At Unforgiven 2006, John Cena defeated Edge for this third WWE Championship reign in a TLC match. Cena was already the undisputed face of WWE, but he cemented his legacy with a 380-day stranglehold with the WWE Championship. Cena defended the WWE Title consistently, and he made the WWE Championship feel relevant on Raw. Big Match John's title matches with Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 23, and the fatal 4-way epic with Michaels, Randy Orton, and Edge are fondly remembered.
Not everything in Cena's WWE Title run was remembered though. There were tons of matches and rivalries that Cena went through during his 380-day WWE Championship run. Nevertheless, some interesting facts and events that took place during this polarizing WWE Championship reign are barely spoken about today.
10 Feud With The Great Khali
After John Cena overcame the likes of Edge, Shawn Michaels, and Randy Orton, his latest challenger was The Great Khali. Unfortunately, Khali never cut the mustard inside the squared circle, and it was disappointing for fans to witness Khali challenging Cena for the WWE Championship in May and June 2007.
Khali failed in his quest to unseat Cena for the WWE Title. Cena got the better of Khali at Judgment Day, but Khali's foot was outside of the ring which should have broken up the fall. However, they battled at One Night Stand in a Falls Count Anywhere match with Cena displaying his strength by executing the AA on Khali off the stage. Cena went on to bigger and better things after this lackluster rivalry came to an end.
9 Lost To Kevin Federline
Rapper Kevin Federline proved to be a thorn in John Cena's side. He cost Cena the chance of becoming the first man to hold the WWE and World Heavyweight Championships at Cyber Sunday 2006. Moreover, Cena and Federline finally locked horns on the New Year's Day edition of Raw to kick off 2007 in a no disqualification match.
Cena dominated the match although K-Fed equipped himself well here. However, all thanks to interference from Johnny Nitro and Umaga, Federline picked up an upset win over Cena. It was an embarrassing moment for Cena to lose to Federline.
8 Had A Chance To Hold Two World Titles Simultaneously
In the fall of 2006, WWE Champion John Cena feuded with SmackDown's World Heavyweight Champion King Booker, and the ECW Champion Big Show. Cena had a history with both men in the past, and the winner of their triple threat match at Cyber Sunday would be the Champion of Champions.
There was a caveat as either Cena, Booker, or Show's respective championship would be up for grabs. It was King Booker's World Heavyweight Championship that was at stake as he received 67% of the votes. This feud is often forgotten about, and Cena was closing in on adding the World Heavyweight Title to his collection. Kevin Federline prevented that from happening as he hit Cena with Booker's title, which allowed Booker to retain his title.
7 Defended The WWE Championship Against Edge In A Steel Cage Match
John Cena and Edge's heated rivalry in 2006 was the most prominent feud of the year. Inevitably, not every detail of their feud is remembered. The Rated-R Superstar had a chance at reclaiming the WWE Title from Cena in a steel cage match on the October 2, 2006 edition of Raw.
As expected both men threw the kitchen sink at each other. They knocked it out of the park, but this match also signaled the culmination of their feud for the time being as Cena retained the WWE Championship in a hard-fought battle.
6 Shawn Spears Challenged John Cena For The WWE Title At An OVW Show
John Cena seemed unstoppable in his WWE Championship reign, and he defended the gold against Shawn Spears at the OVW Six Flags Summer Sizzler. This bout is forgotten about since it took place at an OVW show, and Spears wasn't the polished competitor he is today.
Nevertheless, it gave OVW some exposure, and Spears would have benefitted from this experience. Of course, Spears was never going to win this encounter with Cena going on to remain as WWE Champion.
5 Teamed With Batista At Armageddon 2006
Armageddon 2006 was a SmackDown exclusive pay-per-view but World Heavyweight Champion Batista needed some backup in his feud with King Booker and Finlay. Enter John Cena, who was a member of Raw, and the reigning WWE Champion.
This wasn't a very good pay-per-view, and the main event was average in itself. It seemed strange for Cena to be involved in this feud since he was on Raw. Nevertheless, fans were treated to seeing Cena and Batista on the same page, and they get the job done with little bother.
4 Defended The WWE Championship In A Master Lock Challenge
The WWE Championship has been defended in countless gimmick matches over the years but the Masterlock Challenge was a surprising one. No man had broken Masters' Master Lock Challenge but Cena relished the challenge on the December 4, 2006 edition of Raw.
Masters was unable to put Cena away with the Master Lock and he released the hold. Tak about humiliation, Cena overcame Masters to retain the WWE Championship with the Master Lock.
3 Cena Was One Of The First Reigning Tag Team Champions To Headline WrestleMania
Rey Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero may have been the first pair of Tag Team Champions to collide at WrestleMania but John Cena and Shawn Michaels made history as the first Tag Team Champions to close out WrestleMania. Everyone remembers Cena and Michaels' epic at WrestleMania 23 with Cena's WWE Championship up for grabs.
It's often forgotten that they were the first reigning World Tag Team Champions to go on last at the Show of Shows. The Heartbreak Kid showed everyone why he is Mr. WrestleMania, but he was unable to take the WWE Title away from Cena, who continued to build up momentum.
2 Lost To Randy Orton By Disqualification At Unforgiven 2007
John Cena and Randy Orton have feuded countless times in their career, and their feud took off in 2007. After failing to beat Cena for the WWE Championship at SummerSlam, Orton had another bite at the cherry at Unforgiven.
The Legend Killer was remorseless and he took out Cena's father John Cena Sr. with a punt kick. Nevertheless, Cena was hellbent on revenge and he got himself intentionally disqualified as he refused to stop attacking Orton. This loss was significant as Cena retained the WWE Championship but he lost his first match on a WWE pay-per-view in 2007.
1 His First WWE Championship Reign To Not End In A Money In The Bank Cash-In
Heaven alone knows how long John Cena's 380-day reign as WWE Champion would have lasted had he not suffered an untimely injury. Cena was scheduled to defend the WWE Title against Randy Orton at No Mercy to complete a trilogy of matches, but that failed to materialize with Orton being awarded the vacant WWE Championship at the top of the show.
Most interestingly about Cena's third WWE Title run ending, it was the first time that he didn't drop the WWE Championship via a Money in the Bank cash-in. Both of his first two WWE Championship reigns resulted in a loss to Edge and Rob Van Dam in 2006, who cashed in their Money in the Bank contract within five months of each other.