During a recent interview, John Cena was in a reflective mood as he discussed not only his own career but the success of Roman Reigns and those stars that have moved to the top of WWE in his absence.
Cena’s wrestling journey began back in 1998 and he signed with WWE in 2000. Two years later the would-be megastar debuted on SmackDown against Kurt Angle and after a rocky start, went on to become one of the biggest stars professional wrestling has ever produced.
After winning just about everything there is to win with WWE, Cena followed in the footsteps of Dwayne Johnson and Batista in conquering Hollywood and the mainstream.
Naturally, this shift means that Cena’s wrestling appearances have become increasingly infrequent, and he has wrestled only twice since September 2021.
Speaking on Busted Open Radio, Cena discussed the idea of “passing the torch,” the mythical moment where the star of the present hands the future of wrestling into the eager grasp of the next young megastar. Interestingly, Cena doesn’t believe that it’s quite simple, commenting that when at the top you hope that someone will come and not only follow you but surpass you.
“You don’t pass it to anybody. You just hope to put energy out there and anyone with potential can get it. It was said that I passed the torch to Roman years ago, and he absolutely is the face of the franchise. In my mind, he’s the greatest of all time. I tried to do what I could, and when I did it, it wasn’t the miracle. Like, it didn’t happen. He got it on his own terms.”
The 16-time World Champion explained that he would still love to be a full-time competitor in WWE, but his body simply isn’t up to it anymore. Cena added that what he showed at WrestleMania 39 is all that he’s got left in the tank.
“I just like seeing people who are passionate about the business, who want to be there, who want to show up, who aren’t using it as a vehicle to do something else because the thing itself is awesome. It’s okay if you get other opportunities outside. That’s a testament to your work, but man, I wish I was still there every day. My body can’t do it anymore and I don’t want to give the consumer a bad product.
That’s another thing that I learned from those veterans at the time, guys like Eddie just would risk so much. and he’s like, I’m never gonna give the consumer a bad product. I don’t care how I feel. I don’t care how I feel physically. I don’t care what baggage I have mentally. When I’m on, they paid good money and I’m gonna go out there and give everything I have and sometimes find it when it’s not there.
I’m at a point where everything I have in comparison to the bar that’s been set, like what I have is what you saw at WrestleMania 39. That’s what I feel confident that I can deliver and that’s really nice for here and there. That’s not every day in the WWE. That’s not every day in sports entertainment.”
“Sports Entertainment Has Raised The Bar” – John Cena
The Peacemaker star also reflected on the evolution of the wrestling industry, or as he is programmed to call it, sports entertainment. Cena said that he’s comfortable with the idea of the business moving past him as that’s how progress happens, noting that all people can do is leave it in a better place than when they found it.
“Sports entertainment has raised the bar and I’m humble enough to say that’s awesome because you’re supposed to leave it better than you found it and the people are supposed to advance it. That’s why you go from smokey bingo halls to the Pontiac Silverdome to now towns offering us financial incentives to be in WrestleMania.”
John Cena was last in action at WrestleMania 39 when he was defeated by Austin Theory. There has been no word on if or when Cena will return to the ring.
H/t to WrestlingNews.Co