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Celebrating the BEST of Indie Cena, Code Reds and all, before big John's WWE retirement.
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00:00John Cena will go down as one of the most important WWE wrestlers of all time on merit.
00:05There is a good reason that the company crowned him a 17-time world champion and christened him
00:09the greatest of all time, calling him that every breathing second during his retirement year.
00:14Cena was, during the barren later years of ruthless aggression and pretty much the entire
00:19PG era, WWE's franchise player, the first one they'd had since Steve Austin. A legitimately
00:26huge draw at the top of the card, Cena is nonetheless a very divisive man. He received immense
00:33backlash in the 2010s when he was perceived as being overpushed, and he was called Super
00:38Cena for a reason. From the Nexus to Bray Wyatt, the list of wrestlers he probably should have put
00:44over is pretty damn long. Beyond his push, Cena has also drawn criticism for his working style over
00:50the years, which is a double-edged sword. There have definitely been times in his career where
00:55Cena could have benefited from being a more dynamic wrestler. That being said, lumping him down as a
01:01five moves of doom wrestler is a little bit silly in my opinion, because there is a lot more to
01:06being
01:06a great wrestler than simply being able to do 500 cool moves. If that's all wrestling was about,
01:12Teddy Hart would be WWE champion. But the thing about John Cena's working style is that while he has
01:18traditionally favored a more simplistic approach, sometimes he goes bananas, pulling out code reds and
01:24ranas and a whole bunch of other flashy things that are usually more at home in Reseda, California
01:29than Stamford, Connecticut. These matches almost always serve as a middle finger to those who see
01:35Cena as a limited wrestler, and today we celebrate them. I'm Andy from WhatCulture, and here are seven
01:41matches where John Cena went full work rate. Number seven, versus Logan Paul at Clash in Paris 2025.
01:49Logan Paul is an interesting opponent to start with here, because the guy is basically all work rate.
01:54When he started wrestling, he very quickly showed that he can hang with almost anybody
01:58athletically, and is more than willing to take risks and make big spots to get the crowd going.
02:04The other thing about Logan Paul is that his fundamentals are basically non-existent.
02:09He is the very definition of a spot monkey, which makes him a funny opponent for Indy Cena.
02:14Together, he and Super Cena traded moves and holds aplenty for just over 26 minutes.
02:20Cena had turned babyface again shortly beforehand, which was kind of perfect. Opposite a genuinely
02:25likable babyface in Cena, who was in the midst of his retirement tour, Paul had a huge advantage
02:31as a heel in front of an audience that was going to hate anybody on the other side of Big
02:36John.
02:36By now, people were well accustomed to seeing Cena hit moves like the Code Red, but it still looks
02:41pretty cool when he does it, because he looks like a man stepping out of his comfort zone.
02:45That's largely because he is. Wrestling should never look like some kind of perfectly coordinated,
02:51smoother-than-a-kinder-egg gymnastics display. It should be a little clunky at times because
02:56they are simulating a struggle. That Cena's high spots are kind of rough adds to that.
03:02Number 6 vs AJ Styles at Crown Jewel 2025
03:05Generally, most people watching this will have more time for Crown Jewel's epic with AJ Styles than
03:10the Logan Paul match, simply because it's AJ Styles. That's not meant as a knock on anyone who
03:16prefers Logan Paul to AJ Styles. Objectively, AJ is a better worker, but it's an unfair comparison
03:23considering the disparity in experience between them. AJ has been one of the best in the world
03:27for several decades at this stage, while Logan Paul has had only a few dozen matches.
03:32It was nice to see AJ get some flowers vs Cena in Australia for Crown Jewel nonetheless.
03:37Pre-match, John prepared a touching speech for AJ that set the table nicely. Then they produced a
03:42showing worthy of ending two legendary careers at once. These boys left no stones unturned as they
03:48delighted fans in Perth for 27 minutes. There was a knowing nod towards the absurdity of their
03:54prolonged finisher train as well, but it kind of worked. John hit AJ with Bray Wyatt's sister Abigail.
04:00Styles responded by showing some love for Christopher Daniels. And there were other glances towards
04:05everybody from Chris Jericho and Randy Orton to Samoa Joe and James Storm. It was mayhem and it was a
04:11lot
04:12of fun as well. At times, as Wade Barrett said on commentary, it was as though these guys were
04:17trying to work something you'd see in WWE 2K, not a real-life wrestling match. Cena had his working
04:22boots on down under. His last international showdown will live long in the memory, and it'll take some
04:27topping during AJ's own retirement tour in 2026. They worked a game of can you top this, hitting moves
04:34for the sake of moves and to pay tribute to those who had illuminated their path along the way.
04:40Not exactly the deepest story in the world, but a hell of a good time nonetheless.
04:45Number 5, vs. Sami Zayn from the 4th of May 2015 Raw. The 5th of September 2025 SmackDown became
04:52notable for John Cena handing over his US title Open Challenge deal to Sami Zayn, which came over
04:5910 years after they had torn the house down in Montreal. Somehow, despite that first match lasting
05:04barely over 10 minutes, it would become known as an instant classic and one of the best TV matches
05:10of the era. Bret Hart introduced Sami to a booming pop, and the hitman would have been mighty proud of
05:16the match that his man and John put together on the night. Keep in mind that this occurred in an
05:21era
05:21where Cena wasn't exactly known as some kind of flippy workhorse who could produce bangers in his
05:25sleep. It was still during the dreaded you can't wrestle and Cena sucks days, so this was a real
05:31treat. One of the best things about his Open Challenge spots were that they handed opportunities
05:36to guys who'd been showing out on NXT or elsewhere on the wrestling map before WWE. Sami was one of
05:43those
05:43people, and so was his good pal Kevin Owens. Special mention to the absolute wars that Cena and KO had
05:49in 2015, by the way. Those were really good, but a completely different style. In 10 rapid-fire
05:55minutes, Cena made Zayn look like somebody who belonged on the main roster and was close to
06:00being his equal. It was an impressive show of professionalism and skill from a star so big he
06:05honestly didn't need to give anybody a leg up the ladder. Sami played his underdog role to perfection,
06:11and he stunned Cena with some tidy spots that would pop back up in their redo in 2025.
06:174. Vs. Cesaro, the 6th of July, 2015, RAW
06:21By the time John Cena's US title Open Challenge series existed, some fans had already applied the
06:27nickname Indie Cena to John, thanks to exactly the kind of matches that we are talking about today.
06:33The aforementioned match with Sami Zayn was top-notch, but then Cena only went and topped it
06:38by inviting a personal favourite of his to work back-to-back wonders on RAW. Cesaro beat Cena by
06:44disqualification on the 29th of June, and it was so fun that WWE decided to press the repeat button
06:50on the 6th of July. This time, Cena and Cesaro went 30 pulsating minutes. Again, like with the Zayn match,
06:58it's important to remember the era being discussed here. WWE were scrambling for fresh ideas and new
07:03stars in 2015, but they weren't exactly prone to promoting 30-minute straight-up wrestling matches
07:10in the main event slot on RAW every other Monday. If they did push something lengthy onto television
07:15at the time, then it probably didn't feature a mid-to-upper-mid card name like Cesaro. He was given
07:21the floor to exhibit all the strengths that fans who'd enjoyed his work in Ring of Honor and elsewhere had
07:26loved for years. Credit where it's due as well, Cena did have ye olde working boots on, of course,
07:32but he laid out at times and let Cesaro's strength become the main focal point.
07:37One minor mini-botch on a springboard stunner aside, this was a flawless match that had plenty
07:42of action and showcased just how adaptable Cena could be when he was motivated. This 2015 run truly
07:48was a golden period for him between the ropes. He was largely out of the main event scene and seemed
07:53eager to elevate rather than dominate. 3. Vs CM Punk on the 25th February 2013
08:00RAW Money in the Bank 2011 will forever be regarded as one of WWE's finest hours. CM Punk beat John
08:07Cena in the main event to steal the top title and hold it hostage, which put a brilliant bow on
08:13his
08:13Summer of Punk run that year. Yes, Money in the Bank 2011 was magic, but it's not the match being
08:19analyzed on this occasion. It was a very different type of match. A classic, but one more reliant on
08:25smoke and mirrors than work rate. No, my friends, that award goes to the 25th February 2013 episode
08:32of RAW. WWE billed this as a true blow-off to the Punk vs Cena rivalry, but there was also
08:38a
08:38WrestleMania 29 title shot vs The Rock waiting for the winner. Those stakes had fans in Dallas glued to
08:45the ring throughout. Spare a vault for anybody who was bursting for the toilet or fancied grabbing a
08:49drink or snack here because they would have missed at least a few minutes of one of the best WWE
08:54TV
08:54matches ever. Cena bust out a fisherman suplex, he hit a guillotine leg drop from the top rope,
09:00and there was even a bloody pile driver thrown in for good measure. That move was lesser sported back
09:06then, so it grabbed attention from all comers of the wrestling universe. So, mind you, did John using a
09:12bloody Hurricanrana of all moves. Rey Mysterio, eat your heart out. That fed into the attitude
09:17adjustment for the win, and Cena was heading to Mania for another match with The Rock. Once in a
09:23lifetime could suck it. This match was fire.
09:262. AJ Styles at Royal Rumble 2017
09:30For John Cena, world title number 16, thus equaling Ric Flair's record, quote unquote,
09:35if you know you know, came at Royal Rumble 2017 and at the expense of AJ Styles. Styles had pocketed
09:43the WWE title in between beating Cena at Summerslam 2016 and the 2017 Rumble. He'd shown himself to be
09:50one of the most reliable stars on the entire roster in his first full year with the company, but fans
09:55just knew that Hungry Jonathan wasn't staying away from the dinner table for too long. The upside was that
10:00Cena and AJ had chemistry coming out of their asses, so another stormer of a match was practically guaranteed
10:06before WWE's roster touched down in San Antonio for the show. There was so much to examine once they did,
10:13and a celebrated Cena vs AJ rematch hit the ring. For his part, John showed off some subtle heelish vibes
10:19nearly a decade in advance of his turn, as he grew frustrated over an inability to put Styles away.
10:25Throughout, Cena was in moves mode with a Z. By airing some spots that fans had never really
10:30seen from this era of his career, but are now expected when he's in there with the likes of AJ.
10:36The live crowd itself was sucked in by all of the near falls and bigger spots, and there wasn't much
10:41hatred for Cena's 16th world title win at all after the fact. Being honest, it would have taken a brave
10:47soul to boo Cena following this performance. He was a man on a mission, and I'm not talking about Mabel.
10:54Number 1 vs Shawn Michaels from the 23rd April 2007 Raw
10:59And so we arrive at John Cena turning his work rate up to 11. These two had already worked wonders
11:06at WrestleMania 23 when they marched into London's Earl Court over in the UK in April 2007 for a
11:13little episode of Raw. Little did anybody clutching a ticket stub expect that they were about to be taken
11:18on a 55 minute thrill ride by a melodramatic master in HBK, and a newer star who was raring to
11:25prove
11:25that he could hang in such a setting. Close to a full hour later, both wrestlers were exhausted,
11:31and so were those around ringside. It was work rate by definition. If you're going to go that long,
11:37you can't exactly have the cardio of Neil Ruddock. It wasn't just all gas, no brakes, however. The way both
11:44men picked their moments to hit the accelerator must be applauded as well. At the time, this was
11:49considered arguably the finest example of storytelling and pure wrestling melodrama that had graced WWE
11:55in years. Michaels was known for producing quality, but there would have been a ton of applause reserved
12:01for Cena behind the curtain as well. He had come through, more than holding up his end of the bargain,
12:07by matching Shawn every step of the way, which wasn't something that just any old scrub could do.
12:12Psychology, action, drama, history, an old master versus young lion plot, excellent commentary,
12:18a hot crowd. Yes, this match had it all. Quite simply, it is one of the greatest WWE matches
12:24to ever take place abroad, and it would take some bout to top it in the future.
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