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John Cena |
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 John Cena
Career
Cena attended Springfield College in Springfield, Massachusetts, where he earned a degree in exercise physiology (Springfield College has nationally renowned health and physical fitness programs). At Springfield, Cena played varsity football; he was a team captain and earned All-American honors.
After moving to California to work at Gold's Gym, Cena enrolled in a wrestling school run by Ultimate Pro Wrestling and started wrestling there under the ring name Prototype. UPW had a working relationship with WWE, which soon took notice of Cena, signing him to a developmental contract and sending him to developmental promotion Ohio Valley Wrestling for further seasoning. While at OVW, he also appeared as a hunter on the UPN television show Manhunt, which WWE initially had a role in producing. He made his debut with WWE in 2002.
Ruthless Aggression
Cena's first televised WWE match was against Kurt Angle on June 27, 2002. Angle was giving free shots at himself to newcomers, something he still does from time to time, and Cena had been inspired by Vince McMahon's recent, somewhat inscrutable, speech to WWE's rising stars, exhorting them to show "ruthless aggression" and they would have a place among the legends. He almost beat Kurt Angle, surviving the Angle slam and kicking out of the ankle lock submission hold, but ultimately losing to a hard amateur-style pin.
Word Life
Cena was a typical face, which at first did not get much reaction from the fans; however, after an episode of SmackDown! where he performed an impersonation of Vanilla Ice, his gimmick was changed to that of a white rapper. This gimmick at first got him a lot of heel heat from the fans, but he was later being cheered by them due to the freestyle raps he makes on other wrestlers. During his run as a heel, Cena feuded with the Undertaker and Chris Benoit, and aligned himself with the Full Blooded Italians. One of Cena's symbols was a modified classic WWF logo (the double-W's only) with the slogan "Word Life."
Initially, Cena also feuded with Brock Lesnar. During that feud, he derived his signature finishing maneuver, the F-U (a modified Death Valley Driver), as a counterpart to Lesnar's similar F-5 move. When Lesnar turned heel, they briefly joined forces. However, in the face of his growing popularity, Cena eventually turned face, betraying Lesnar and feuding with him again. Cena established his signature "You can't see me" catch phrase and hand gesture during this time as well. In a 2003 Survivor Series match, he was on a team led by Kurt Angle with Benoit, Bradshaw (before his heel turn) and Hardcore Holly against Lesnar, The Big Show, Nathan Jones, Matt Morgan and A-Train. In the end Cena hit the F-U on The Big Show and got the final pin, leaving him and Benoit as the sole survivors. The two superstars ended their feud there, though they would fight each other during Cena's run for the WWE United States Championship.
United States champion
In 2004, Cena's popularity was skyrocketing. He feuded with The Big Show, leading to a WrestleMania XX victory to win the WWE United States Championship, his first WWE title. Eventually he was stripped of the title by then-SmackDown! General Manager Kurt Angle. Cena later won the title back after winning a best-of-5 match series with Booker T. His second title reign was short-lived as he lost the title to newcomer Carlito Caribbean Cool in Cena's first televised match since regaining the title.
As part of an angle, Cena was allegedly attacked in a Boston nightclub by Carlito's bodyguard, Jesus, which kept Cena from wrestling for about a month because of a kidney puncture (in actuality, Cena was filming "The Marine"). He returned to wrestling just in time for Survivor Series. When he returned, he exacted revenge on Carlito in a SmackDown! match and won the U.S. title back but was attacked afterward in the ring by Jesus, who hit Cena in the kidney several times with Cena's own chain.
Cena's United States title reigns were notable for two reasons. His second title reign came after a best-of-5 series of matches, a series of matches similar to the one wrestled by Booker T and Chris Benoit for the World Television Championship in WCW. In addition, Cena wore a modified United States title belt during his third reign as champion. The new belt featured the same colors, but with the face plate fashioned as a turntable, and was called the "Spinner" belt.
WWE champion
John Cena became involved in a feud with John Bradshaw Layfield (JBL) after Cena won a No.1 contendership tournament to face JBL in SmackDown!'s main event at WrestleMania 21 for the WWE Championship. This feud saw him lose his United States Championship to JBL's Chief of Staff Orlando Jordan, with he and JBL afterward "destroying" the Spinner belt. During this feud Cena established a name for his core of fans, the "Chain Gang Soldiers."
SmackDown! General Manager Teddy Long told John Cena to wait for WrestleMania to get back at JBL for destroying the Spinner belt, but Cena put Long in the F-U for keeping him away. As punishment, Cena was sanctioned; he could not touch JBL until WrestleMania 21 or he would lose his title shot. If he was struck by JBL first, however, then he could retaliate. A campaign of vandalism against JBL property ensued, including ruining his ten-gallon hat at the contract signing, spraypainting a yellow streak down his back, and slashing the tires of his limousine. At one point, Cena stopped interference by The Cabinet on a match, hitting the Basham Brothers and Orlando Jordan with a steel chair. He threatened JBL with the chair, but instead of forfeiting his title shot by striking JBL, Cena sat down by his cowering body and did his "You Can't See Me" gesture in his face.
Cena defeated JBL to win the WWE Championship on April 3, 2005 at WrestleMania 21 in Los Angeles. JBL stole the real WWE belt back before the next SmackDown! taping. Cena, however, had a custom WWE title made, just as Stone Cold Steve Austin did with his "Smoking Skull" belt. The new belt was a Spinner like his custom U.S. title belt, featuring a spinning WWE logo plate.
SmackDown! featured a series of matches to decide who Cena would face in his first title defense at Judgment Day. John Cena successfully defeated JBL, the winner of the tournament, in a bloody "I Quit" Match. JBL, cornered against a glass pane, quit to avoid getting hit by a tractor trailer's exhaust pipe. He got hit anyway, sending him through the glass pane behind him. Cena was finally able to claim the real WWE Championship belt, though he still carried around his Spinner belt.
Cena on RAW
On the June 6, 2005 episode of RAW, John Cena became the first draft pick in the annual WWE Draft Lottery, with Eric Bischoff drafting him from SmackDown! to RAW. This came as a surprise to many, as Cena was the reigning WWE Champion of the SmackDown! brand, and had previously expressed a desire to remain on SmackDown!.
Upon entering RAW, Cena immediately entered an angle with Chris Jericho and Christian. The rivalry between Christian and Cena had already been established when Christian attacked Cena on the Jericho's Highlight Reel, while Cena's rivalry with Jericho started when Jericho turned on Cena in a tag team match against Christian and Tyson Tomko.
Cena defeated Christian and Chris Jericho in a Triple Threat match at WWE Vengeance by knocking Jericho out of the ring and pinning Christian. On the June 27 edition of RAW, Cena teamed with Shawn Michaels and a returning Hulk Hogan for the first time to beat Jericho, Christian, and Tyson Tomko.
Cena is currently involved in a feud with Chris Jericho and is scheduled to face him for the WWE Title at Summerslam.
On the 18 July, 2005 episode of RAW, General Manager Eric Bischoff arranged a Lumberjack Match with Snitsky as punishment against John Cena for hitting him with an F-U on 11 July. The Lumberjacks were Kurt Angle, Intercontinental Champion Carlito, Rene Dupree, Rob Conway, Danny Basham, The Heart Throbs, Kerwin White, Chris Masters, Tyson Tomko and Chris Jericho who hand-picked them, all of whom had nothing in mind but injuring Cena and causing him to lose the match.
It seemed that Cena would lose until the Big Show, Shelton Benjamin, The Hurricane, Rosey, Tajiri, Val Venis and Viscera came to the champion?s rescue. As the Lumberjacks were kept busy by the other Superstars, Jericho desperately tried to salvage the situation by hitting Cena with a steel chair shot but got cut off and thrown out by Cena. Snitsky then took the chair and tried to go for a big hit but Cena hit the F-U on Snitsky and recorded the win.
On July 25, 2005 Cena and Jericho went to do a special battle of the bands: Cena's Chain Gang against Jericho's Fozzy. Cena performed but Jericho refused, claiming the audience was biased against him and said that Fozzy won't perform until the upcoming SummerSlam PPV. Later that night Cena fought Intercontinental Champion Carlito, the stipulation being if Carlito were to win, he would gain a title shot for the WWE Championship. Eric Bischoff appointed Jericho as the special guest referee. This inevitably led to Jericho rigging the match to make Cena lose. Carlito and Jericho joined Bischoff as they started laughing at Cena.
Outside of wrestling
Music/Movies
Cena has cut a series of rap music tracks. His fifth WWE entrance song, "Basic Thugonomics" was featured on the WWE soundtrack album WWE Originals. His track "Untouchables" was featured on Theme Addict, another WWE soundtrack album. His debut album You Can't See Me features his current entrance theme "My Time is Now".
The first single off the album was "Bad, Bad Man". The music video for the song, a parody of 1980s culture and the television show The A-Team, premiered on an edition of SmackDown.
John Cena's first major movie role will be in the 2005 film The Marine, to be produced by WWE Films.
Fashion
Cena's ring attire in and out of the ring reflects the hip hop culture that his character represents. He often wears throwback sports jerseys. During his time as heel, he would wear jerseys of a rival team of the city he was wrestling in. As a good guy, he would wear jerseys of one of the city's home teams. Cena has also made use of the retro WWF logo, but without the F, adopting it as his "Word Life" symbol. He has also worn a chain with a lock on it to the ring and the chain was sometime utilized as a weapon.
When Cena was part of the SmackDown! brand, his apparel bearing the suggestive spoonerism "Ruck Fules" was censored when he wore it on camera. However, this was not censored by UPN, but by WWE to sell more shirts under the premise that it was "too hot for TV."
TV Guest Appearances
John Cena appeared on the Jimmy Kimmel Live show on July 23 2005 in order to promote his cd, WWE, and the upcoming PPV The Great American Bash.
Trademarks
Signature maneuvers and weapons
- '''F-U''' (DVD variation)
- ''Five-Knuckle Shuffle'' (Augmented fist drop)
- ''Throwback'' (Modified flip over neckbreaker/facebuster)
- ''Freestyle / Protobomb'' (Spin-out sideslam)
- Flying shoulderblock
- Steel chain
- Brass knuckles
Quotes
- "Word Life!"
- "You can't see me!"
- "The champ is here!"
- "If you want some, come get some!"
- "Chain Gang in Da House!"
- "Because this .. is what .. we do!"
- "If you don't know by now... we didn't want you to know"
- "Real... recognizes REAL!"
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