Mid 20th Century
151-435: John Felix Anthony Cena ( / ˈ s iː n ə / SEE -nə ; born April 23, 1977) is an American actor and professional wrestler . As a wrestler, he has been signed to WWE since 2001, but has performed part-time since 2018. A record 16-time world champion as recognized by WWE alongside Ric Flair , he is widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time. Cena moved to California in 1998 to pursue
302-534: A 5-on-5 Survivor Series elimination tag match between Team Cena and Team Authority at Survivor Series . His team consisted of Dolph Ziggler, Big Show, Erick Rowan and Ryback. At Survivor Series on November 23, Big Show turned on Cena, causing his elimination, but Ziggler eventually won the match for Team Cena with the interfering Sting 's help. Per the match stipulation, The Authority were stripped from power and only Cena could bring them back. At TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 14, Cena defeated Rollins in
453-444: A Halloween -themed episode of SmackDown! , Cena dressed as Vanilla Ice , performing a freestyle rap . The following week on SmackDown! , Cena received a new character: a rapper who cut promos while rhyming. He used the nickname "The Doctor of Thuganomics" and expanded his gimmick to include rapping before his matches, wearing hats and sports jerseys as part of his ring gear. While on a bus journey with other WWE superstars, Cena
604-413: A WrestleMania XXX match. Wyatt wanted to prove that Cena's heroic act was a façade characteristic of "this era of lies" and to turn Cena into a "monster". At WrestleMania on April 6, Cena defeated Wyatt despite interference from Luke Harper and Erick Rowan . The feud continued after WrestleMania based on the story that Wyatt was capturing Cena's fanbase, exemplified by Wyatt leading a children's choir to
755-515: A ladder match for Ziggler's World Heavyweight Championship Money in the Bank contract, after AJ turned on Cena. The following night on Raw , Cena teamed with Vickie Guerrero to face Ziggler and AJ in a mixed tag team match which ended in a disqualification after Cena was attacked by the debuting Big E Langston . Cena defeated Ziggler on the January 7 episode of Raw , and again in a steel cage match
906-471: A pinning combination, but put on a good showing. After the match, he was congratulated by Billy Kidman , Faarooq , Rikishi , and The Undertaker , becoming a fan favorite . He began feuding with Chris Jericho , whom Cena defeated on July 21 at Vengeance . In October, Cena and Billy Kidman failed to win a tag team tournament to crown the first WWE Tag Team Champions of the SmackDown! brand in
1057-446: A " gimmick " consisting of a specific persona , stage name , entrance theme , and other distinguishing traits. Matches are the primary vehicle for advancing storylines, which typically center on interpersonal conflicts, or feuds , between heroic " faces " and villainous " heels ". A wrestling ring , akin to the platform used in boxing , serves as the main stage ; additional scenes may be recorded for television in backstage areas of
1208-560: A Cell on October 3 with the stipulations that if he were to lose, he would join The Nexus, and if he were to win, The Nexus would disband. After Barrett defeated Cena, he reluctantly joined The Nexus. Cena and fellow Nexus member David Otunga defeated Cody Rhodes and Drew McIntyre to win the WWE Tag Team Championship on October 24 at Bragging Rights . Later that night, he was forced to help Barrett defeat Orton in
1359-483: A Falls Count Anywhere match. Cena retained the WWE Championship in a five-pack challenge on June 24 at Vengeance: Night of Champions , and against Bobby Lashley on July 22 at The Great American Bash . Later that summer, Randy Orton was named the #1 contender for Cena's championship. Leading up to SummerSlam on August 26, Orton delivered a number of sneak-attacks, performing three RKOs to Cena, who in
1510-513: A Last Man Standing match due to interference by The Miz and R-Truth. After weeks of The Miz and R-Truth attacking Cena and employees, Cena was allowed to choose his partner to challenge The Miz and R-Truth at Survivor Series on November 20; Cena chose The Rock as his partner, and they defeated The Miz and R-Truth, though The Rock gave Cena a Rock Bottom in the ending. Cena then began a feud with Kane, who cited his disgust for Cena's "Rise Above Hate" slogan and claimed that Cena would need to embrace
1661-517: A Last Man Standing match. Cena defeated Batista for a third time in an "I Quit" match at Over the Limit on May 23, ending their feud. On the June 7 episode of Raw , during a match against CM Punk, Cena was attacked by all eight former contestants of the first season of NXT , with Wade Barrett as their leader. This group later referred to itself as The Nexus . The stable's interferences made him lose
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#17327840319741812-515: A New York City Parking Lot Brawl at The Great American Bash on July 20 to end their feud. On the August 4 episode of Raw , Cena won his second World Tag Team Championship with Batista, defeating Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase but failed to retain the championship the following week against the former champions. At SummerSlam on August 17, Batista defeated Cena. Cena was named one of four contenders for CM Punk 's World Heavyweight Championship in
1963-621: A Tables, Ladders and Chairs title unification match at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 15, which Cena lost. A rematch occurred at the Royal Rumble for the now unified WWE World Heavyweight Championship on January 26, where Cena lost after being distracted by The Wyatt Family . At Elimination Chamber on February 23, their interference caused Cena's elimination in the Elimination Chamber match. I know how John Cena feuds tend to work. He loses one match, then wins
2114-476: A WWE Championship match, giving Barrett the disqualification win, but not the title. The following night on Raw , Cena and Otunga lost the titles to fellow Nexus members Heath Slater and Justin Gabriel , when Barrett ordered Otunga to lie down and lose the titles. At Survivor Series on November 21, Cena officiated a match for the WWE Championship between Barrett and Orton. Per stipulation, if Barrett didn't win
2265-413: A background in authentic wrestling no longer mattered. After this time, matches became more outlandish and gimmicky and any semblance professional wrestling had to catch wrestling faded. The personas of the wrestlers likewise grew more outlandish. Gorgeous George , who performed throughout the 1940s and 1950s, was the first wrestler whose entrance into the arena was accompanied by a theme song played over
2416-487: A bodybuilding career and switched to professional wrestling in 1999, making his debut for Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW). In 2001, he signed with WWE (then WWF) and was assigned to its developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), where he won the OVW Heavyweight Championship and OVW Southern Tag Team Championship . After moving up to WWE's main roster on SmackDown in 2002, he became
2567-415: A breakout success after adopting the character of a villainous trash-talking rapper. After winning his first WWE Championship in 2005, he underwent a face turn into a clean-cut heroic character, which he described as a " goody-two shoes Superman ". He led the company as its franchise player and public face from the mid-2000s to the late 2010s. Cena has held the WWE Championship a record 13 times and
2718-532: A carny term for a shooting gallery gun whose sights were not deliberately misaligned. Wrestling in the United States blossomed in popularity after the Civil War , with catch wrestling eventually becoming the most popular style. At first, professional wrestlers were genuine competitive fighters, but they struggled to draw audiences because Americans did not find real wrestling to be very entertaining, so
2869-519: A central authority. Nor could any of them stomach the idea of leaving the NWA themselves to compete directly with McMahon, for that would mean their territories would become fair game for the other NWA members. McMahon also had a creative flair for TV that his rivals lacked. For instance, the AWA's TV productions during the 1980s were amateurish, low-budget, and out-of-touch with contemporary culture, which lead to
3020-585: A champion that Curley put forth: Dick Shikat . The National Wrestling Association shut down in 1980. In 1948, a number of promoters from across the country came together to form the National Wrestling Alliance (NWA). The NWA recognized one "world champion", voted on by its members, but allowed member promoters to crown their own local champions in their territories. If a member poached wrestlers from another member, or held matches in another member's territory, they risked being ejected from
3171-406: A degree in exercise physiology and body movement, after which he pursued a bodybuilding career and worked as a limousine driver. He also worked in the store area of Gold's Gym . Mid 20th Century 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Cena idolized Hulk Hogan growing up, moving to California in 1998 to begin training for a professional wrestling career
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#17327840319743322-402: A degree. Vince Russo, the boss of WCW in 2000, completely disregarded kayfabe by routinely discussing business matters and office politics in public, which alienated fans. I watch championship wrestling from Florida with wrestling commentator Gordon Solie . Is this all "fake"? If so, they deserve an Oscar . Natalie Enright Jerger Natalie Dana Enright Jerger ( née Enright )
3473-554: A developmental contract with the WWF and was assigned to its developmental territory Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW). During his time there, he continued to wrestle as The Prototype and held the OVW Heavyweight Championship for three months and the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship (with Rico Constantino ) for two months. Throughout the early months of 2002, Cena found himself competing on house shows for
3624-522: A fan-favorite when he joined Angle as a member of his team on November 16 at Survivor Series . Cena participated in the Royal Rumble match at Royal Rumble on January 25, 2004, but was eliminated by Big Show . At No Way Out on February 15, Cena faced Big Show and Kurt Angle in a triple threat match for a WWE Championship match at WrestleMania XX , which Cena lost by submission to Angle. At WrestleMania on March 14, Cena defeated Big Show to win
3775-410: A fee, a visitor could challenge the wrestler to a quick match. If the challenger defeated the champion in a short time frame, usually 15 minutes, he won a prize. To encourage challenges, the carnival operators staged rigged matches in which an accomplice posing as a visitor challenged the champion and won, giving the audience the impression that the champion was easy to beat. This practice taught wrestlers
3926-414: A genuine sport, and the phrase "professional wrestling" therefore has a more literal meaning in those places. A notable example is India's Pro Wrestling League . In numerous American states, professional wrestling is legally defined as a non-sport. For instance, New York defines professional wrestling as: Professional wrestling means an activity in which participants struggle hand-in-hand primarily for
4077-405: A legitimate sport. Firstly, wrestling was more entertaining when it was faked, whereas fakery did not make boxing any more entertaining. Secondly, in a rigged boxing match, the designated loser must take a real beating for his "defeat" to be convincing, but wrestling holds can be faked convincingly without inflicting injury. This meant that boxers were less willing to "take dives"; they wanted to have
4228-744: A match against Gus Sonnenberg in January 1929. Bowser then broke away from the trust to form his own cartel, the American Wrestling Association (AWA), in September 1930, and he declared Sonnenberg to be the AWA champion. This AWA should not be confused with Wally Kadbo's AWA founded in 1960. Curley reacted to this move by convincing the National Boxing Association to form the National Wrestling Association , which in turn crowned
4379-440: A new city, attendance was high because there was a waiting fanbase cultivated in advance by the cable TV shows. The NWA's traditional anti-competitive tricks were no match for this. The NWA attempted to centralize and create their own national cable television shows to counter McMahon's rogue promotion, but it failed in part because the members of the NWA, ever protective of their territories, could not stomach submitting themselves to
4530-623: A secondary, submission based, finishing maneuver —the STFU (a stepover toehold sleeper , though named for a stepover toehold facelock )—when he was put into a triple threat submissions only match on the November 28 episode of Raw . At New Year's Revolution on January 8, 2006, Cena retained the WWE Championship in the Elimination Chamber match after last eliminating Carlito, but immediately afterwards, Mr. McMahon announced Edge
4681-588: A spotlight. Cena defeated Big Show at Judgment Day on May 17 and Extreme Rules on June 7 in a submission match by applying the STF . During Cena's feud with Big Show, The Miz challenged him to a match on the April 27 episode of Raw , but as Cena was out due to injury, The Miz claimed an unofficial win via forfeit and continued to do this over the following weeks, until Cena defeated The Miz at The Bash on June 28. At Night of Champions on July 26, Cena challenged for
John Cena - Misplaced Pages Continue
4832-407: A steel chair, ending Cena's reign at 147 days. Professional wrestler 1970s and 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s and 2020s Professional wrestling (often referred to as pro wrestling , or simply, wrestling ) is a form of athletic theater that combines mock combat with drama , with the premise that the performers are competitive wrestlers. Professional wrestling
4983-565: A tables match to retain his WWE World Heavyweight Championship #1 contender status. It was then announced that Cena would face Lesnar for the title at the Royal Rumble . On the December 29 episode of Raw , Rollins and Big Show held guest host Edge hostage, forcing Cena to reinstate The Authority. On the January 5 episode of Raw , The Authority added Rollins to the title match at Royal Rumble involving Cena and Lesnar. Ziggler, Ryback and Rowan were "fired" for joining Team Cena at Survivor Series. On
5134-452: A tournament to crown the 2009 Superstar of the Year , defeating CM Punk in the first round and Orton in the finals later that night to win the honor. He would get his rematch for the title against Sheamus on the December 28 episode of Raw , where he won by disqualification, but did not win the championship. At Royal Rumble on January 31, 2010, Cena competed in the titular match, making it to
5285-530: A triceps tear and would be out for four to six months. Cena returned at Hell in a Cell on October 27, defeating Alberto Del Rio to win his third World Heavyweight Championship. He retained the title against Damien Sandow on the October 28 episode of Raw , and Alberto Del Rio in a rematch on November 24 at Survivor Series . Cena next challenged then- WWE Champion Randy Orton to unify their respective championships, with The Authority agreeing and arranging for
5436-487: A triple threat match, during which he was pinned by Orton. On April 27 at Backlash , Cena failed to regain the title in a fatal four-way elimination match , in which he was eliminated by Orton. During the match, Cena eliminated JBL, renewing their feud from 2005. Cena defeated JBL on May 18 at Judgment Day and at One Night Stand on June 1 in a First Blood match . Cena failed to regain the WWE Championship from Triple H on June 29 at Night of Champions . JBL defeated Cena in
5587-503: A typical American household only received four national channels by antenna, and ten to twelve local channels via UHF broadcasting . But cable television could carry a much larger selection of channels and therefore had room for niche interests. The WWF started with a show called All-American Wrestling airing on the USA Network in September 1983. McMahon's TV shows made his wrestlers national celebrities, so when he held matches in
5738-586: A victory for all the pain to which they subjected themselves. In the 1910s, promotional cartels for professional wrestling emerged in the East Coast (outside its traditional heartland in the Midwest ). These promoters sought to make long-term plans with their wrestlers, and to ensure their more charismatic and crowd-pleasing wrestlers received championships, further entrenching the desire for worked matches. The primary rationale for shoot matches at this point
5889-588: A weightlifting bench at the age of 12. Cena was educated at Central Catholic High School in Lawrence, Massachusetts , before transferring to the private prep boarding school Cushing Academy in Ashburnham, Massachusetts . He then attended Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts , where he was an NCAA Division III All-American center and football team captain. He graduated in 1999 with
6040-480: A winning effort against Lance Cade , Trevor Murdoch , and Sean O'Haire . Cena's call-up to the main roster meant that he was part of OVW's Class of 2002 alongside Brock Lesnar , Randy Orton , and Dave Bautista , which would eventually become known as the "OVW 4". Under his real name, Cena made his WWE television debut on the June 27 episode of SmackDown! by answering an open challenge by Kurt Angle . After declaring he possessed "ruthless aggression", he lost by
6191-410: Is a true sport. Wrestlers would at all times flatly deny allegations that they fixed their matches, and they often remained in-character in public even when not performing. When in public, wrestlers would sometimes say the word kayfabe to each other as a coded signal that there were fans present and they needed to be in character. Professional wrestlers in the past strongly believed that if they admitted
John Cena - Misplaced Pages Continue
6342-643: Is an American computer scientist known for research in computer science including computer architecture and interconnection networks. Jerger was born in Plainfield, New Jersey , and attended Kent Place School . She received a BS in computer engineering from Purdue University in 2002, and a PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison studying Computer Architecture. She joined the Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at
6493-428: Is distinguished by its scripted outcomes and emphasis on entertainment and showmanship . The staged nature of matches is an open secret , with both wrestlers and spectators nonetheless maintaining the pretense that performances are bona fide competitions, which is likened to the suspension of disbelief employed when engaging with fiction . Professional wrestlers perform as characters and usually maintain
6644-629: Is known for his involvement in charitable causes, most notably granting the most wishes for the Make-A-Wish Foundation at over 650. John Felix Anthony Cena was born in West Newbury, Massachusetts , on April 23, 1977, to Carol (née Lupien) and former Chaotic Wrestling ring announcer John Joseph Cena. His mother is of English and French-Canadian descent, while his father has Italian ancestry. He has one older brother named Dan and three younger brothers named Matt, Steve, and Sean. He
6795-647: The Accolade . Rusev had hit Cena with a low blow following a distraction by his manager Lana . Cena challenged Rusev to a rematch, which was declined, and Stephanie McMahon decreed that Cena would not compete at WrestleMania 31 unless Rusev agreed to a rematch. On the March 9 episode of Raw , Cena attacked Rusev, refusing to release the STF submission hold, causing Lana to grant Cena the match. Cena defeated Rusev at WrestleMania on March 29 to win his fourth United States Championship, marking Rusev's first pinfall loss in
6946-551: The Championship Scramble match at Unforgiven on September 7, but was replaced by Rey Mysterio after suffering a herniated disc in his neck in his SummerSlam match, which required surgery. Cena underwent successful surgery to repair the injury. Cena made his in-ring return at Survivor Series on November 23, defeating Chris Jericho for his first World Heavyweight Championship. He retained the title against Jericho at Armageddon on December 14. After defeating JBL at
7097-624: The New Jersey State Athletic Control Board that professional wrestling is not a real sport because its matches have predetermined outcomes. Shortly thereafter, New Jersey deregulated professional wrestling. The WWF then rebranded itself as a " sports entertainment " company. In the early years of the 20th century, the style of wrestling used in professional wrestling matches was catch wrestling . Promoters wanted their matches to look realistic and so preferred to recruit wrestlers with real grappling skills. In
7248-461: The Royal Rumble on January 25, 2009, Cena lost the championship at No Way Out on February 15 to Edge, who attacked Kofi Kingston and took his place in the Elimination Chamber match. Cena won his rematch for the title at WrestleMania 25 on April 5 in a triple threat match involving Big Show. He lost the championship back to Edge in a Last Man Standing match at Backlash on April 26 after interference from Big Show, who chokeslammed Cena through
7399-776: The United States , Mexico , Japan , and northwest Europe (the United Kingdom , Germany/Austria and France ), which have each developed distinct styles, traditions, and subgenres within professional wrestling. Professional wrestling has developed its own culture and community , including a distinct vernacular . It has achieved mainstream success and influence within popular culture , with many terms, tropes , and concepts being referenced in everyday language as well as in film , music , television , and video games . Likewise, numerous professional wrestlers have become national or international icons with recognition by
7550-676: The University of Toronto in 2009 as an Assistant Professor. She was promoted to Associate Professor in 2014 and to Professor in 2017, becoming the Percy Edward Hart Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Enright Jerger co-chairs the ACM Council on Diversity and Inclusion. In 2023, she was promoted as Director of the Division of Engineering Science at the University of Toronto. Enright Jerger
7701-743: The World Heavyweight Championship three times. He is also a five-time WWE United States Champion , a two-time WWE Tag Team Champion , a two-time World Tag Team Champion , a two-time Royal Rumble winner, and a one-time Money in the Bank winner. He has headlined multiple major WWE pay-per-views, including its flagship event WrestleMania five times ( 22 , 23 , 27 , 28 and 29 ). His career has been met with mixed critical and audience reception, with praise for his character work and promotional skills but criticism for his perceived over-representation and on-screen dominance relative to other wrestlers. Cena's first starring film role
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#17327840319747852-491: The World Tag Team Championship , making Cena a double champion. At WrestleMania 23 on April 1, Cena retained the WWE Championship against Michaels. The next night on Raw , Michaels turned on Cena, costing them the tag titles in the second of two 10-team battle royals, by throwing Cena over the top rope and eliminating the team. The Hardys ( Matt and Jeff ) won the match and the titles. Cena retained
8003-584: The 1920s, a group of wrestlers and promoters known as the Gold Dust Trio introduced moves which have since become staples of the mock combat of professional wrestling, such as body slams, suplexes , punches, finishing moves, and out-of-ring count-outs. By the early 1930s, most wrestlers had adopted personas to generate public interest. These personas could broadly be characterized as either faces (likeable) or heels (villainous). Native Americans, cowboys, and English aristocrats were staple characters in
8154-400: The 1930s and 1940s. Before the age of television, some wrestlers played different personas depending on the region they were performing in. This eventually came to an end in the age of national television wrestling shows, which forced wrestlers to stick to one persona. Wrestlers also often used some sort of gimmick, such as a finishing move, eccentric mannerisms, or out-of-control behavior (in
8305-460: The 1990s, WCW became a credible rival to the WWF, but by end it suffered from a series of creative missteps that led to its failure and purchase by the WWF. One of its mistakes was that it diminished the glamor of its World Heavyweight Championship . Between January 2000 and March 2001, the title changed hands eighteen times, which sapped fan enthusiasm, particularly for the climactic pay-per-view matches. In professional wrestling, two factors decide
8456-411: The 19th century, who later sought to make matches shorter, more entertaining, and less physically taxing. As the public gradually realized and accepted that matches were predetermined, wrestlers responded by increasingly adding melodrama, gimmickry, and outlandish stunt work to their performances to further enhance the spectacle . By at least the early 20th century, professional wrestling had diverged from
8607-653: The Atlantic Athletic Corporation (AAC). The AAC shut down in 1960. In 1958, Omaha promoter and NWA member Joe Dusek recognized Verne Gagne as the world champion without the approval of the NWA. Gagne asked for a match against the recognized NWA champion Pat O'Connor. The NWA refused to honor the request, so Gagne and Minneapolis promoter Wally Karbo established the American Wrestling Association in 1960. This AWA should not be confused with Paul Bowser's AWA, which ceased operations just two months prior. Gagne's AWA operated out of Minnesota . Unlike
8758-411: The December 13 episode of Raw , Cena was rehired by Barrett in exchange that he would face him on December 19 at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs in a chairs match , which Cena won. On the January 17, 2011, episode of Raw , Cena returned and faced CM Punk (who had assumed leadership of The Nexus and subsequently renamed the stable as The New Nexus) in a match which ended in a no contest after Cena
8909-548: The February 25 episode of Raw , Cena defeated CM Punk to reaffirm his status as the #1 contender for the Rock's WWE Championship. At WrestleMania on April 7, Cena defeated Rock in their rematch to win his eleventh WWE Championship. Cena then began a rivalry with Ryback, during which he suffered a legitimate achilles tendon injury. Cena retained his championship against Ryback in a Last Man Standing match at Extreme Rules on May 19;
9060-450: The January 1 episode of Raw , Cena was pinned by Federline with an assist from Umaga. At New Year's Revolution on January 7, 2007, Cena defeated Umaga to end his undefeated streak and retain the WWE Championship. At Royal Rumble on January 28, Cena retained the title against Umaga in a Last Man Standing match . One night after the Royal Rumble, an impromptu team of Cena and Shawn Michaels defeated Rated-RKO (Edge and Randy Orton ) for
9211-449: The January 19 episode of Raw , Cena won a handicap match against Rollins, Big Show and Kane to retain his title shot at the Royal Rumble and win back the jobs of Ziggler, Ryback and Rowan. At the Royal Rumble on January 25, Cena was unsuccessful in capturing the title. Cena then began feuding with United States Champion Rusev , and at Fastlane on February 22, Cena failed to win the title from Rusev after passing out from his submission,
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#17327840319749362-424: The Limit on May 20 after interference from Big Show, but at No Way Out on June 17, Laurinaitis was fired after Cena defeated Big Show in a steel cage match with both their jobs on the line. The following night on Raw SuperShow , Laurinatis was given one final opportunity to challenge Cena. However that night Cena defeated Laurinaitis and David Otunga in a handicap match to end his feud with Laurinaitis. Cena won
9513-408: The NWA, at which point his territory became fair game for everyone. The NWA would blacklist wrestlers who worked for independent promoters or who publicly criticized an NWA promoter or who did not throw a match on command. If an independent promoter tried to establish himself in a certain area, the NWA would send their star performers to perform for the local NWA promoter to draw the customers away from
9664-488: The NWA, which only allowed faces to be champions, Gagne occasionally allowed heels to win the AWA championship so that they could serve as foils for him. In August 1983, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), a promotion in the north-east , withdrew from the NWA. Vince K. McMahon then took over as its boss. No longer bound by the territorial pact of the NWA, McMahon began expanding his promotion into
9815-465: The UPW until March 2001. On October 10, 2000, Cena made his unofficial debut for WWE (then WWF) on a SmackDown! taping in a dark match against Mikey Henderson, which he lost while performing as The Prototype. He received another tryout at a SmackDown! taping on January 9, 2001, defeating Aaron Aguilera before wrestling again in a dark match at a SmackDown! taping on March 13. In 2001, Cena signed
9966-681: The United States Championship, his first singles championship in WWE. He retained the title against Rene Dupree on May 16 at Judgment Day , and in a fatal four-way match involving Dupree, Rob Van Dam and Booker T at The Great American Bash on June 27, until he was stripped of the title on the July 8 episode of SmackDown! by Kurt Angle (the SmackDown! General Manager) after accidentally attacking him in his wheelchair. Cena won
10117-533: The WWE Championship Money in the Bank ladder match on July 15 at Money in the Bank , earning a contract for a shot at the WWE Championship anytime within a year. On July 23, on Raw 1000 , Cena cashed in his contract on CM Punk, and won by disqualification after Big Show interfered, becoming the first person to cash in a Money in the Bank contract and not win a title. Cena's feud with Punk continued into SummerSlam on August 19, where Punk retained
10268-445: The WWE Championship against Michaels, Orton, and Edge in a fatal four-way match on April 29 at Backlash . The Great Khali then declared his intentions to challenge for Cena's championship, attacking and "laying out" all three of the top contenders before assaulting Cena and stealing the title belt. On May 20 at Judgment Day , Cena became the first person to defeat Khali by submission and then by pinfall on June 3 at One Night Stand in
10419-445: The WWE Championship at Fatal 4-Way on June 20 to Sheamus and a steel cage match against Sheamus on July 18 at Money in the Bank . In response to The Nexus, Cena formed an alliance with Edge, Chris Jericho, John Morrison, R-Truth , The Great Khali and Bret Hart , defeating The Nexus at SummerSlam on August 15 with help from the returning Daniel Bryan , a former member of The Nexus, who replaced Khali. Cena faced Barrett at Hell in
10570-520: The WWE Championship in a triple threat match against Triple H and defending champion Randy Orton (a rematch from WrestleMania XXIV ), but was pinned by Orton after interference from Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase. The next night on Raw , Cena won a beat the clock challenge to earn another shot at the WWE Championship at SummerSlam on August 23, where Orton used underhanded tactics to retain. At Breaking Point on September 13, Cena defeated Orton in an "I Quit" match to win his fourth WWE Championship. He lost
10721-450: The WWE Championship. On the February 21 episode of Raw , Cena replied in rap form to comments made by The Rock the previous week, as he returned as the announced guest host of WrestleMania. That night, Cena was placed into a WWE Tag Team Championship match, teaming with The Miz to defeat Justin Gabriel and Heath Slater to become the new WWE Tag Team Champions. However, their rematch clause was immediately invoked, and Gabriel and Slater won
10872-471: The WWF, where he wrestled against the likes of Shelton Benjamin and Tommy Dreamer . After his main roster call-up in June 2002, he continued to appear on OVW programming until September 25, when he lost to Kenny Brolin in a Loser Leaves OVW match . He would later appear in a one-off appearance for the developmental farm in November under the ring name Mr. P in a six-man tag team match , where he teamed with Hall of Famer Big Boss Man and Charlie Haas in
11023-408: The actual match at SummerSlam, retained the championship. A rematch took place at Unforgiven on September 16, which Orton won by disqualification after Cena ignored the referee's instructions and continued to beat on him in the corner. During a match with Mr. Kennedy on the October 1 episode of Raw , Cena suffered a legitimate torn pectoral muscle while executing a hip toss . Though finishing
11174-401: The arena's loudspeakers, his being Pomp and Circumstance . He also wore a costume: a robe and hairnet, which he removed after getting in the ring. He also had a pre-match ritual where his "butler" would spray the ring with perfume. In the 1980s, Vince McMahon made entrance songs, costumes, and rituals standard for his star wrestlers. For instance, McMahon's top star Hulk Hogan would delight
11325-418: The art of staging rigged matches and fostered a mentality that spectators were marks to be duped. The term kayfabe comes from carny slang. By the turn of the 20th century, most professional wrestling matches were "worked" and some journalists exposed the practice: American wrestlers are notorious for the amount of faking they do. It is because of this fact that suspicion attaches to so many bouts that
11476-561: The audience by tearing his shirt off before each match. The first major promoter cartel emerged on the East Coast, although up to that point, wrestling's heartland had been in the Midwest. Notable members of this cartel included Jack Curley , Lou Daro, Paul Bowser and Tom and Tony Packs. The promoters colluded to solve a number of problems that hurt their profits. Firstly, they could force their wrestlers to perform for less money. As
11627-412: The broader public. In the United States, wrestling is generally practiced in an amateur context. No professional league for competitive wrestling exists due to a lack of popularity. For example, Real Pro Wrestling , an American professional freestyle wrestling league, dissolved in 2007 after just two seasons. In other countries, such as Iran and India , wrestling enjoys widespread popularity as
11778-424: The cartel grew, there were fewer independent promoters where independent wrestlers could find work, and many were forced to sign a contract with the cartel to receive steady work. The contracts forbade them from performing at independent venues. A wrestler who refused to play by the cartel's rules was barred from performing at its venues. A second goal of the wrestling cartels was to establish an authority to decide who
11929-418: The case of heels). The matches could also be gimmicky sometimes, with wrestlers fighting in mud and piles of tomatoes and so forth. The most successful and enduring gimmick to emerge from the 1930s were tag-team matches. Promoters noticed that matches slowed down as the wrestlers in the ring tired, so they gave them partners to relieve them. It also gave heels another way to misbehave by double-teaming. Towards
12080-465: The championship to Brock Lesnar in a squash match , during which Lesnar hit Cena with sixteen suplexes and two F-5s , ending his reign at 49 days. Cena invoked his title rematch clause against Lesnar for Night of Champions on September 21, nearly winning before Seth Rollins attacked him to cause a disqualification. Despite this, he became the first wrestler to defeat Lesnar in two WWE pay-per-view events. Cena then began feuding with Dean Ambrose for
12231-461: The championship, Cena would be "fired" from the WWE ; Orton defeated Barrett to retain the title, and Cena was fired ( kayfabe ). The following night on Raw , Cena gave a farewell speech before costing Barrett the WWE Championship by interfering in his rematch with Orton. A week later, Cena invaded Raw , first as a spectator, but then attacked members of The Nexus, explaining he would still take down The Nexus one by one despite not being employed. On
12382-423: The character in shows must be considered fictional, wholly separate from the life of the performer. This is similar to other entertainers who perform with a persona that shares their own name. Some wrestlers also incorporate elements of their real-life personalities into their characters, even if they and their in-ring persona have different names. Kayfabe is the practice of pretending that professional wrestling
12533-461: The commission. The Commission did on very rare occasions hand out such authorizations, such as for a championship match between Jim Londos and Jim Browning in June 1934. This decree did not apply to amateur wrestling, which the commission had no authority over. Wrestling fans widely suspected that professional wrestling was fake, but they did not care as long as it entertained. In 1933, a wrestling promoter named Jack Pfefer started talking about
12684-468: The competitive sport to become an artform and genre of sports entertainment . Professional wrestling is performed around the world through various " promotions ", which are roughly analogous to production companies or sports leagues . Promotions vary considerably in size, scope, and creative approach, ranging from local shows on the independent circuit , to internationally broadcast events at major arenas. The largest and most influential promotions are in
12835-540: The current fashion of wrestling is the universal discussion as to the honesty of the matches. And certainly the most interesting phrase of this discussion is the unanimous agreement: "Who cares if they're fixed or not—the show is good." Newspapers tended to shun professional wrestling, as journalists saw its theatrical pretense to being a legitimate sport as untruthful. Eventually promoters resorted to publishing their own magazines in order to get press coverage and communicate with fans. The first professional wrestling magazine
12986-405: The end of the 1930s, faced with declining revenues, promoters chose to focus on grooming charismatic wrestlers with no regard for their skill because it was charisma that drew the crowds, and wrestlers who were both skilled at grappling and charismatic were hard to come by. Since most of the public by this time knew and accepted that professional wrestling was fake, realism was no longer paramount and
13137-603: The facade of kayfabe as best as they could. In 1989, Vince McMahon testified before the New Jersey government that professional wrestling was not a true sport and therefore should be exempted from sports-related taxes. Many wrestlers and fans resented McMahon for this, but Lou Thesz accepted it as the smart move as it gave the industry more freedom to do as it pleased, and because by that point professional wrestling no longer attempted to appear real. The demise of WCW in 2001 provided some evidence that kayfabe still mattered to
13288-462: The feud, Cena lost the United States Championship to Cabinet member Orlando Jordan . At WrestleMania 21 on April 3, Cena defeated JBL to win the WWE Championship, his first world championship . Now with a spinner WWE Championship belt, JBL took the original title belt and claimed he was still the WWE Champion, until Cena defeated him in an "I Quit" match at Judgment Day on May 22 to retain
13439-421: The final two where he was eliminated by the returning Edge. Cena regained the title at Elimination Chamber on February 21 in the eponymous match, but his reign was cut short after Mr. McMahon made him defend the title immediately against Batista, who emerged victorious. Cena defeated Batista at WrestleMania XXVI on March 28 for the title, and successfully defended it in a rematch at Extreme Rules on April 25 in
13590-412: The final two. He and Batista went over the top rope at the same time, at first ending the match but the match was restarted and won by Batista. At No Way Out on February 20, Cena defeated Kurt Angle to earn a spot in the SmackDown! brand's WrestleMania 21 main event match , beginning a feud with then WWE Champion John "Bradshaw" Layfield (JBL) and his Cabinet in the process. In the early stages of
13741-470: The first place. "Double-crosses", where a wrestler agreed to lose a match but nevertheless fought to win, remained a problem in the early cartel days. At times a promoter would even award a victorious double-crosser the title of champion to preserve the facade of sport. But promoters punished such wrestlers by blacklisting them, making it quite challenging to find work. Double-crossers could also be sued for breach of contract, such as Dick Shikat in 1936. In
13892-414: The first round. The next week on SmackDown! , Cena turned on and attacked Kidman, blaming him for their loss and turning heel for the first and only time in his WWE career. On the October 17 episode of SmackDown! , Cena defeated Kidman, but lost in a rematch the next week. At Rebellion on October 26, Cena and Dawn Marie lost to Kidman and Torrie Wilson in a mixed tag team match . Shortly after, on
14043-409: The following week, despite interference from AJ and Langston in both matches, ending the feud. On January 27, 2013, Cena won his second Royal Rumble match, announcing that he would pursue the WWE Championship at WrestleMania 29 . Cena, along with Ryback and Sheamus, began feuding with The Shield, culminating in a six-man tag team match on February 17 at Elimination Chamber , which The Shield won. On
14194-612: The following year at Ultimate Pro Wrestling 's (UPW) Ultimate University, operated by Rick Bassman . He started wrestling in local flea markets, and once he was placed into an in-ring role, Cena began using a semi- robotic character known as The Prototype . Some of this period of his career was documented in the Discovery Channel program Inside Pro Wrestling School . He held the UPW Heavyweight Championship for 27 days in April 2000, and wrestled for
14345-610: The game is not popular here. Nine out of ten bouts, it has been said, are pre-arranged affairs, and it would be no surprise if the ratio of fixed matches to honest ones was really so high. The wrestler Lou Thesz recalled that between 1915 and 1920, a series of exposés in the newspapers about the integrity of professional wrestling alienated a lot of fans, sending the industry "into a tailspin". But rather than perform more shoot matches, professional wrestlers instead committed themselves wholesale to fakery. Several reasons explain why professional wrestling became fake whereas boxing endured as
14496-460: The government. They pledged to stop allocating exclusive territories to its promoters, to stop blacklisting wrestlers who worked for outsider promoters, and to admit any promoter into the Alliance. The NWA would flout many of these promises, but its power was nonetheless weakened by the lawsuit. Paul Bowser's AWA joined the NWA in 1949. The AWA withdrew from the Alliance in 1957 and renamed itself
14647-550: The hate to defeat The Rock at WrestleMania. Cena fought Kane to a double countout at Royal Rumble on January 29, 2012, and then defeated him in an Ambulance match on February 19 at Elimination Chamber . At WrestleMania XXVIII on April 1, Cena faced The Rock in the main event; the match ended when Cena attempted the People's Elbow on The Rock, and he countered with a Rock Bottom for the pinfall. The following night on Raw SuperShow , Cena accepted his loss and invited The Rock to
14798-526: The independent. By 1956, the NWA controlled 38 promotions within the United States, with more in Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand. The NWA's monopolistic practices became so stifling that the independents appealed to the government for help. In October 1956 the US Attorney General's office filed an antitrust lawsuit against the NWA in an Iowa federal district court. The NWA settled with
14949-492: The individual wrestlers are paid or have been paid for their performance in a professional wrestling exhibition. All engagements of professional wrestling shall be referred to as exhibitions, and not as matches. In the industry's slang, a fixed match is referred to as a worked match, derived from the slang word for manipulation, as in "working the crowd". A shoot match is a genuine contest where both wrestlers fight to win and are therefore "straight shooters", which comes from
15100-480: The industry was anything but a competitive sport. The first wrestling promoter to publicly admit to routinely fixing matches was Jack Pfefer . In 1933, he started talking about the industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , resulting in a huge exposé. The exposé neither surprised nor alienated most wrestling fans, although some promoters like Jack Curley were furious and tried to restore
15251-496: The industry's inner workings to the New York Daily Mirror , maintaining no pretense that wrestling was real and passing on planned results just before the matches took place. While fans were neither surprised nor alienated, traditionalists like Jack Curley were furious, and most promoters tried to maintain the facade of kayfabe as best they could. Not the least interesting of all the minor phenomena produced by
15402-471: The main roster. Cena issued an open challenge each week on the program with his United States Championship on the line, successfully defending the title against the likes of Dean Ambrose, Stardust, Bad News Barrett, Kane, Sami Zayn , Neville , Zack Ryder and Cesaro . Cena retained his title against Rusev in a Russian Chain match on April 26 at Extreme Rules and an "I Quit" match on May 17 at Payback , ending their feud. The following night on Raw , Cena
15553-486: The match five stars , Cena's first and only five star match. On the July 25 episode of Raw , after Rey Mysterio won the WWE Championship in a tournament, Cena challenged and defeated Mysterio later that night to become WWE Champion for a record-breaking 11th time, only to be interrupted by Punk, who also claimed to be champion . Punk again defeated Cena at SummerSlam on August 14 in a championship unification match, after special guest referee Triple H missed Cena's foot on
15704-461: The match and performed a Rock Bottom on Cena, allowing The Miz to retain the title. The next night on Raw , Cena, in response to The Rock "screwing" him out of the title, agreed to face him in the main event of WrestleMania XXVIII , the first WrestleMania match to be set up one year in advance. At Extreme Rules on May 1, Cena defeated The Miz and John Morrison in a triple threat steel cage match to become WWE Champion. Cena then successfully defended
15855-437: The match and taking part in the scripted attack by Orton after the match, surgery the following day found that his pectoralis major muscle was torn completely from the bone. At the time, it was estimated this would require six months to a year of rehabilitation. As a result, Cena was stripped of the title by Mr. McMahon on the next night's episode of ECW , ending the longest WWE Championship reign in over 19 years. Cena's surgery
16006-459: The match ended in a no contest after both men were down for a 10 count. Cena then defeated Ryback in a Three Stages of Hell match on June 16 at Payback . He defeated Mark Henry via submission on July 14 at Money in the Bank . At SummerSlam on August 18, Cena lost the WWE Championship to Daniel Bryan, with Triple H as the special guest referee ending his reign at 133 days. The following night on Raw , Cena announced he would undergo surgery for
16157-568: The match progressed, the fans started chanting "You still suck". Cena lost the WWE Championship to Van Dam after interference from Edge. On the July 3 episode of Raw , Edge won the championship from Van Dam in a triple threat match that also involved Cena, re-igniting their feud. After Edge went about retaining the title by dubious means—getting himself disqualified (for which championships do not change hands)—and using brass knuckles on August 20 at SummerSlam he introduced his own version of Cena's "custom" title belt, this one with his logo placed on
16308-411: The match. On the June 16 episode of Raw , Cena defeated Kane in a stretcher match to qualify for the ladder match for the vacant WWE World Heavyweight Championship at Money in the Bank on June 29, where he won his 15th world championship. He retained the title at Battleground on July 20 in a fatal four-way match against Roman Reigns , Randy Orton and Kane. At SummerSlam on August 17, Cena lost
16459-498: The members of wrestling cartels as the champion drew big crowds wherever he performed, and this would occasionally lead to schisms. By 1925, this cartel had divided the country up into territories which were the exclusive domains of specific promoters. This system of territories endured until Vince McMahon drove the fragmented cartels out of the market in the 1980s. This cartel fractured in 1929 after one of its members, Paul Bowser , bribed Ed "Strangler" Lewis to lose his championship in
16610-450: The next two or three. Look at Rusev and Bray Wyatt as examples. These feuds don't really help talent. They're established... as definitively below Cena. This is a running theme in WWE booking. [Kevin] Owens is... worse off than he would have been if he had never had the second and third matches with Cena. — Pro Wrestling Dot Net analyst Will Pruett in July 2015 After Elimination Chamber, Bray Wyatt accepted Cena's challenge for
16761-717: The promotion's closing in 1991. In the spring of 1984, the WWF purchased Georgia Championship Wrestling (GCW), which had been ailing for some time due to financial mismanagement and internal squabbles. In the deal, the WWF acquired the GCW's timeslot on TBS . McMahon agreed to keep showing Georgia wrestling matches in that timeslot, but he was unable to get his staff to Atlanta every Saturday to fulfill this obligation, so he sold GCW and its TBS timeslot to Jim Crockett Promotions (JCP). JCP started informally calling itself World Championship Wrestling (WCW). In 1988, Ted Turner bought JCP and formally renamed it World Championship Wrestling. During
16912-439: The purpose of providing entertainment to spectators and which does not comprise a bona fide athletic contest or competition. Professional wrestling is not a combative sport. Wrestling constituting bona fide athletic contests and competitions, which may be professional or amateur combative sport, shall not be deemed professional wrestling under this Part. Professional wrestling as used in this Part shall not depend on whether
17063-494: The right to face Rollins at Hell in a Cell on October 26, but Ambrose won the right by defeating Cena in a No Holds Barred Contract on a Pole match . Cena faced Randy Orton instead in a Hell in a Cell match to determine the #1 contender for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship, which Cena won. On the October 27 episode of Raw , Cena rejected The Authority's offer to join forces, resulting in
17214-466: The ring on the April 28 episode of Raw , where they later donned sheep masks. At Extreme Rules on May 4, Wyatt defeated Cena in a steel cage match after repeated interference from the rest of the Wyatt Family members and a demonic child. At Payback on June 1, Cena defeated Wyatt in a well received Last Man Standing match to end their feud; Cena buried Wyatt under multiple equipment cases to win
17365-455: The ring so that he could congratulate him. However, his call was answered instead by the returning Brock Lesnar, who attacked Cena with an F-5 . This led to Cena feuding with Raw and SmackDown General Manager John Laurinaitis , who revealed that he signed Lesnar to bring "legitimacy" to the WWE and for Lesnar to become its "new face". At Extreme Rules on April 29, Cena defeated Lesnar in an Extreme Rules match . He lost to Laurinaitis at Over
17516-419: The rope. After Alberto Del Rio became WWE Champion by cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase to defeat Punk, Cena became the #1 contender and beat Del Rio at Night of Champions on September 18 for his tenth WWE Championship. He lost it back to Del Rio at Hell in a Cell on October 2 in a triple threat Hell in a Cell match also involving Punk. Cena lost his rematch to Del Rio at Vengeance on October 23 in
17667-407: The spinner title belt on the next night's Raw . On the heels of his feud with Edge, Cena was placed in an inter-brand angle to determine the "Champion of Champions"—or which was the most dominant champion in WWE's three brands. Cena, World Heavyweight Champion King Booker, and ECW World Champion Big Show were booked in a triple threat match at Cyber Sunday , with the viewers voting on which of
17818-599: The spinner. Cena eventually regained the championship in a match and an arena of Edge's choice: a Tables, Ladders and Chairs match on September 17 at Unforgiven at the Air Canada Centre in Edge's hometown of Toronto , Ontario, Canada, after performing the FU on Edge through two tables off a ladder; the match had a stipulation that had Cena lost, he would have joined the SmackDown! brand. Cena returned with his version of
17969-440: The stamina for an hours-long fight. Audiences also preferred short matches. Worked matches also carried less risk of injury, which meant shorter recovery. Altogether, worked matches proved more profitable than shoots. By the end of the 19th century, nearly all professional wrestling matches were worked. A major influence on professional wrestling was carnival culture. Wrestlers in the late 19th century worked in carnival shows. For
18120-426: The territories of his former NWA peers, now his rivals. By the end of the 1980s, the WWF would become the sole national wrestling promotion in the U.S. This was in part made possible by the rapid spread of cable television in the 1980s. The national broadcast networks generally regarded professional wrestling as too niche an interest, and had not broadcast any national wrestling shows since the 1950s. Before cable TV,
18271-574: The three championships would be placed on the line. At the same time, Cena was involved in a storyline with non-wrestler Kevin Federline , who appeared on Raw with Johnny Nitro and Melina . After getting into a worked physical altercation with Federline on Raw , Federline appeared on November 5 at Cyber Sunday to hit Cena with the World Heavyweight Championship during the match, helping King Booker retain his title. On
18422-493: The title against Christian and Chris Jericho in a triple threat match. With Bischoff vowing to make Cena's stint on Raw difficult, he hand-picked Jericho to take Cena's championship from him. During their feud, even though Cena was portrayed as the "face" (hero) and Jericho as the "heel" (villain), a vocal section of the live crowds, nonetheless, were cheering Jericho and booing Cena during their matches, most notably on August 21 at SummerSlam , when Cena defeated Jericho to retain
18573-473: The title against Cena and Big Show in a triple threat match, and at Night of Champions on September 16, where they fought to a draw. After being sidelined with a legitimate arm injury, Cena returned at Survivor Series on November 18, but was pinned by Punk in a triple threat match also involving Ryback . Cena then feuded with Dolph Ziggler over an alleged relationship with AJ Lee and at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs on December 16, he lost to Ziggler in
18724-507: The title against The Miz on May 22 at Over the Limit in an "I Quit" match, and R-Truth on June 19 at Capitol Punishment . Cena began a feud with CM Punk, who was leaving the company due to his contract expiring after Money in the Bank . Punk defeated Cena to win the WWE Championship on July 17 at Money in the Bank and left the company with the title. Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter awarded
18875-467: The title back by defeating Booker T in a best of five series that started on August 15 at SummerSlam and culminated on October 3 at No Mercy , only to drop it to the débuting Carlito Caribbean Cool the following week on SmackDown! . The duo began a feud which resulted in Cena allegedly being stabbed in the kidney while at a Boston-area nightclub by Carlito's bodyguard, Jesús ; this worked "injury"
19026-454: The title back to Orton in a Hell in a Cell match on October 4 at Hell in a Cell , but regained it at Bragging Rights on October 25 in a sixty-minute Anything Goes Iron Man match . Cena retained the title against both Triple H and Shawn Michaels in a triple threat match at Survivor Series on November 22 but lost it to Sheamus on December 13 at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs in a tables match . The next night on Raw , Cena competed in
19177-535: The title. Cena was drafted to the Raw brand on the June 6 episode of Raw , becoming the first wrestler selected in the annual draft lottery . Cena immediately entered into a feud with Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff , after refusing to participate in the "war" against the Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) roster at the 2005 ECW One Night Stand . At Vengeance on June 26, Cena retained
19328-533: The title. Crowds booed Cena again during his next feud with Kurt Angle, who took over as Bischoff's hand-picked #1 contender after Cena defeated Jericho in a You're Fired match on the August 22 episode of Raw . Cena held on to the WWE Championship through his feud with Angle, losing to him by disqualification on September 18 at Unforgiven , pinning Shawn Michaels in a triple threat match involving Angle at Taboo Tuesday on November 1, and pinning Angle on November 27 at Survivor Series . The feud with Angle saw Cena add
19479-458: The title. On the July 27 episode of Raw , The Authority forced Cena to defend the title against Rollins, which he did successfully despite suffering a legitimate broken nose during the match. Cena then faced Rollins in a "Winner Takes All" match at SummerSlam on August 23, for both the WWE World Heavyweight Championship and the United States Championship, which Cena lost after guest host Jon Stewart , appearing to side with Cena, attacked him with
19630-497: The titles back after The Miz attacked Cena, making their reign the shortest in the title's history. After weeks of insults, Cena and The Rock finally met on the March 28 episode of Raw , where, after a verbal confrontation, and a brief attack by The Miz and Alex Riley , Cena attacked The Rock with the Attitude Adjustment . At WrestleMania on April 3, Cena and The Miz fought to a double countout , but The Rock restarted
19781-463: The traditional WrestleMania XXIV title shot, last eliminating Triple H. Instead of waiting until WrestleMania, the shot was cashed in against WWE Champion Randy Orton at No Way Out on February 17, winning by disqualification, therefore not being awarded the title. The following night on Raw , Cena was placed back into WrestleMania's WWE Championship match on March 30, defeating Orton in a non-title match with Triple H as special guest referee, making it
19932-519: The trial, witnesses testified that most of the "big matches" and all of the championship bouts were fixed. By the 1930s, with the exception of the occasional double-cross or business dispute, shoot matches were essentially nonexistent. In April 1930, the New York State Athletic Commission decreed that all professional wrestling matches held in the state had to be advertised as exhibitions unless certified as contests by
20083-471: The truth, their audiences would desert them. Today's performers don't "protect" the industry like we did, but that's primarily because they've already exposed it by relying on silly or downright ludicrous characters and gimmicks to gain popularity with the fans. It was different in my day, when our product was presented as an authentic, competitive sport. We protected it because we believed it would collapse if we ever so much as implied publicly that it
20234-405: The venue, in a format similar to reality television . Performers generally integrate authentic wrestling techniques and fighting styles with choreography , stunts , improvisation , and dramatic conventions designed to maximize entertainment value and audience engagement. Professional wrestling as a performing art evolved from the common practice of match-fixing among American wrestlers in
20385-584: The villain Triple H. Cena beat Triple H at WrestleMania 22 on April 2 to retain the title. The negative reaction towards him intensified when he faced Rob Van Dam at ECW One Night Stand on June 11 which took place in front of a boisterous crowd of mostly original ECW fans at the Hammerstein Ballroom . Cena was met with raucous jeering and chants of "Fuck you, Cena", "You can't wrestle", and "Same old shit". When he began performing different moves as
20536-535: The way of proceedings: the "in-show" happenings, presented through the shows; and real-life happenings outside the work that have implications, such as performer contracts, legitimate injuries, etc. Because actual life events are often co-opted by writers for incorporation into storylines of performers, the lines between real life and fictional life are often blurred and become confused. Special discern must be taken with people who perform under their own name (such as Kurt Angle and his fictional persona ). The actions of
20687-420: The wrestlers quietly began faking their matches so that they could give their audiences a satisfying spectacle. Fixing matches was also convenient for scheduling. A real ("shoot") match could sometimes last hours, whereas a fixed ("worked") match can be made short, which was convenient for wrestlers on tour who needed to keep appointments or share venues. It also suited wrestlers who were aging and therefore lacked
20838-425: Was Wrestling As You Like It , which printed its first issue in 1946. These magazines were faithful to kayfabe . Before the advent of television, professional wrestling's fanbase largely consisted of children, the elderly, blue-collar workers and minorities. When television arose in the 1940s, professional wrestling got national exposure on prime-time television and gained widespread popularity. Professional wrestling
20989-449: Was attacked by the debuting Mason Ryan , who later joined The New Nexus. Cena competed in the Royal Rumble match on January 30, which saw Cena eliminate most of the members of The New Nexus, ending his feud with the stable . He made it to the final five before being eliminated by WWE Champion The Miz, who was not part of the match. Cena won the titular match at Elimination Chamber on February 20 to face The Miz at WrestleMania XXVII for
21140-649: Was attacked by then- NXT Champion Kevin Owens , setting up a Champion vs. Champion match at Elimination Chamber on May 31, which Owens won. Cena defeated Owens in a rematch at Money in the Bank on June 14. On July 4 at The Beast in the East , Cena and Dolph Ziggler defeated Kane and King Barrett. After defeating Owens again at Battleground on July 19 to retain the United States Championship and end their feud, Cena resumed his feud with then WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins, with Rollins refusing Cena's challenges for
21291-428: Was cashing in his Money in the Bank contract—a "guaranteed title match against the WWE Champion at a time and place of the owner's choosing". Two quick spears allowed Edge to pin Cena and win the championship. Cena won the title back on January 29 at Royal Rumble . After that, Cena began feuding with Triple H . The crowd, which had mostly cheered Cena over the previous few months, started booing him again and cheering
21442-488: Was challenges from independent wrestlers. But a cartelized wrestler, if challenged, could credibly use his contractual obligations to his promoter as an excuse to refuse the challenge. Promotions would sometimes respond to challenges with "policemen": powerful wrestlers who lacked the charisma to become stars, but could defeat and often seriously injure any challenger in a shoot match. As the industry trend continued, there were fewer independent wrestlers to make such challenges in
21593-691: Was in The Marine (2006) and he subsequently gained praise for his performances in Trainwreck (2015), Ferdinand (2017), Blockers (2018), and Bumblebee (2018). He starred as Jakob Toretto in F9 (2021) and Fast X (2023) and portrayed Peacemaker in The Suicide Squad (2021) and the eponymous television series (2022–present). He released his only studio album, You Can't See Me , in 2005. Outside of his work in entertainment, he
21744-440: Was involved in a freestyle rap session with Rikishi and Rey Mysterio , impressing Stephanie McMahon , leading to the gimmick's adoption. As the character evolved, Cena began adopting a variant of the 1980s WWF logo—dropping the "F"—as his "signature symbol", along with the slogan " Word Life". Moreover, he was joined by an enforcer , Bull Buchanan , who was rechristened to B-2 (also written B² and pronounced "B-Squared"). Buchanan
21895-490: Was performed by orthopedic surgeon James Andrews at St. Vincent's Hospital in Birmingham , Alabama. Two weeks later in a video update on WWE.com, Dr. Andrews and Cena's physical trainer both said that he was several weeks ahead of where he was expected to be in his rehabilitation at that time. On January 27, 2008, at Royal Rumble , Cena made a surprise return as the final participant of the eponymous match, winning it and
22046-650: Was previously considered a niche interest, but the TV networks at the time were short on content and thus were willing to try some wrestling shows. In the 1960s, however, the networks moved on to more mainstream interests such as baseball, and professional wrestling was dropped. The core audience then shrunk back to a profile similar to that of the 1930s. In 1989, Vince McMahon was looking to exempt his promotion (the World Wrestling Federation ) from sports licensing fees. To achieve this, he testified before
22197-424: Was raised Roman Catholic . His maternal grandfather was baseball player Tony Lupien , while his maternal great-grandfather was businessman Ulysses J. Lupien . He is also a cousin of computer scientist Natalie Enright Jerger . A childhood fan of wrestling, he would create championship belts out of cardboard for himself and his brothers. He was teased and beaten up while in school, prompting him to ask his parents for
22348-671: Was replaced with Red Dogg until he was sent to the Raw brand in February. Cena then sought the WWE Championship , held by Brock Lesnar . He entered a number one contender's tournament for the title, gaining upset wins over Eddie Guerrero , The Undertaker and Chris Benoit . At Backlash on April 27, Cena failed to win the title from Lesnar. On May 18 at Judgment Day , Cena and The F.B.I. ( Chuck Palumbo and Johnny Stamboli ) defeated Benoit, Rhyno and Spanky . At Vengeance on July 27, Cena lost to The Undertaker. After losing to Kurt Angle at No Mercy on October 19, Cena became
22499-415: Was something other than what it appeared to be. I'm not sure now the fear was ever justified given the fact that the industry is still in existence today, but the point is no one questioned the need then. "Protecting the business" in the face of criticism and skepticism was the first and most important rule a pro wrestler learned. No matter how aggressive or informed the questioner, you never admitted
22650-417: Was the "world champion". Before the cartels, there were multiple wrestlers in the U.S. simultaneously calling themselves the "world champion", and this sapped public enthusiasm for professional wrestling. Likewise, the cartel could agree on a common set of match rules that the fans could keep track of. The issue over who got to be the champion and who controlled said champion was a major point of contention among
22801-407: Was used to keep Cena out of action for a month while he was filming The Marine . After returning on November 14 at Survivor Series , Cena won the United States Championship back from Carlito on the November 18 episode of SmackDown! . He retained the title against Jesús at Armageddon on December 12 in a street fight . On January 30, 2005, Cena took part in the Royal Rumble match , making it to
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