John Cena
| John Cena | |
|---|---|
| File:Johncenatitle.jpg | |
| Born | April 23, 1977 West Newbury, Massachusetts |
| Professional wrestling career | |
| Ring name(s) | The Prototype John Cena |
| Billed height | 6 ft 1 in (186 cm) |
| Billed weight | 248 lb (112 kg) |
| Billed from | West Newbury, Massachusetts |
| Trained by | Ultimate Pro Wrestling Ohio Valley Wrestling |
| Debut | 2002 |
John Felix-Anthony Cena, Jr. (born April 23, 1977 in West Newbury, Massachusetts), is an Italian-American professional wrestler and part-time hip hop artist who currently performs for World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) on the RAW brand, where he is the current WWE Champion. Cena brought the once SmackDown!-exclusive WWE Championship belt to RAW on June 6, 2005 when he was drafted to RAW during the 2005 Draft. Cena has released a music CD, You Can't See Me, with real life cousin Tha Trademarc, and has performed live concerts with Tha Trademarc and Bumpy Knuckles.
Before his professional wrestling career, John Cena was a bodybuilder, college football player, a team captain and All-American center for Division III at Springfield College. While at Springfield, he earned a degree in exercise physiology.[1]
Early career
In 2000, Cena first started training to become a wrestler at the California-based Ultimate Pro Wrestling (UPW) where he created his character, The Prototype. WWE signed him to a developmental contract at Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) straight out of UPW.
FUCK YOU AMERICA
Fan backlash
After the draft lottery which brought him to RAW, Cena's popularity with the fans slowly began to fade. With his two biggest rivalries being against Chris Jericho and Kurt Angle, the cult followings of both men were overwhelming in the crowd. At SummerSlam 2005, when Cena defended the WWE Championship against Chris Jericho, chants of "Let's go, Cena!" and "Let's go Jericho" were clearly audible, a sign that the fans were becoming divided over Cena. Slowly, boos began to emerge during Cena's matches.
Over time, the reactions towards Cena became more and more negative, especially during his feuds with stars such as Kurt Angle. Despite Angle's best attempts to attain heel heat, the fans continued to boo Cena. At New Year's Revolution, Cena successfully defended his title in an Elimination Chamber match, much to the displeasure of most of the crowd. During the match, everytime Cena was attacked, the crowd cheered, whether or not he was attacked by a face or heel. At the end of the match, Edge appeared much to the surprise of the crowd, cashing in on his Money-in-the-Bank clause. He defeated Cena, becoming the new WWE Champion, which was seen as a cheap move by the fans, as well as Joey Styles and Jerry Lawler, who claimed that Edge had "stolen the damn title."
Cena was reported as being upset by fans' negativity, although he stated that the fans obviously had a choice in deciding whom they wanted to root for. Possible reasons for the negative or mixed reactions were the predictability of the storylines and matches he had been booked in, his poor workrate in the eyes of many fans, and that his character had become too mainstream and less edgy over time as he received more exposure from the non-wrestling press becoming more of a typical face instead of remaining as a tweener antihero. Cena's circumstances are similar to Rocky Maivia's, before he became The Rock, who despite being pushed as a face was booed the more he tried to get the fans to side with him.
In the follow-up to the 2006 Royal Rumble, the brief feud with Edge seemed to be restoring Cena's popularity, with him making saves for crowd favorite Ric Flair. At the Royal Rumble, Cena reclaimed the WWE Championship, again drawing polarized reactions from the crowd.
Between this time and WrestleMania 22, where he was slated to face Triple H in a WWE Championship match, Cena's popularity appeared to be declining. A popular heel, Triple H drew positive crowd reactions for verbally putting Cena down, especially when he brought up Cena's perceived lack of wrestling ability. Cena responded with self-deprecation and sharp promos, which ultimately did little to aid his popularity at WrestleMania 22.
At WrestleMania 22, Cena retained the WWE Championship. He was booed at every turn, despite his grand entrance that glorified the Chicago Mafia, while Triple H had difficulty garnering heel heat. Announcers at WrestleMania 22 attributed the constant booing of Cena to the overwhelming population of "traditional wrestling fans," Jerry Lawler suggesting that Cena was too young, edgy and original for the older audience to appreciate.
Afterwards, Cena would continue to draw mixed reactions from the crowd, including his win against Triple H at the April 20, 2006 Backlash (WWE would even put up a blurb on the Backlash website after the PPV reading "Cena "wins""). On the May 8, 2006 RAW, Cena received unfavorable heat during a verbal sparring with Triple H, but was received more warmly when he paired up with Michaels to fight the Spirit Squad. Cena's crowd response during the May 22, 2006 RAW was mildly positive during his match with Chris Masters. After his win over Masters, the fans even cheered Cena when he brawled with Rob Van Dam, and booed RVD when he laid Cena out with his briefcase.
Outside of wrestling
Many professional wrestlers have a diverse career outside of wrestling, and John Cena is no exception.
Music
In addition to his time in the ring, Cena is a rap music artist. He performed his fifth WWE entrance song, "Basic Thugonomics", which was featured on the WWE soundtrack album WWE Originals. His track "Untouchables" was featured on Theme Addict, another WWE soundtrack album. His debut album which he recorded alongside his cousin Tha Trademarc, You Can't See Me features his current entrance theme "My Time is Now". Tha Trademarc is currently working on his own album which will feature John Cena. The first single from the You Can't See Me 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!. WWE premiered the music video for Cena's second single, "Right Now", on the August 8 edition of RAW.
John Cena has worked with several personalities in the Hip-Hop industry, such as Freddie Foxx (Bumpy Knuckles), 7L, Esoteric, Murs (including a music video), E-40 and Chingo Bling. He and Method Man were also featured in SmackDown! magazine and MTV.com. Most recently, Cena and Tha Trademarc are featured on a track by The Perceptionists, "Champion Scratch." Cena has also performed on BBC Two's long running Top of the Pops, becoming the first professional wrestler to perform on the program.
Film
A division of World Wrestling Entertainment, WWE Films produces and fully finances motion pictures under the supervision of Joel Simon, President of the company. Cena's first movie credit will be the lead role in The Marine, a film directed by John Bonito, co-starring Robert Patrick (Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Walk the Line) and Kelly Carlson (Nip/Tuck). WWE has completed a deal with 20th Century Fox to distribute The Marine theatrically in 2006.[2] Stars of other movies by WWE Films include "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, The Rock, Kane, and Triple H. The Marine will make its big-screen debut on September 29, 2006.
Fashion
Cena's attire in and out of the ring reflects the old school hip-hop culture that he represents. He previously wore throwback jerseys (during his time as heel, he would wear jerseys of a rival team of the city he was wrestling in; as a face, he would wear jerseys of one of the city's home teams), though he now generally wears "Chain Gang" related merchandise. He has also worn a chain with a lock on it to the ring and the chain was at times utilized as a weapon. This chain has now been replaced by an enormous, chromed and diamond studded "Chain Gang" spinner medallion.
When Cena was part of the SmackDown! brand, his apparel bearing the suggestive spoonerism "Ruck Fules" was censored when he wore it on camera. They were not censored by UPN, but by WWE to sell more shirts under the premise that it was "too hot for TV."
Guest appearances
Prior to his WWE debut, Cena made a guest appearance on the Internet stream show Go Sick in 2001 as Bruebaker, an angry, cursing wrestler.
During his WWE career, Cena appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on July 23, 2005 in order to promote his CD, WWE, and SummerSlam 2005. Cena appeared again on this show on March 14, 2006 to promote Saturday Night's Main Event and WrestleMania 22. Over 150 people were turned away as audience members due to Cena's demanding popularity.
Other appearances include Fuse's Daily Download, Fox Sports Net's Best Damn Sports Show Period, G4's Training Camp (also with Shelton Benjamin), and he has also served as a co-presenter with Hulk Hogan on the 2005 Teen Choice Awards show.
Cena also was the guest on the October 23, 2005 episode of "Wally's World" on NBC's Bank of America Countdown to Green where he rode with former NASCAR Winston/Nextell Cup competitor Wally Dallenbach around Martinsville Speedway, then proceeded to put NBC pit reporter Marty Snider into a submission move. (NBC Universal owns the USA Network, which broadcasts WWE RAW.)
Cena appeared on the November 26, 2005 episode of Mad TV in the opening segment, and in a 24 spoof skit with cast member Bobby Lee.
Cena was a guest judge on the March 28 2006 edition of Nashville Star.
Cena was a presenter at the 2006 WWE Hall of Fame induction ceremony on April 1, 2006, inducting William "The Refrigerator" Perry into the Hall of Fame's "Celebrity Wing."
Most recently, Cena appeared on British children's program Mighty Truck of Stuff on April 21, 2006.
John Cena has stated that the one show he wants to do a guest spot in is Disney's Dave The Barbarian.[citation needed]
Wrestling facts
"The Six Moves of Doom"
Cena's "Six Moves of Doom" is a term that some wrestling fans use to refer to a combo of moves Cena uses when he is on an in-ring comeback that leads to the pinfall or submission. The phrase was originally coined by Scott Keith in the Internet Wrestling Community as the "Five Moves of Doom" in reference to Bret Hart, who had a well-established sequence of five moves in the same context (in both cases, the term was also at times used in a pejorative fashion by critics who perceived the wrestler in question to have a limited moveset). The following are the six moves and the approximate order in which John Cena executes them (the fifth move can be either the finishing move or the set-up for the sixth and final move):
- Flying shoulder block
- Sitout hip toss or multiple clotheslines
- Killswitch / Protobomb (Side release spin-out powerbomb)
- Five Knuckle Shuffle (Fist drop with theatrics)
- F-U (Standing fireman's carry takeover or fireman's carry powerslam)
- STF-U (Stepover Toehold Sleeper)
Finishing and signature moves
- F-U (Standing fireman's carry takeover or fireman's carry powerslam)
- STF-U (Stepover toehold sleeper)
- Five Knuckle Shuffle (Fist drop with theatrics)
- Protobomb (Side release spin-out powerbomb)
- Flying shoulder block
- Sitout hip toss
- Freestyle (Swinging fisherman suplex)
- Throwback (Modified neck snap)
- Spinebuster
- Twisting belly to belly suplex
- Fisherman suplex
Signature illegal weapons
- Steel chain
- Brass knuckles
- Chain Gang pendant
- Customized 'Spinner' WWE Championship Belt
- Customized 'Spinner' U.S Championship Belt
Signature taunts
- Waving one hand in front of his face, saying, "You can't see me."
- Pumping up his Reebok Pump sneakers.
- Putting his hands up while spreading them and putting his thumb sideways and his pinky up, meaning "Word Life".
- Occasionally freestyling on his opponents before his matches. (more commonly when he was a heel)
- Screaming, "The Champ is here!" (when holding a championship)
- Spinning his spinner title championship belt.
Personal information
John Cena's wrestling influences include Ric Flair, Hulk Hogan, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, and The Rock. Cena's father, John Cena Sr., works in the pro wrestling business as New England independent wrestling announcer and manager Johnny Fabulous. He is second of five brothers. His brothers are Dan, Matt, Steve and Sean (known affectionately as "Boog" to Cena and his brothers). Matt is also a body builder.[3]
Cena used to hang out and freestyle while on the road with Samoa Joe and Frankie Kazarian while in UPW.[4]
He bought a 3.5-million-dollar house[citation needed] in Tampa Bay, Florida and currently resides there.
Cena is real-life good friends with fellow wrestler Randy Orton
Championships and accomplishments
- 1-time OVW Heavyweight Champion
- 1-time OVW Southern Tag Team Champion (with Rico Constantino)
- PWI Most Improved Wrestler Award (2003)
- PWI Most Popular Wrestler Award (2004)
- PWI Most Popular Wrestler Award (2005)
- 1-time UPW Heavyweight Champion
- 2-time WWE Champion
- 3-time WWE United States Champion
Championship succession
Footnotes
- ^ "College football career". shopping.yahoo.com. Retrieved January 27.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "College academics". biography.ms. Retrieved January 27.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "Wrestling trivia before WWE". www.imdb.com. Retrieved January 27.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "Cena still the champion due to disqualification". www.wwe.com. Retrieved April 4.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "Cena to star in new movie, The Marine". columbiarecords.com. Retrieved January 31.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help) - ^ "Freestyling with Samoa Joe and Frankie Kazarian". Retrieved May 5.
{{cite web}}: Check date values in:|accessdate=(help); Unknown parameter|accessyear=ignored (|access-date=suggested) (help)
External links
