John Cena: “The Wrestling Business Corrupted Me”

John Cena is known to be one of the nicest people in the wrestling business.

But as they say, even nice people can be corrupted, in more than one way.

Cena recently joked about WWE corrupting him in reference to his drinking habit. Not that the 48-year-old abused alcohol, but he showed high tolerance for it.

He reportedly was a non-drinker and had his first alcoholic beverage in the mid-20s with The Undertaker.

During a recent appearance on the No-Contest Wrestling podcast, John Cena shared that that drinking session also left him with some core values that are rooted deep within the industry.

I had my first drink…I was sober until the business corrupted me. I had my first drink with The Undertaker…Taker told me in having a drink with him, he didn’t tell me this, but having a drink was like, so I told him I don’t drink. He’s like, “Just take it.”

I drank, and then immediately it was like turn towards and open up. And then that night, I learned never leave early, which I left early. And never announce when you’re leaving, which I announced to everybody. Always take care of the crew because the pay was at a point where the top guys are doing well, bottom guys are getting by. From that day on, open tab; nobody ever paid for anything. [1:43:30 onwards]

WWE Told John Cena To Ease Up On Partying

After gaining momentum in the business, John Cena seemingly became someone everybody wanted to hang out with.

The locker room culture at the time was such that it involved post-show drinking sessions. During this time, Cena earned a reputation for his high tolerance to alcohol and often staying up to “put people to bed.”

He was also known for his partying ways, especially with Ric Flair in his circle. Being one of the company’s top guys, WWE was forced to intervene, telling him to ease up on partying with Flair.