Is John Cena the Last of a Dying Breed?

[Blade]

Guys like Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, Goldberg, The Rock, Batista and others have always been a staple of the WWE and mainstream wrestling in general. They're the big, strong and charismatic babyfaces that become the top guy in the company. It's got a lot to do with Vince Mcmahon's love of big physiques, but now Triple H is taking over the talent side of things.

John Cena is the most recent of those guys. But is he the last? Because, let's face it, there's no one in the WWE of that mold who looks like he's heading to the top.

The only guys who's remotely similar is Sheamus, and even he's not that over. Ryback, as a face, didn't do so well. The only WWE wrestlers of that mold who might become main eventers are Roman Reigns and Big E. Langston. Titus O'Neil, David Otunga and Ezekiel Jackson have the physiques but none of them have talent or charisma to be the next John Cena.

But they're surrounded by the likes of CM Punk, Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Dean Ambrose, Seth Rollins, Cody Rhodes and Damien Sandow, all smaller guys who are either main eventers, semi-main eventers or on the rise towards the main event.

NXT is packed with guys like Sami Zayn, Leo Kruger, Corey Graves, Bo Dallas and Kassius Ohnom who, barring budget cuts or failed drug testing, are going to be making up the WWE's midcard and, further into the future, main event. It's just the way wrestling seems to be going thanks to smaller wrestlers getting noticed in independent promotions that are willing to give them a chance.

So, once John Cena retires, will that be the last we see of the big, charismatic babyface? Is that just where wrestling is heading? Or is it only a matter of time before WWE discovers the next John Cena?

 

[BillAlfonsos_Whistle]

No I don't think so. I have said all along I think Reigns has the best chance to be a breakout star out of the shield. Not necessarily because I think he is the most talented on the mic or in the ring but because of his size and look. I think he fits the mold you are describing perfectly. Not sure if he has the work ethic and character since I obviously don't know the guy.

Even with Ryback's quick push you can tell they are going to try and develop big guys. Just because they aren't in the audiences vision as of yet doesn't mean they won't appear. As much as I support guys like Punk and Bryan (and HBK and so on) I think having capable "larger than life" wrestlers is quite important for the WWE when it comes to merchandising and keeping children involved and interested. Someone will come along.

 

[Mac Attack]

John Cena is not the last of a dying breed. I can tell you that much for sure. Whilst it appears as of there's not the exact "prototype" for that right now the talent pool in NXT is endless. I would for sure say that there are guys in there now that could easily fit that role in about 5 years. Sure it seems that the majority of the newer wrestlers are the more scrawny athletic guys, as long as Vince McMahon Jr. is somehow affiliated with the WWE dead or alive the need for your bigger, strong babyface characters will never die. Sure it doesn't appear that there are any right now, however that could easily change with the extremely talented NXT roster. And I'm slightly confused as to who is considered Cena size as there are a few guys that have been mentioned as fitting the mold that I'd disagree with and guys who don't fit the mold which I also disagree with.

 

[Sexcellence of Sexecution]

If Big E Langston were to do the Five Count gimmick like he was doing down in NXT then I could easily see him becoming a huge goldberg-like babyface. It's such a great idea for a monster face gimmick and I hope they use it at some point.

So the answer to your question is no. While pro wrestling is definitely no longer a "big man's game", there will always be a place for huge charismatic larger than life wrestlers like John Cena, the Undertaker, Goldberg, Ultimate Warrior, Hogan, etc. etc. Wrestling, especially the WWE, will never be dominated completely by smaller workers.

 

[hatehabsforever]

It's only a matter of time before WWE discovers the next John Cena. Don't you guys remember when Cena originally debuted on Smackdown? Very unimpressive and he just seemed to be another face in the crowd, another generic nobody destined for mediocrity.

Back then I rarely watched SD, partly because I didn't find it interesting, partly because it was Friday night. So the development of the white rapper Doctor of Thuganomics totally escaped me. When he was drafted to RAW a few years later, I couldn't believe how popular the guy was and how over he had gotten.

Point being, I could have never predicted that the generic guy who debuted against and lost to Kurt Angle would become the biggest current name in professional wrestling. So for all I know, there's some guy today ready to shock me all over again. I have no idea who it could be as no one currently stands out. But Cena didn't stand out then either, and look how that worked out.

For all we know, maybe in 2020 we will all be raving about a Roman Reigns or someone else, thinking back to when he seemed average or unimpressive. But whoever it will be, rest assured there's another John Cena out there, there always has been and always will be.

 

[Blade]

Even with Ryback's quick push you can tell they are going to try and develop big guys. Just because they aren't in the audiences vision as of yet doesn't mean they won't appear. As much as I support guys like Punk and Bryan (and HBK and so on) I think having capable "larger than life" wrestlers is quite important for the WWE when it comes to merchandising and keeping children involved and interested. Someone will come along.

But everything with Ryback failed. As a face he failed, as a heel he's failing. WWE have tried to find their next John Cena a few times over the last few years, but after how many failures do you just give up, especially when guys like Punk and Bryan managed to get themselves over so naturally?

John Cena is not the last of a dying breed. I can tell you that much for sure. Whilst it appears as of there's not the exact "prototype" for that right now the talent pool in NXT is endless. I would for sure say that there are guys in there now that could easily fit that role in about 5 years. Sure it seems that the majority of the newer wrestlers are the more scrawny athletic guys, as long as Vince McMahon Jr. is somehow affiliated with the WWE dead or alive the need for your bigger, strong babyface characters will never die. Sure it doesn't appear that there are any right now, however that could easily change with the extremely talented NXT roster. And I'm slightly confused as to who is considered Cena size as there are a few guys that have been mentioned as fitting the mold that I'd disagree with and guys who don't fit the mold which I also disagree with.

The talent pool in the NXT is quite impressive, and it has some bigger guys there. But none of them are being pushed in NXT. They either get very little TV time because they're not very good or they, as shocking as it may be, are occasionally used as enhancement talent.

As I mentioned above, WWE have tried and failed to find the next John Cena on a few occasions. Talking about NXT, Mason Ryan is back down there. And he still sucks. Hogan, Warrior, The Rock, Goldberg, etc. They all crossed paths or overlapped along the way. But there's no one in the WWE or, from what I've seen, on NXT right now who could be the next John Cena.

And you mention as long as Vince is involved with the product now. Sure, he could live for another 20 years or he could die tomorrow. But he will die sooner or later, and then it's just Triple H in charge, who has shown he has faith in smaller guys.

If Big E Langston were to do the Five Count gimmick like he was doing down in NXT then I could easily see him becoming a huge goldberg-like babyface. It's such a great idea for a monster face gimmick and I hope they use it at some point.

So the answer to your question is no. While pro wrestling is definitely no longer a "big man's game", there will always be a place for huge charismatic larger than life wrestlers like John Cena, the Undertaker, Goldberg, Ultimate Warrior, Hogan, etc. etc. Wrestling, especially the WWE, will never be dominated completely by smaller workers.

I don't mean smaller workers will completely dominate WWE. I mean it's possible that the next top guy of the company won't be a John Cena type. There will, of course, be wrestlers like him in the future. But I'm not convinced that one will be the next face of the WWE. Not any time soon.

It's only a matter of time before WWE discovers the next John Cena. Don't you guys remember when Cena originally debuted on Smackdown? Very unimpressive and he just seemed to be another face in the crowd, another generic nobody destined for mediocrity.

I don't remember it that way at all.

I remember a former OVW champion who answered Kurt Angle's open challenge, escaped his finishers and brought people to their feet on his debut.

 

[Sexcellence of Sexecution]

I don't mean smaller workers will completely dominate WWE. I mean it's possible that the next top guy of the company won't be a John Cena type. There will, of course, be wrestlers like him in the future. But I'm not convinced that one will be the next face of the WWE. Not any time soon.

If the next top guy isn't a John Cena type then that's not really that big a deal, because the top guys in the company before Cena were not John Cena types. Steve Austin wasn't exactly huge, I mean the guy was in shape but he wasn't as jacked as Cena. And before that you had Bret and Shawn in the top spots, two smaller athletic guys not unlike Punk and Bryan today. John Cena if anything represents a return to the 1980s top babyface like Hogan and Warrior, a trend that had pretty much been bucked (I think that's the correct term...) throughout the mid to late 90s.

Basically after the whole steroid scandal with Vince, the WWE chilled out on only pushing the juice heads to the top spots, and ever since then we have had a mixture of larger and smaller guys in the main event scene. After Cena is gone the next top guy in the company could really go either way, it went both ways before Cena and it could go both ways after him.

 

[Da Solo]

If by dying breed you mean star with any mainstream appeal: no. Punk, Otunga, Jericho, the Bellas and Miz already have some, stars like Kofi Kingston, Titus O'Neill, Ziggler, Bryan and Santino could get some if WWE really tried, and Vince will never let that happen.

If by dying breed you mean big guy with mainstream appeal, then still no. There will always be a big guy for WWE to count on, and sure enough, one of them will get some mainstream attention. Ryback was actually getting there before they killed him for Punk and the Shield, but that's another story.

 

[No Count Pup]

John Cena is the last full-time "box office" the WWE has. He belongs in the mold of the Austins, Hogans, Macho Mans, Rocks, Undertakers, Lesnars, Batistas, and Ultimate Warriors of wrestling lore. Cena is that over and that good. Cena would have been a megastar in any era, as would the aforementioned legends above. The problem, however, is that no one in WWE's current crop of talent is "box office" in the same way that Cena and his predecessors were.

Today's WWE stars are arguably the most athletic talent pool of any ever shown in mainstream wrestling history. But they are not larger than life. From time to time when I watch wrestling I try to look at who could be THE ambassador and face of WWE for the next 5 to 10 years in a doomsday scenario where Cena would have to retire post haste. A few come to mind, but none of Cena's stature (at least not yet of course). They are:

Fandango/Johnny Curtis- He has the look and the charisma to be a great draw. A face turn and a Wrestlemania title victory could put Curtis on the fast track to prominence. If a guy like Fandango can get over, Curtis can help put any gimmick/storyline over. In the long term, it would behoove WWE to consider a name change back to Johnny Curtis and let "Fandango" be an alter ego in the same way the "Doctor of Thuganomics" is an alter ego of Cena.

Dolph Ziggler- Amazing talent. He would not get over in the same style and money making appeal as Cena and Lesnar. Ziggler is closer in form and style to Shawn Michaels and Ric Flair. Elite wrestlers and iconic personalities, but not insane money making machines. What might help Ziggler become a little more like the other top draw faces of the company is if he shed a bit of the "Showoff" stuff and became more dominant. I am aware that his ability to sell is part of what makes him so talented, but sometimes a top draw should moderate his bump selling to look stronger in the eyes of the fans. In other words, he should try harder to put himself over than his opponents.

Damian Sandow- A potential, true main eventer. He's got a size that is large enough to make him a believable threat to any opponent. His mic skills are criminally underrated. And he is building a ground swell of support with the fans. His odds of becoming a megastar are about as good as Macho King's were. He would benefit from attire that is more distinctive during his entrances. Other than that, he could be a top level face in WWE, but once again the major caveat is WWE has to believe in him first. With the WWE machine behind Sandow, the sky is the limit.

Ryback- He's broke, but not beyond repair. He may not be capable of carrying a company, but he could become larger than life and function as a charismatic muscle head in a way similar to Batista, Ultimate Warrior, and Goldberg. Nothing cures a problem with the audience like a long winning streak, title reigns, and a little bit of luck. He needs to speak less, destroy more, and become more stiff in his matches. In fact, I know it isn't popular to the more sophistacted of wrestling observers, but he would benefit from becoming a no sell monster. I know many internet fans feel that Ryback wasn't over as a face. I think they are underrating his appeal as a face, and there is much that has been unexplored about the Ryback character.

The only problem (mostly in WWE's eyes) with all of those wrestlers are that they are all already over 31 years old, and Ziggler will be 33 this week. Their reigns at the top would not be for as long as Cena's. But that should not discourage WWE from giving those guys a chance. Hulk Hogan and Steve Austin were both over 30 when they won their first world titles. Austin was 34! We seem to have gotten used to the idea from Cena and even Undertaker that wrestlers need a decade of dominance to occupy the top dog slot. But history has also taught us that it is okay in wrestling for a guy to only get 5 to 7 years. It worked for Hogan during his famous 80s run. It worked for Austin, Ultimate Warrior, and Batista as well. The same goes for Macho Man. So yes, the other talents over 30 could do it and be huge draws for five to seven year runs.

If WWE is looking though for a few future larger than lifers in their 20s, they have two (maybe three) that they should protect and build up very carefully:

The Shield: When I look at Reigns and Rollins, I see two potential "first ballot", headlining Hall of Famers and Wrestlemania final match main eventers. They have everything a larger than life star should have, from skills to presence to the look. Like I said about Sandow, the sky is the limit for Reigns and Rollins. The irony of the group is that although Dean Ambrose is the apparent leader, I would rank him third in depth compared to his other Shield contemporaries. He seems like he could be a DX-HBK/Piper sort of wrestler who attracts controversy and puts a unique stamp on wrestling history. But I don't yet see him as a true prospective, Cena-like Wrestlemania headliner like I do Reigns and Rolllins. I must admit that with Ambrose, I could be off the mark. He's a wildcard.

So at the moment, none of those wrestlers are Cena or Cena in training. They can't draw or become ambassadors like Cena unless they are protected and portrayed to the audience very carefully. If they aren't cultivated the right way, Cena will in all likelihood be the last of a dying breed for a long time to come.

 

[Headman]

No, he's not the last of a dying breed. He's a diamond in the rough. It may be a while before the next prototypical guy catches fire, but there will be another. And yes the next mega star will be a prototypical guy, because the prototype (Not a Cena pun) is successful. The formula works. These undersized guys will entertain the die hards but the big guy with the muscles and the charisma will pack the arenas. It can't be just any big guy, but eventually we're going to be calling some new guy "The new Cena". So dying breed, no. More like rare breed.

 

[newwaveknight]

I don't think he is the last of a dying breed because wrestling has ALWAYS been a cyclical business. The Attitude era was a rebellion against the Hulkamania era, where big babyfaces with even bigger charisma were the tickets, and PG era was a rebellion against the Attitude era, where guys who could pull off juvenile antics, curse, and drink beer were more popular than larger-than-life babyfaces. Right now, we're seeing a rebellion against the PG era AND the Attitude era start to formulate; an era of solid workers. Then 10-12 years after that gets established, something will rebel against that and we'll find that larger-than-life babyface again.

 

[NegativeFeedback]

John Cena is not the last of a dying breed. He's the FIRST.

You were talking about all these big muscleheads who were WWE's stereotypical main eventers?? Well, at least most of them could wrestle. Austin, Rock, Triple H, Undertaker and most of the others could put on some great matches. Hogan and Warrior weren't very good wrestlers, but they were entertaining as hell.

Cena is the first of his breed. The one who only wrestles moderately well, and whatever modicum of talent he has is undone by his severely unentertaining character and promos.
This breed will continue. It is only a matter of time before Mason Ryan, Ezekiel Jackson, Big E. Langston and Ryback are all main eventing alongside Cena. You better believe it, because it's going to happen.

 

[DetectiveZelix]

I wouldn't place Cena with the rest of those names. But I can see why you did. Him being the solid main eventer of the last 7 years above most others but you'd have to think about how or why rather. He's been the main guy pushed and the center of the WWE since then. If others had the attention and push as he did perhaps they'd be included as well and the main event would be more solid. I think the breed you're talking ended back with Lesnar and Goldberg. When they were gone I think they were the last of the big talented charismatic athletes though they were both subpar on the mic. Cena isn't bad on the mic just boring and most of his matches are boring to me. So that puts Cena on a lower level. Not only that, but the generation Cena represents is not really for adults so its hard for adults to genuinely be interested. At least in the Hogan era and Attitude era most of the material were for all ages or at least more relative to real people

 

[Honkey_Kong]

John Cena is not the last of a dying breed. He's the FIRST.

You were talking about all these big muscleheads who were WWE's stereotypical main eventers?? Well, at least most of them could wrestle. Austin, Rock, Triple H, Undertaker and most of the others could put on some great matches. Hogan and Warrior weren't very good wrestlers, but they were entertaining as hell.

Cena is the first of his breed. The one who only wrestles moderately well, and whatever modicum of talent he has is undone by his severely unentertaining character and promos.
This breed will continue. It is only a matter of time before Mason Ryan, Ezekiel Jackson, Big E. Langston and Ryback are all main eventing alongside Cena. You better believe it, because it's going to happen.

Believe it or not, Hogan was a halfways decent mat-wrestler. You never got to see that in WWF, because Vince didn't think wrestling would sell to the mainstream. And to some degree, he's right.

So the main thing that fits the "mold" is going to be a guy who is big and gets over. Wrestling ability is an extra since the mold doesn't require the top wrestler to be good in the ring.

And Cena isn't a very good comparison to the likes of Goldberg, Hogan and Warrior. He's no-where near as big as they were in their primes.

 

[GameOver]

There will always be one diamond in the rough in either TNA, ROH or WWE. That isn't the issue, Daniel Bryan atm is far more over to the fans then Cena is but is he PR material? no. CM Punk same deal, so is there gonna be another person that can attract the broad appeal that the mega superstars of the past did like Rock, Austin, Hogan and Cena had and do. atm i don't see anyone to fill that role, there are talented guys/gals in the ring but noone that can appeal inside and outside of the business to the masses.

But thats not so much the issue as i see more how to build a whole company around just 1 person when you have 1000's of hours of content to produce. That's something that has never seemed to veer too much other then the New Generation and the Attitude Era where they had numerous faces of the company and Openers through to Main Eventers got some love from creative, i don't see why that can't still be the case instead of just booking the Main Event and the rest is just filler booked on the fly.

I could use a sports analogy here, in the past televised sports had many characters that were larger then life and made watching the games/matches or whatever fun and they didn't take themselves seriously then along came the Money Money Money era and mass sponsorships with rediculous paychecks and now the athletes are controlled by big brother and so serious that it's boring to watch despite the guys and gals bein just as talented if not more so and certainly alot fitter but the viewship has plumeted in so many things that use to be ratings booms cause there's nothing to engage in

 

[rge2010]

Ryback was really over as a face, but he was poorly booked and his hot run ended with all those PPV losses. I blame WWE for his fall.

As for the next Cena, Ryback would never be that person, he doesn't have the charisma. There isn't one person on the active roster right now that can be 'that man'. Punk and Bryan are good, infact they are great but they dont have that 'it factor'.

Hogan, Austin, Rock, Cena - those are the big four that have carried the company and have exploded to another level from the rest. The nearest to Cena we have seen since the Attitude Era ended in terms of 'superstar' is Brock Lesnar and Dave Batista.

 

[Mustang Sally]

Guys like Hulk Hogan, Ultimate Warrior, Goldberg, The Rock, Batista....

It's interesting that while many have complained "Cena can't wrestle" the group listed above doesn't have anyone with classic technical wrestling ability either, does it? Obviously, the ability to entertain goes deeper than that. Some of those guys brought it in the ring, even without classic wrestling techniques.....others got it done on the mic......and guys like John Cena, Hogan and the Rock did both.

I don't think Cena was disappointing in his early days as a rapper on Smackdown. I believe WWE knew they had someone special right from the beginning; I think they knew it in Ohio Valley Wrestling and figured they had only to season the guy and let him ascend to the top in his own time.

Before Cena, we were saying the same thing after Stone Cold and Rock were scaling down their careers: are those guys the last of a dying breed? It didn't take long for Cena to answer that question, but there was a gap, wasn't there?

The next guy is out there. No, it isn't Ryback or Daniel Bryan.....it isn't even Punk. The guy is probably under our noses right now; we just don't see him yet. No one could have known what Cena would become....no one except WWE.

He's out there.

 

[boywithbluehanger]

I think Sheamus is of the same breed. However, it entirely relies upon the writing team putting him back in the marquee matches as a heel. That was where he thrived. He has the intimidating musclehead look and the ability on the mic as a heel character. If they weren't so hellbent on Cena being the only top dog in the company, Sheamus would yet again be the perfect foil to him. I'd have loved to see Ryback return as a "FEED ME MORE" face after a decent hiatus to feud heel Sheamus for the WWE championship. Then you'd essentially have 3 powerhouse wrestlers very reminiscent of the brief time we had Hogan, Warrior, and Macho Man or Stone Cold, The Rock, and HHH.

 

[Trance Metaphor]

I liked John Cena since day one. It's crazy looking back at it that I've actually followed his career from his rookie days teaming up with Billy Kidman to his first heel turn to his rapper gimmick that dissed opponents to his intro of the F-U finisher to his feud with Brock Lesnar to his three US Championships. He's come a long way. But, seeing how I did follow him since then, the evolution of John Cena in his early days weren't as surprising to me as it was for others who didn't care about him. He was already getting big victories over established veterans like Chris Jericho and Booker T and Undertaker, so there was definitely something special about him coming up. Now, I know that his gimmick has grown extremely stale in recent years, but I really found the rapper gimmick entertaining for the attitude he brought. I can't see that with other guys right now. It might take ten years before someone finally shows that top babyface charisma/formula and becomes the next big star of the company. It's just really hard to tell at this point since it's taking longer than it did for John Cena. I'd laugh if someone like Darren Young suddenly became that star one day. Not only for the likeness in facial appearance, but for the mass unpredictability. But yeah, I don't think Cena is the last of a dying breed. Maybe if you're talking about a guy that has defeated some of the biggest names in WWE history, then yeah. But as far as build and look and charisma? Nah.

 

[MCMG]

There has always been a mix of size and charisma in wrestling. Ric Flair, HBK, Bret Hart are were not big and I don't think that comparatively Austin and The Rock were either. Y2J, Mick Foley, Kurt Angle, Benoit, Eddie. These guys were hardly "big" but were successful. Indeed, during that era, I can't really think of that many wrestlers who were massive.

A mix has always been apparent but there has been a notable change since roughly the early 90's. This could be because wrestlers that are too big, are easy to the claim they are on drugs which isn't a good thing.

If this is just a coincidence or something actively sought after than it could well be a good thing. I think marketing guys like Ziggler, Orton, Rhodes etc is easier than someone like Batista or HHH who fit the perception that wrestlers are steroid abusing freaks.

 

[mikekinkade]

I think the WWE will let physique slip even more so then in the past as long as a potential star has ability and charisma. The reason for this is physique is proving not to be as big of a draw as it was in the past. I believe MMA plays a huge part into shattering the myth that body-builder type guys are the toughest people.

If wrestling is still about suspending disbelief, and a lot of wrestling fans are MMA fans, then people are starting to believe that ability is what matters the most. None of the the current UFC champions are body-builder types. Why should I believe that someone built like Ryback is tougher then a lean athletic person like a Jack Swagger when I have seen Cain Velasquez destroy much bigger opponents in the UFC?

As far as John Cena is concerned, his charisma is so strong that physique is simply a bonus for him, much like Ric Flair.

 

[cgallows]

Last of a dying breed? Maybe? Have you read Rick Bassman's blog about training Cena?

The Beginning of Ultimate University, “The #1 Pro Wrestling School in the World” Read about the school where John Cena, Frankie Kazarian, Horshu, & other famous wresters were trained!

http://rickbassman.com/the-beginning-of-ultimate-university-the-1-pro-wrestling-school-in-the-world/