Comparing Former Rival Dwayne Johnson to Muhammad Ali, John Cena Reveals Why He ‘Had to Be Mike Tyson’ in His Deeply Personal Feud With the $800 Million WWE Legend

In recent times, there hasn’t been a greater feud than John Cena and Dwayne Johnson. Both the stars on either side of the ring were the top talent that would never have wrestled if not for Johnson’s return. Looking back at it now, it was also a Hollywood megastar face-off against a Hollywood-inspiring wrestler.

But Cena recently called this iconic feud a battle between Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson. While the two titans never met in real life, they were both instrumental in getting people’s eyes on boxing. So why did Cena compare Johnson with Ali and forced the fact that he had to be Tyson?

John Cena compares his feud with Dwayne Johnson with Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson

In an interview with Josh Horowitz, the leader of Cenation talked about his upcoming movie, Fast X. While talking about his career in the movies, the host asked about the one feud that made him go mainstream, his feud with Johnson. As Johnson was already a blockbuster hit-maker in the movies, many people tuned in to see him in WWE.

So, this meant that Cena, who was the top guy in WWE, facing Johnson, had millions of eyes on him. This made him extra nervous, on top of working with a legend like The Rock. He said, “I had to punch up to his level. He came in, in a league of his own and to make sure that it’s like Mike Tyson and Muhammad Ali, I gotta be Mike Tyson. The Rock was like Ali and I was some scrub, like Glass Joe from Punch Out.”

READ MORE: “As a Young Man, I Failed Big”: WWE Legend John Cena Was Misguided Like Predecessor Dwayne Johnson But Found the Path After Some Wrong Turns

Being the new blood, who saw and admired Johnson, Cena was like Tyson, but not at the level of Iron Mike. Despite being in the top position in WWE for more than a decade at that point, WWE wasn’t a global phenomenon.

This was going to be the first time so many eyes were going to be on him. But luckily, Cena did gain a stature akin to Tyson to collide with The Rock’s Ali, creating their iconic feud.

How did John Cena’s rivalry with the Rock stamp itself as one of the finest in WWE?

Starting with their regular mic drop segments on Raw, these legends shattered the building. Cena even admitted to breaking an unwritten rule, calling out stars for writing their lines on the wrist, which didn’t get him in trouble. This moment, coupled with other aspects of their heated feud, got everyone’s attention.

Everything culminated in Cena losing in one of the most important matches of his career. But the next year, the tables were turned. Cena would avenge himself and gain the respect of The Rock in front of the entire audience.

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