“I Didn’t Know That”: AJ Styles Revealed How John Cena Gave Him a Reality Check in WWE

The fans of wrestling have a favorite pastime of coming up with elusive dream rivalries. The main protagonists of these rivalries may sometimes be working under the same promotion. On the other hand, there may be some dream matches that may seem out of bounds due to the performers being based in different promotions. One such iconic rivalry that the fans were crying out for was between AJ Styles and John Cena.

While John Cena was turning the heat in the latter half of the 2000s and early 2010s in the WWE. His counterpart, AJ Styles was busy making his name in the rival promotion TNA or Impact Wrestling as it is known today.

There were very less chances of these two generational talents crossing paths. However, it did not stop optimistic fans to fantasize about it and well, their wishes did come true.

AJ Styles would shock the world by finally joining the wrestling juggernaut WWE in 2016. And it wasn’t long before he set his sights on the Doctor Of Thuganomics. Styles in a recent interaction at The Halftime show spilled the beans on the feud. 

Styles shares his thoughts on the feud with John Cena

The WWE superstar was asked who has surprised him the most in the ring. He went on to reply “I’ve had a lot of tough opponents throughout my career. I will say that a guy that surprised me with how good he was in the ring would be John Cena, … John is not known for being a technical mastermind in the ring, … but he’s pretty good. I had some of my better matches against this guy.”

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“His mind for how everything needs to work and transition-wise. He’s just good. He knows what he’s doing. It’s one of those things were you thought, ‘I’m the superior wrestler in the ring, but once you get in there with John Cena, you realize, Well, okay, I didn’t know that. Let’s keep going. He’s pretty good.” added the Phenomenal One.

How did the rivalry actually fare?

The highly awaited rivalry wouldn’t disappoint as the two would go on to pull off some instant classics. The chemistry between both performers possessing different styles was particularly appreciated by the fans. Cena and Styles’ matches were rated very highly and involved some of the best in-ring action seen in recent times.

The two would embark on different courses in their careers post their rivalry. Cena went on to carve out a successful career in Hollywood. While Styles continued to dominate the squared circle for years to come. He even won the top prize, the WWE championship twice adding to his already impressive resume.

The wrestling community would have felt privileged to witness this much-hyped rivalry finally come to fruition. Styles’ opinion about Cena changed, through his own admittance once he collided with the Cenation Leader. But he isn’t the first one to acknowledge Cena’s masterclass in the ring and surely wouldn’t be the last.

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