“I Don’t Take Credit for John Cena’s Career”- WWE Hall Of Famer Recalls a Fascinating Conversation with Vince McMahon

John Cena and JBL have had one of the most iconic rivalries in Smackdown history. The Cenation leader even beat JBL to win his first WWE Championship. In an interview with Dr. Chris Featherstone of Sportskeeda, the former commentator commented on how Vince McMahon was taken aback by JBL’s praise towards Cena.

JBL had big praise for John Cena

John Cena has often been considered to be the golden boy of professional wrestling. He became so successful so quickly, and his body of work is absolutely legendary. He is on many people’s Mount Rushmore of wrestling, alongside legends like Stone Cold Steve Austin, Hulk Hogan and the Undertaker.

Cena and JBL had a rivalry that shot Cena into superstardom. John ended JBL’s record breaking WWE Title reign at WrestleMania 21. They even clashed in a brutal ‘I Quit’ match in 2005. The former legitimized Cena as a superstar, and the latter proved his mettle as a performer.

WWE Chairman Vince McMahon was pleasantly surprised by JBL’s praise towards Cena. JBL recollects coming backstage after a house show match against Cena, to talk to Vince. “I remember coming back and talking to Vince and Vince said ‘how is he?’ and I said ‘the kid is awesome’ and he said ‘really?’.

“He wasn’t surprised because he didn’t expect him to be good. He was surprised about how effusive my praise was of him. I said, ‘He has an incredible feel, he has a knack for this business, I think he’s your guy’. I don’t take credit for Cena’s career, I just happened to be a guy who was there and handed the title to him.”

A 16-time World Champion

John Cena would go on equal Ric Flair’s record of sixteen World Championships. Some even consider Cena to have surpassed the legend of Ric Flair and establish himself as the greatest of all time.

He won his most recent WWE Title at the 2017 Royal Rumble, in an instant classic against AJ Styles. He would lose it a month later, but the milestone he reached was far more important than the eventual title reign.

Cena’s last WWE appearance came at WrestleMania 36. He faced Bray Wyatt in the critically acclaimed Firefly Funhouse match. The cinematic masterpiece was much better than any match the two could have put on inside the ring.