA attempt. Cena wanted a superplex, but Styles slipped out, put him on his back, did a brief Torture Rack into a spinning slam for a two count. Styles set up a springboard attack, Cena avoided it and hit the Attitude Adjustment for two. There’s the first finisher that was kicked out of at around the ten-minute mark.
Cena nailed Styles with another stiff clothesline for a two count. Styles connected with a Pele Kick that hit Cena in the shoulder. Styles with a springboard attack into a Phenomenal Forearm for a two count. Hard kick by Styles to the ribs with Cena coughing to sell it, which is good by him. What an actor. Cena avoided an attack, put Styles on his shoulders in the electric chair position and dropped Styles face first into a facebuster like slam. They exchanged blows with Styles strikes earning a “yay” while most of Cena’s strikes got a “boo” reaction. Styles avoided the AA and applied the Calf Crusher submission. Cena powered out of it easily while transitioning into a STF submission. When Styles nearly got to the ropes, Cena pulled him back and applied the STF again. Styles fought back with a pinfall attempt. Styles applied the STF for himself. They each tried moves, there were counters and Cena turned it into a Figure Four Leglock. Styles fought it and applied a Cross Armbreaker on Cena’s left arm. Cena powered out into a slam. Both guys sold that incredible sequence by laying down on the mat to let the crowd cheer them. It’s important to have a moment to sell those moves. Cena jumped off the top rope with his leg drop attempt, Styles avoided it and hit the Styles Clash for a two count. Awesome nearfall.
Styles went for a springboard 450. It didn’t connect because Cena got his knees up. Cena with a perfect flipping sunset flip into a powerbomb (Code Red) for a two count. What a move. That looked awesome. Styles picked Cena up and gave him the Ushigoroshi for a two-count dropping Cena’s neck/back onto his knee, which was good for a two count. Cena sent Styles face first into the turnbuckle. Cena picked him up and slammed him down with a move that looked a like a Big Ending. JBL said he’s enjoying the hell out of this match – I am too! Cena set up Styles on the top rope, Cena jumped off the middle rope, hit the Attitude Adjustment for a Super AA (or Avalanche Attitude Adjustment) and Styles kicked out at two. Wow! What a match. Shocked look on Cena’s face as the crowd went wild. Styles countered Cena and hit a Styles Clash again. Styles didn’t cover. He went for a springboard attack, but Cena caught him. Cena hit the Attitude Adjustment, then he rolled through, hit another Attitude Adjustment and covered Styles for the pinfall win at 24:10.
Winner by pinfall and New WWE Champion: John Cena
There was a big ovation for Cena’s win. That win makes Cena a 16-time WWE (World) Champion, which ties him with Ric Flair’s recognized record.
Analysis: ***** Wow that was incredible! Five stars out of five, which is as high as my scale goes. I don’t know what to say other than that was one of the best matches I’ve ever seen. I think they topped their SummerSlam performance and delivered a match that should be considered one of the best matches of either man’s career. That’s saying a lot considering how much they both have accomplished in their careers. Styles was amazing using his athleticism all match long as he hit Cena with everything, Cena kept coming back and nearly got the win several times. Eventually, Cena did get the win with the back to back AA after he hit him with two AA’s before that. I loved everything about the match. It didn’t go 30+ minutes like I thought, but nothing wrong with 25 minutes. That’s fine with me because we got an all-time great match here. I will watch it again, but I don’t see my rating changing. It was a special match with a lot of hype that they lived up to. Congrats to Cena and Styles. Thank you for delivering a classic match. I picked Styles to win. Oops. Got that wrong. I don’t mind at all.
That title reign for Cena lasted only 14 days because Bray Wyatt won the WWE Title in an excellent Elimination Chamber match. That’s why I thought Styles would retain over Cena because I figured Wyatt would win to set up his WrestleMania match with Royal Rumble winner Randy Orton.
(Amazing match. It was my WWE Match of the Year in 2017, and I don’t think anything else really came that close because it’s an all-time great match. They kept the whole match in the ring for the most part too. Listen to the crowd. They got louder and louder as it went on. I’ve seen the match a few times by now and it’s always a joy to watch. Thank you Cena and Styles for this one. Looking back at Cena’s career, this might be the best match of his career, or at least in the top five.)
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RANKING JOHN CENA’S 16 WWE WORLD TITLE WINS
The list of the 16 matches from worst to best looks like this. There are some similar ratings which make some matches tied, so I’ll just put them in the order that I see fit.
- WrestleMania 21 (April 3, 2005) vs. JBL – **
- Royal Rumble (January 29, 2006) vs. Edge – ***
- Survivor Series (November 23, 2008) vs. Chris Jericho – ***
- WrestleMania 25 (April 5, 2009) vs. Edge vs. Big Show – ***
- WrestleMania 29 (April 7, 2013) vs. The Rock – ***
- Hell in a Cell (October 27, 2013) vs. Alberto Del Rio – ***1/4
- Elimination Chamber (February 21, 2010) Elimination Chamber Match vs. Sheamus vs. Ted Dibiase vs. Randy Orton vs. Triple H vs. Kofi Kingston – ***1/2
- WrestleMania 26 (March 28, 2010) vs. Batista – ***1/2
- Monday Night Raw (July 25, 2011) vs. Rey Mysterio – ***1/2
- Extreme Rules (May 1, 2011) Steel Cage Match vs. The Miz vs. John Morrison – ***1/2
- Money in the Bank (June 29, 2014) Ladder Match vs. Randy Orton vs. Sheamus vs. Bray Wyatt vs. Alberto Del Rio vs. Cesaro (w/Paul Heyman) vs. Roman Reigns vs. Kane – ***1/2
- Night of Champions (September 18, 2011) vs. Alberto Del Rio – ***3/4
- Bragging Rights (October 25, 2009) Anything Goes 60-Minute Ironman Match vs. Randy Orton – ***3/4
- Breaking Point (September 13, 2009) vs. I Quit Match vs. Randy Orton – ****
- Unforgiven (September 16, 2006) TLC Match vs. Edge – ****1/2
- Royal Rumble (January 29, 2017) vs. AJ Styles – *****
Final Thoughts
There are over 15,000 words in this column, so thanks for making it this far. I think what I learned after putting this together with some old material and some new material is that while John Cena’s legacy in WWE is impressive after 20+ years, he also had a lot of short title reigns. Some of them didn’t even seem necessary, but that’s the nature of the business when WWE feels the need to do title changes and get that WWE Title on Cena again.
I know Cena isn’t known for being the best in-ring performer, but as he got older he improved a lot in the ring. Many of the best matches in his career didn’t involve a WWE Title win, so there’s a whole other list you can do about Cena’s 16 best matches. Regarding these WWE Title matches, the two that stand out the most are the Rumble match with Styles and the Unforgiven match with Edge. Those two are special and I highly recommend them if you haven’t seen them.
Will John Cena get his 17th WWE World Title more than eight years after his last title win? Tune in to WrestleMania 40 to find out.
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Thanks for reading. You can contact me using any of the methods below.
John Canton
Email: mrjohncanton@gmail.com
Twitter/X: @johnreport