2015 has been a renaissance year for John Cena. We know it's not his fault that Vince books him to beat everyone, but he still goes out and does his best to put each and every man that he faces over by giving it his all. John Cena Sucks? You're watching without having the full story, John Cena has done more for the next generation than a lot of other past top guys have. His matches with Cesaro, Kevin Owens, Sami Zayn, and Rusev are all match of the year candidates this year.
But that's just one year in the life of "the Face That Runs This Place." While not always being booked to win, Cena has been booked to look like a monster since the day he started and seldom does he lose entire programs. Combine that with the zillion times he's headlined a PPV or Raw and the billion times it's been against Randy Orton, and just about everyone, except a certain CEO named VKM can understand why Cena grates on fans' nerves. Sorry Mr. McMahon, but it's true.
While every guy needs to notch a few wins under his spinner belt on the way to top, it's pretty wild to think about the sheer number of past and current legends that have fallen beneath John Cena's Pumps. Somehow in between fighting Randy Orton every other day, spouting goofy catchphrases, and most importantly and un-ironically granting wishes to sick children around the globe, John Cena has trampled every legend he's faced at some even on the grandest stage, WrestleMania.
10 10. Big Show
Sure, fans chant "please retire" at the Big Show now, but that’s just over exposure and constant flip–flopping. Make no mistake about it, he will go down in this sport as one of the greatest giants to have ever stepped over the top rope and he will also go down in history as Cena's first legend to be beaten. At WrestleMania XX, the gargantuan Show stepped into Madison Square Garden looking for a brawl and Cena gave him one, walking out with the U.S. title for the first time in his career. Over the past 11 years, Cena would trounce him again and again, most notably in a triple threat match at WrestleMania XXV and in a steel cage match at No Way Out 2012.
9 9. Edge
Two and half years into his run and people were already sick of seeing Cena mow down everyone else on the card. Luckily, Edge's star had already grown during the Attitude Era, otherwise every time Cena ran him down could have ruined the Rated-R Superstar's career. Edge was white-hot when he cashed in Money in the Bank on Cena at New Year's Revolution and should have gone on to main event 'Mania but instead any momentum was killed when Edge jobbed out to Super Cena. Besides this epic fail, Edge and Cena would trade wins back and forth, but Edge getting beaten in his own match, Tables, Ladders, and Chairs in his home Toronto at Unforgiven 2006 was just atrocious.
8 8. Kurt Angle
No matter how odd the Olympian might get and how much the WWE may or may not want to forget him, he will forever be linked to the annals of the WWE as Cena's very first opponent. While Angle defeated a tights–wearing Cena, John took the true-blue wrestler to the limit. Then being congratulated by the Smackdown locker room cemented John's place as a future player, just no one knew how much he would play. Over the next few years, Cena would continue to take on an eventually beat the Wrestling Machine throughout 2005, and we have this feud to thank for Cena adopting the STF.
7 7. Chris Jericho
At this point in his career, Jericho has nothing left to prove and could retire happily, but he still likes to come back and helps put younger guys over. Decidedly what should be done for the business and equally decidedly what wasn't done for him in WCW, so he's paying forward what should have been paid to him. Which also means the Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla has jobbed out to Cena numerous times in the mid–aughts, while he was reprising his whiny heel persona from WCW. Jericho would take Cena on at several PPVs and Raws, always telling GM Eric Bischoff he could beat Cena. Failing to defeat the Dr. of Thugonomics would eventually cost Y2J his job as Bischoff would fire him from Raw.
6 6. Brock Lesnar
One night after losing to The Rock at WrestleMania XXVIII, Cena stepped out for Raw a beaten man. The WWE Universe had already known that a Beast was pacing back and forth in the back waiting to feast. The fans were chanting for Brock's name and he did not disappoint the Miami crowd, coming out and dismantling Cena. Lesnar would go on to claim that if not for him leaving, there wouldn't be a John Cena. But for no reason whatsoever, Cena despite getting his ass handed to him at Extreme Rules, Cena would topple The Conquerer, rendering his return irrelevant until he toppled The Deadman at WrestleMania.
5 5. Rey Mysterio
CM Punk shocked the world when he beat Cena at Money in the Bank and left the WWE with the title. About a week later on Raw, there was tournament to determine who would be the new champion. In a change of status quo, Rey Mysterio won the WWE Championship. However, rather than play out any intrigue as to when Punk would return, or at least tease us with Rey–Rey as champ for a few weeks, there was a SummerSlam to promote and the brass must not have thought Mysterio on top would sell tickets. Since Vince doesn't trust anyone else at the mountaintop, Cena defeated Rey in the same night, making the legendary Luchador's reigns one of the shortest in history.
4 4. Shawn Michaels
With Triple H out with a second quad injury, the proposed rematch from WrestleMania 22 between the Game and the Dr. of Thugonomics was off the table for 'Mania 23. So who better to slide into the main event spot than the Showstopper himself, Shawn Michaels? The Icon spent the early part of 2007 taking John Cena to the limit several times. At WrestleMania 23, HBK again showed why he was Mr. WrestleMania and put on, like he always does, the match of the year. But like everyone else, even the greatest big match performer ever was left looking up at the lights by Cena's hand.
3 3. Triple H
Before Super Cena began to dismantle every member of the WWE roster, Triple H did it first, but he had the added bonus of taking out some WCW legends in his own run. So it was interesting to see which overbooked superstar would triumph in their main event at WrestleMania 22, Vince's heir apparent vs. Vince's son–in–law. The match was the height of WWE drama, as Cena came out in mafioso gear and Triple H donned his Conan the Barbarian gear. Triple H would even land a Pedigree during a time before twelve finishers were needed to win a match, but in the end, we got a sight few thought they'd ever see–Triple H tapping out in a title fight.
2 2. The Rock
The Rock and Cena split a pair of victories but since Cena's win happened in New York, you know that it looks like another big name was fed to Captain Fruity Pebbles. Out of all the legends on this list, at least beating The Rock makes sense from a booking standpoint, if not an emotional one. After all, Cena rarely takes a day off and The Rock comes and goes as he pleases at this point. Had he who two straight against Cena, what would that have said about the rest of the roster who can't beat Cena? An aging part time beats the current top guy that nobody else can get over on? It just wouldn't make sense.
1 1. The Undertaker
Vince McMahon has long said that he wouldn’t expect anyone to do something that he wasn’t willing to do himself. One could surmise that the same could be said about The Deadman. There are some who seem to forget that The American Bad Ass was still around when a scrappy young kid from Newbury, Massachusetts was still finding his way. Our number one legend on this list also has the distinction of being the only legend to lose to a heel version of Cena. It did take assistance from the F.B.I. who were feuding with Big Evil at that point, but a win is a win and John Cena seems to know a thing or five about how to win matches.