“John Cena Would Be Proud”: UFC Star’s ‘Beautiful Tribute’ to John Cena Put Fans in Incredulity

Fans of WWE have seen many wrestlers over the years bring a flavor of MMA to the squared circle. In fact, a few MMA fighters have also crossed over to WWE, with Ronda Rousey being the most recent and popular example. With the likes of Lesnar, Rousey, it is a common sight for wrestling fans to see MMA moves in WWE, but recently UFC fans got to experience a taste of a WWE move in the octagon popularized by none other than John Cena.

The recent UFC fight saw the fighters in a similar grappling move used by Cena and thus, a comparison ensued.

Fans react to Dolidze channeling his inner John Cena to win in the octagon

WWE and MMA fans can be at odds due to the differences in the respective genres of combat sports. WWE presents a more sports entertainment-based product revolving around theatrics and drama, while MMA is simply about two people fighting it out for real.

Recently, UFC fighter Roman Dolidze channeled his inner Super Cena and used a variation of the WWE legend’s STF maneuver to beat his opponent, Jack Hermansson.

As the video of his win went viral, fans shared their reactions to this unique MMA-WWE blend on Twitter.

Fans gave the due credit to John Cena.

Fans couldn’t stop from making a comparison.

Moreover, WWE star Shayna Baszler and Gregory “The Hurricane” Helms also gave their two cents on this fabulous moment.

Some fans had more interesting quips.

A fan also felt fighters would study Cena’s moves.

One thing that this shows is that wrestling moves can be quite real and painful, contrary to the popular notion. John Cena used the STF throughout his career, winning many matches and titles with it. Now, with Dolidze using the famed finisher, it will be interesting to see if the Peacemaker star responds to the comparisons.

What happened at the UFC fight?

At the recent UFC event in Orlando, Florida, Roman Dolidze took a page from the playbook of the WWE star as he scored a TKO win over Jack Hermansson. He thus won his fourth consecutive fight.

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In the bout which was for the number 8th spot in the middleweight rankings, Dolidze put Hermansson in a calf slicer that bore a striking resemblance to John Cena’s STF. If he would have applied the chin lock, it would’ve been the exact same move. However, Dolidze went for some brutal ground strikes and the referee stopped the fight to award him a TKO win.

Do you see a similarity in Dolidze’s move?

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