Where does John Cena rank among all-time greats?

[James Greiga]

I voted top 5. For me the WWE only list is (1) Hogan, (2) Sammartino, (3) Rock, (4) Austin and (5) Cena. If the list included all wrestling companies, I would put Cena as 6 because Flair would be 3. Hogan and Sammartino are untouchable as 1 and 2. I could see myself putting Cena as 3 by the time his career is over. This is all just my opinion.

Randy Savage and Andre the Giant definitely should be ahead of Cena. In fact Andre should be 2nd because in terms of draw power and universal fame he was actually bigger than Hogan. Hogan just drew for WCW and WWE. Andre drew for pro wrestling in general for over 15 years. It's arguable as to who was the biggest attraction in history between Hogan and Andre

 

[James Greiga]

Had to get in on this one, this is a great question. I have followed WWE wrestling since it used to come on at 12 midnight on Saturday nights on Channel 9 in NY. I just missed Sammartino....Superstar Graham. Came in as a kid watching Bob Backlund then Hogan...the rest is History!

I'm not going to include any of the NWA/WCW stars in this discussion as they were not with the exception of Flair the same characters in WWE/WWF.

So here is my top WWE superstars of all time!

1. Hulk Hogan-simple, Hogan put wrestling on the mainstream map. Movies, TV shows, but most importantly made wrestling a viable PPV option. He was the builder of modern day wrestling.

2. Steve Austin-Stone Cold made wrestling much see TV. He made this a male soap opera. The boss vs the employee. This made wrestling a HOT cable tv product. It was must see TV. One of the greatest characters of all time.

3. The Rock- He made wrestling main stream. A muscle bound guy who can act. Sing. Conduct great interviews, hell even host Saturday Night live. The most recognizable wrestler of all time.

4. Bruno Sammartino- he was before my time, but during his ERA it was all about the house shows. Sammartino's ability to draw people live made wrestling an entertainment event for the family. Like the circus, Sammartino was able to sell out famous arena's and kept wrestling relevant.

5. John Cena- This guy has given every ounce of himself back to the business. Helping the young stars come up. Making kids wishes come true. The premiere pitchman of his generation. Unlike Austin Cena hasn't had a rival like Rock. Hogan had Savage..even Andre. You don't have to like him, but Cena has earned his spot through hard work and dedication as one of the top 5 WWE performers of all time.

6. HHH- Yes him marrying the Bosses daughter loses some of his shine. But this guy was good. Great on the mic. Masterful in the ring. He came from nothing as Terra-rising to make himself one of the greats of all time. Too bad he married a Mcmahon because he will never crack the top 5.

7. Randy Savage-He had it all man. He could wrestle. Had crazy mic skills. A true superstar...this guy should have long ago been in the HOF.

8. Shawn Michaels-Ovverated in my eyes. Michaels couldn't draw or sell. Nor could he stay in the ring for long periods of time so that's why I have him low on the list. But for one match...this guy was money.

9. Bret Hart- Austin/Rock, Hogan/Savage are synomous. So is Michaels/Hart. Bret was the better wrestler. Michaels the better showman. Put em together and Michaels who was money on the mic is better than Bret by that much. They will be forever linked.

10. The Undertaker-Greatest WWE gimmick of all time. A zombie guy that lasts for like 20 plus years and to this day the fans go ga ga for him. Didn't have as many titles as the rest but he was one of the best ever.

Hogan did not put wrestling in the mainstream. Andre put wrestling in the mainstream. Hogan didn't even blow up until he starred in Rocky. Guess what fighter he played in the Rocky movie? The fight for that movie was from the real life fight between Chuck Wepner (the real life Rocky) and Andre the Giant. Andre made pro wrestling appealing to more than just fat rednecks. Andre was starring in movies before Hogan was even popular.

Plus you kinda contradicted yourself by saying HBK wasn't a draw and couldn't sell then you say he was money

 

[Bernkastel]

Misawa was a huge draw the problem was that his drawing was with the other big draws. But he was the biggest

His biggest problem was, like I said, the population. And NJPW and AJPW worked different regions. From the sources I've gathered it seems like they were both equal in most numbers, but I give Misawa the edge as a draw over Hashimoto because AJPW expanded while NJPW did not. NJPW was already bigger than AJPW by the start of the 90's thanks to Inoki being a bigger star and more audacious businessman than Baba.

Well, it's a major influence with the indies including ROH, so I'd say it had some effect on the world scene.

ROH is shit though. And when I was watching it years ago seemed they took more from NJPW. AJPW still booked feuds, had story lines, had angles and promos. NJPW really didn't. They were like way old school in that regard.

Whatever ROH took they obviously utilized it wrong.

I think that Misawa's death had more to do with that than anything. Difference in opinion and all. But that said I see your points and they are very logical. I think Misawa is a bigger name in Japan than Gange is here. Misawa was the number one guy in probably the most talented era(arguable but it had the best ME sense imo) of all time.

I'd disagree with that. But it's hard to say with 100 accuracy. What I do know is that the AWA ran longer than NOAH did. So that's a point for Gagne. He's also more comparable to Inoki as a star than he is Cena... or Misawa in this case. That's another point.

Agree but Race is no Misawa imo. Maybe i'm overstating Misawa, he's my second favorite wrestler of all time. He drew like a monster in a small country and kept himself on top for 24 years in two companies that were huge when he was on top

Maybe. But then again people were saying I was crazy for arguing that Misawa was a bigger star than Taker. As if Undy was the biggest star in the WWE not named Hogan.

Agreed, Misawa being in a small population does hurt, but his legacy to me is as big as any.

It really does. People will look at the numbers and be like "he drew 2,500 people to this one show. That's fucking terrible."

Not really. Considering that town maybe had less than 100,000 people living there. RAW during the AE would be damn lucky to pull 20,000 out of a city with a million+. So adjusted they don't look that bad. Especially considering the big numbers that both NJPW and AJPW were putting up for PPV's.

I'm just happy I can have a debate with someone that actually doesn't have that mindset lol. I hardly ever talk about Misawa on here because it might be a waste of time. That said, once I saw Santo and Rikidozan on your list I rush to it lol.

Santo defeated Rock and Sting in the WZT last year. Good times. Don't care if he drew Mexico City. Punk beat HBK because he drew Chicago. It was only fair.

So yeah, John Cena deserves to be in the top 5 if you consider drawing ability. And he clearly has wrestling and promo skills. But I can think of a couple dozen people who I think are more talented than him in various categories who have been in the WWF/WWE over the years. And they aren't just mid-card, nostalgia picks either I genuinely think they're better. I don't think he can hold a candle to guys who are touted less than Rock/Austin/Hogan/Flair/Hart for their contributions to pro-wrestling. Steamboat, Mr. Perfect, Chris Jericho or Kurt Angle, for example. Outsell them, sure, a bigger star, yeah, but certainly not more talented.

For anybody approaching this from the viewpoint of 'Cena has made a lot of money' try approaching it from the viewpoint of 'Given the choice, would I rather watch Cena than X'.

Pro wrestling as a whole only has one type of fan that they cater to. True, there are different styles, but they cater to fans across different countries. In the end all pro wrestling companies want to make money by selling that product. Its a competition. It's not like music/movies etc that have multiple different types of fans that are catered to. Justin Beiber is not competing for the people that listen to Amon Amarth. But TNA, WWE, ROH, CHIKARA etc do compete for the same fan pool.

And in the end we can use the same criteria to grade them all. Even the wrestlers from a billion years ago.

Using the logic from your last paragraph... if more fans wanted to the see Wrestler X than Cena, then X would be pushed higher up the card. If he isn't then that means that more fans would rather see Cena.

 

[THE Great GAMMA]

If it is just about drawing then Cena has to be in the top 5. He would be my number 4 actually.
Austin- No one has drawn more in the business than Austin. Fact.
Hogan - The reason the WWF became as big as it did in my opinion.
Rock - Brought the business to the Mainstream as mentioned before
Cena - the Current face and Merch Powerhouse.
HHH - when austin was hurt and rock was doing movie HHH kept the WWF alive by becoming the Ric Flair of our generation. The man people would pay money to see get beat.

However in terms of in ring prowess. IE putting on great matches (match of the year, 5* matches) then it is a different story.

Ric Flair- The Man. There's a saying "Flair could wrestle a broomstick for 20 minutes and make it look like gold." Probably part of the greatest feud ever with Steamboat in the 80s. Has the most 5* matches out of anybody and 4 of them coming in consecutive big shows. The best to ever lace a pair of boots

Shawn Michaels (sorry to disagree with you Kwig) the has been no one who out performed Shawn Michaels in a big match (when he was on the card). Most match of the year awards. Arguably the best in ring performer ever.

Randy Savage: Arguably has had the greatest match in WWF history. Could make anyone look good. Carried Warrior and Hogan to decent matches.

Bret Hart. Many would argue that he let outside factors influence his work in the ring with certain guys. But one of the best workers ever and you had a gaurenteed 3* match if his opponent wasn't physically or mentally challenged.

Steve Austin- one of the most entertaining in and out of the ring ever. One of the biggest stars in the business.

Cena would be in the top 20 somewhere probably like 15th or something.

 

[Kris Benwa]

Had to get in on this one, this is a great question. I have followed WWE wrestling since it used to come on at 12 midnight on Saturday nights on Channel 9 in NY. I just missed Sammartino....Superstar Graham. Came in as a kid watching Bob Backlund then Hogan...the rest is History!

I'm not going to include any of the NWA/WCW stars in this discussion as they were not with the exception of Flair the same characters in WWE/WWF.

So here is my top WWE superstars of all time!

1. Hulk Hogan-simple, Hogan put wrestling on the mainstream map. Movies, TV shows, but most importantly made wrestling a viable PPV option. He was the builder of modern day wrestling.

2. Steve Austin-Stone Cold made wrestling much see TV. He made this a male soap opera. The boss vs the employee. This made wrestling a HOT cable tv product. It was must see TV. One of the greatest characters of all time.

3. The Rock- He made wrestling main stream. A muscle bound guy who can act. Sing. Conduct great interviews, hell even host Saturday Night live. The most recognizable wrestler of all time.

4. Bruno Sammartino- he was before my time, but during his ERA it was all about the house shows. Sammartino's ability to draw people live made wrestling an entertainment event for the family. Like the circus, Sammartino was able to sell out famous arena's and kept wrestling relevant.

5. John Cena- This guy has given every ounce of himself back to the business. Helping the young stars come up. Making kids wishes come true. The premiere pitchman of his generation. Unlike Austin Cena hasn't had a rival like Rock. Hogan had Savage..even Andre. You don't have to like him, but Cena has earned his spot through hard work and dedication as one of the top 5 WWE performers of all time.

6. HHH- Yes him marrying the Bosses daughter loses some of his shine. But this guy was good. Great on the mic. Masterful in the ring. He came from nothing as Terra-rising to make himself one of the greats of all time. Too bad he married a Mcmahon because he will never crack the top 5.

7. Randy Savage-He had it all man. He could wrestle. Had crazy mic skills. A true superstar...this guy should have long ago been in the HOF.

8. Shawn Michaels-Ovverated in my eyes. Michaels couldn't draw or sell. Nor could he stay in the ring for long periods of time so that's why I have him low on the list. But for one match...this guy was money.

9. Bret Hart- Austin/Rock, Hogan/Savage are synomous. So is Michaels/Hart. Bret was the better wrestler. Michaels the better showman. Put em together and Michaels who was money on the mic is better than Bret by that much. They will be forever linked.

10. The Undertaker-Greatest WWE gimmick of all time. A zombie guy that lasts for like 20 plus years and to this day the fans go ga ga for him. Didn't have as many titles as the rest but he was one of the best ever.

My list would have these people in it also. Except I'd have Flair so that'd maybe eliminate Savage but for the most part this is my list only things I'd change is because I personally never got to see Sammartino I'm a little uncomfortable having him up so high so he'd be number 10 I guess but it's like with Rap for me. I wasn't able to listen to some of the old guys Rakim, KRS-1, etc so I don't really have them in my top 10 all time list though I respect their contributions to the game. I feel that same way about Sammartino. My list would be;

Hulk Hogan
Ric Flair
Stone Cold
The Rock
HBK
Cena
Bret Hart
Triple H
Undertaker
Sammartino

You've already listed the reasons why they each deserve a spot in the top 10 so I won't do that but the way I've reorganized them is just personal preference. I decided to take off Randy Savage though even though he'd be really high up personally I feel like if one of them had to go for Flair to go on it had to be him. The reason why I have Sammartino so low I reiterate is just because I wasn't around during that era lol SN: If I were to put Andre the Giant on there he would take Brett Hart's place. Because the only area where Bret Hart REALLY excelled was in ring while the other people excelled in just about every area that you can.

 

[Rasslin_fan]

I'd say he falls in around #10 for me. It's sad that nowadays when discussing the greatest PRO WRESTLERS of all TIME, he gets such a huge leap simply because he sells t-shirts to little kids lol

 

[Mark0820]

Hogan did not put wrestling in the mainstream. Andre put wrestling in the mainstream. Hogan didn't even blow up until he starred in Rocky. Guess what fighter he played in the Rocky movie? The fight for that movie was from the real life fight between Chuck Wepner (the real life Rocky) and Andre the Giant. Andre made pro wrestling appealing to more than just fat rednecks. Andre was starring in movies before Hogan was even popular.

Hogan was HUGE in NJPW. He also had a pretty successful run in the NWA. He had a Dusty finish where he actually won the NWA world title and then got disqualified for throwing his opponent over the top rope. That happened in 1979, three years before Rocky 3 was released. He did blow up after Rocky 3, but let's not say Hogan wasn't getting big before that because he was. Andre was highly important to Hogan's success, I will grant that.

Plus you kinda contradicted yourself by saying HBK wasn't a draw and couldn't sell then you say he was money

What he meant by the money comment was HBK never let the fans down in a big match situation. He always went out and tore the house down. I disagree with that statement, but he didn't mean money as in a draw. He meant money as in delivering on a great performance.

 

[Eyebrows]

Using the logic from your last paragraph... if more fans wanted to the see Wrestler X than Cena, then X would be pushed higher up the card. If he isn't then that means that more fans would rather see Cena.

Sorry, I meant would rather watch the greats in their prime, not guys on the current roster. As far as the current roster goes there are only a couple of guys that are on Cena's level.

 

[Bernkastel]

Sorry, I meant would rather watch the greats in their prime, not guys on the current roster. As far as the current roster goes there are only a couple of guys that are on Cena's level.

There hasn't been anyone on Cena's level since he entered his prime. The closest one would probably be Orton. And even that's a stretch. Punk and Batista would be next. But it's still pretty clear that the gap between them and Cena is big. And that's not Cena's fault. The popularity of the industry as a whole right now is through the roof. Probably the biggest it's been since the Golden Era. But the talent pool as a whole for many years was not very good. In recent years there's been a nice spike of talent; which is good.

 

[whoopin' ass]

In terms of the $, he is one of the tops - his merchandise sells, he has headlined a ton of ppvs. You can not deny that he is popular. However in the long-run, he is going to drop which is why I didn't put him in the top 50. You look at his storylines and the number of times wwe did something to protect him even though it totally messed up the story - Nexus is a great example of that. You look at the number of times the title was pretty much handed to him - his last World Championship win is a great example of that where he is not even in the title picture then is all of a sudden #1 contender. As much as people complain about how wwe protected Hogan, wwe protects Cena even more. If things stay as they are, Cena will be looked at in the top 5 but if it goes through another rebirth and people start looking back a little more objectively, Cena's legacy will tarnish and he will fall waaaayyyy down.

 

[Bythedockofthebay]

His biggest problem was, like I said, the population. And NJPW and AJPW worked different regions. From the sources I've gathered it seems like they were both equal in most numbers, but I give Misawa the edge as a draw over Hashimoto because AJPW expanded while NJPW did not. NJPW was already bigger than AJPW by the start of the 90's thanks to Inoki being a bigger star and more audacious businessman than Baba.

Yeah even with that population they managed to put up 40,000 and 50,000 people and that's just amazing numbers.

I'd disagree with that. But it's hard to say with 100 accuracy. What I do know is that the AWA ran longer than NOAH did. So that's a point for Gagne. He's also more comparable to Inoki as a star than he is Cena... or Misawa in this case. That's another point.

Agreed that it's hard to compare, so I do see your point. I'm not trying to shit on Gagne by any means. He's still a top guy imo.

Maybe. But then again people were saying I was crazy for arguing that Misawa was a bigger star than Taker. As if Undy was the biggest star in the WWE not named Hogan.

LMFAO wait I'm still laughing a bit. Wow, that's harsh, to say Undy is bigger than Misawa to me is a bit outlandish but saying he's second to Hogan is a joke.

It really does. People will look at the numbers and be like "he drew 2,500 people to this one show. That's fucking terrible."

Not really. Considering that town maybe had less than 100,000 people living there. RAW during the AE would be damn lucky to pull 20,000 out of a city with a million+. So adjusted they don't look that bad. Especially considering the big numbers that both NJPW and AJPW were putting up for PPV's.

You are amazingly accurate and I totally agree with this, and have had arguments about it many times.

Santo defeated Rock and Sting in the WZT last year. Good times. Don't care if he drew Mexico City. Punk beat HBK because he drew Chicago. It was only fair.

That's a beautiful thing.

 

[Mr_Trophies]

This is an extremely subjective subject (which is what makes it fun to talk about) that is really open to interpretation. How are we defining who is considered an "all-time great"? I see two obvious ways that we could look at this (I am sure there are more than 2 though): 1. Who was the biggest "draw"...sold the most merch, was the biggest "star", helped build WWE into the mega-power that it is today in the entertainment business. In other words, who has brought in the most money? This is not AS subjective as option 2 as we all have a pretty good idea of who the biggest STARS in the business are and have been.....OPTION 2. Who are the all-time greatest wrestlers? in-ring, promos, etc. etc. etc. Extremely subjective and based on personal taste, but another way you can interpret this discussino....so, I answered both....tough calls, but you will notice some differences in my lists. Keep in mind that I am leaving guys that I am not very knowledgable about....pretty much anyone who didn't wrestle 1993 and beyond, which means guys like Bruno Sammartino, that should be on EVERYONE's list I kept off mine, not out of disrespect, but b/c I haven't witnessed his contributions first hand. Even though I didn't watch Hulk Hogan in the 80's, I have gone back and watched alot of his older stuff so I am knowledgable about his contributions to the business. That is the distinction.

List 1. Biggest STARS in the history of pro-wrestling (biggest "draws", biggest money-makers, etc.)

1. Hulk Hogan
2. Steve Austin
3. John Cena
4. The Rock
5. The top 4 were easy....it's a toss up for me here between Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, and the Undertaker.....Michaels and Hart flip flopped as the top guy during the mid 90's, and while Taker has never been THE top guy, his WM streak and his character alone have made him one of the biggest draws in history over a very long period of time...so any one of these 3 works for me in the top 5.

List 2. Greatest wrestlers of all-time (in-ring, promos, overall charisma and showmanship...the TOTAL package as a wrestler). I found this list MUCH harder to make as there are just so many factors when trying to analyze this....but here is a probably pitiful attempt.

1. Shawn Michaels
2. Ric Flair
3. Undertaker
4. Randy Savage
5. Bret Hart

And for fun....my personal top 5 FAVORITE wrestlers of ALLTIME

1. Steve Austin
2. Shawn Michaels
3. Bret Hart
4. Mick Foley
5. Chris Jericho

 

[rjs2490]

Take this from someone who hates Cena. The guy is a top 5 "superstar" not wrestler but SUPERSTAR of all time.

The guy may be the guy at an Era that isnt great but he is still the guy and like it or not this dude is popular in many other aspects outside of wrestling. As far as being a great example and face of a company there has never been anyone better. He is for sure in my top 5 superstars of all time

1. Stone Cold Steve Austin
2. Hulk Hogan
3. The Rock
4. The Undertaker
5. John Cena

Now my personal favorite of all time....
1. The Undertaker
2. CM Punk
3. Shawn Michaels
4. The Rock
5. Hulk Hogan

 

[Messiah]

50+ easily.. John Cena is one of the worst WWE superstars of all time. He's terrible. Everything about him. I've seen monkey's more talented than Cena. The only way Cena can be one of the greatest ever is if a rocket was shoved up his ass and he landed on the Moon... Until that happens, Cena can fuck off.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

I really think your theory is wrong but I can't prove it. I will give you credit, but WCW wins guys like the ROCK, Trips, and Mankind wouldn't have just disappeared, and WCW did try to move away from the older guys in WCW in the later years. Could you imagine if the WCW would've been pushing the Rock instead of billy kidman? Big difference there, or even Triple H instead of Billy Kidman, and with Russo running things Austin wouldn't have been a joke in WCW either imo, I don't know what would've happened but I think it's a stretch to say wrestling would be dead.

Well WWE wouldn't have won the Monday Night Wars if it wasn't for Austin, The Rock, and Triple H. I would think if WCW did beat RAW it was because these guys never happened. So WCW wouldn't have mega stars like Triple H, Rock, and Austin but mid card or upper mid card guys that haven't broken through yet.

And you know when in WCW, when you aren't an established main event star coming in its almost impossible to break through that company.

Besides WCW's problem was never it's star power it was management.

 

[Cinnamon]

Top 20.

It's hard to rate wrestlers. With other sports, it's simply a matter of "How effective were they in leading the team to victory?" Here, you have to take so many factors into account: drawing power, staying power, in-ring ability, mic skills, connection with audience, merchandise, ability to stay fresh, etc.

Cena's a much better "worker" than anyone gives him credit for, and he's had fantastic matches with a long list of guys. He has more mainstream notoriety (and drawing power) than any wrestler of the past 10 years. When necessary, he can cut a good promo.

However, he is severely hampered by WWE's refusal to let him grow and evolve as a character. He's stuck in white-meat babyface mode, delivering the same "SOME OF YA'LL LOVE ME, SOME YA'LL HATE ME" speeches for the last four years, cutting promos with riddled with corny PG jokes, and (worst of all) continually sold as "the underdog" who has to find a way to "defy the odds". You know, despite being a 13-time world champion, the undisputed face of the company for the past 9 yearsa, and having beaten every major superstar in the company (besides Undertaker). As Punk pointed out in 2011, he's no longer the underdog, he's the dynasty; he's the New York Yankees.

I was hopeful that this was evidence that WWE was going to begin putting Cena in more compelling stories, and dropping the "underdog" aspect of his persona. However, outside of his feud(s) with Punk and his summer program with Bryan, it's been more of the same.

So, top 20 for now; if WWE would let him grow as a character, he'd be even higher.

 

[James Greiga]

Hogan was HUGE in NJPW. He also had a pretty successful run in the NWA. He had a Dusty finish where he actually won the NWA world title and then got disqualified for throwing his opponent over the top rope. That happened in 1979, three years before Rocky 3 was released. He did blow up after Rocky 3, but let's not say Hogan wasn't getting big before that because he was. Andre was highly important to Hogan's success, I will grant that.

When I said Hogan didn't blow up until Rocky I meant he didn't become a media phenomenon. Wrestling didn't acquire casual fans who just watch every now and again other than rednecks until the first wrestlemania when Mr. T helped WWF by appearing on every fucking TV show in existence at that time with Hulk Hogan to promote it. The every day public wasn't even exposed to Hogan until then. Then after the Rocky movie, Hogan really became a media starlet and cultural icon.

 

[Bythedockofthebay]

Well WWE wouldn't have won the Monday Night Wars if it wasn't for Austin, The Rock, and Triple H. I would think if WCW did beat RAW it was because these guys never happened. So WCW wouldn't have mega stars like Triple H, Rock, and Austin but mid card or upper mid card guys that haven't broken through yet.

And you know when in WCW, when you aren't an established main event star coming in its almost impossible to break through that company.

Besides WCW's problem was never it's star power it was management.

What I'm saying is that if your belief is that WCW would've crumbled anyways, people like the Rock, Austin, and Triple H would've been out of work. Those guys would've been in WCW not to mention the fact that if WCW was crumbling they would've had no choice to push new talent (like they did) just a big difference between the guys who would've been cast aways from the WWE and the members of Three count and billy kidman.

 

[CrucifiedRaven]

There is NO way that Cena is in the top 5. I put him in the 5-10 bracket, because I feel that's fair, but I was shocked to see the 1-5 spot with the lead in the poll.

In no particular order, Hogan, Flair, Andre, Sammartino, Undertaker and Austin are all ahead of Cena from my point of view. That's six guys already. And there's still a lot of other guys in the mix as well. Cena is probably somewhere in the middle with The Rock, Shawn Michaels, Randy Savage, Bret Hart and Triple H.

 

[pratrullz098]

In the history of WWE, from 1980 onwards, five wrestlers stand out.
Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin, The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels and John Cena.

These five are on a different level than all others. All other wrestlers like Randy Savage, Piper, Rock, Triple H and Chris Jericho fall below the top 5.

 

[Dagger Dias]

I would argue that he is in the top 5. Hogan, Stone Cold, and The Rock are the obvious top 3. After that it gets tougher though. Cena, Undertaker, Shawn Michaels, and Bret Hart all come to mind for the second tier. While he may not have an undefeated streak like Taker, the submission skills of Hart, or the show stealing capability of Michaels, no one can argue against Cena's passion for the business or how well he can hype up a match to make it seem like a huge deal. He's accomplished just about anything he possibly can in the WWE, is close to beating Flair's world title record, and has been the face of the federation for almost a decade. By the time all is said and done with his career Cena can potentially be #4 of all time behind Hogan, Stone Cold, and The Rock.

 

[Elijah89]

I would put him at number two right now. Hogan is the only guy you can truly compare him too. And you know he is at least top four because WWE already told us on the 50 years DVD. They pretty much summed it up in the end by saying the four big names in chronological order. Bruno Sammartino, Hulk Hogan, Stone Cold Steve Austin, and John Cena.

Cena has been the man for a decade now. He has brought a new generation of kids into the arena. Even the teenagers who are turning on him now. From a business standpoint, he has had amazing sustainablility. He puts on great matches and brings the big match atmosphere regardless of who he is facing. And there's more.

Plus I feel that he will be the mascot of WWE once it is all said and done. Right now Hogan is still that image, that Mickey Mouse, Ronald Mcdonald, Michael Jordan, New York Yankees, Cyndi Lauper, etc.. All these guys were popular for their sports and TV networks alike. As Hogan's legacy fades due to time, Cena is going to be put there. It's the same thing that is going to happen with Lebron.

That is what is amazing about generations and cycles. Lebron, Cena, Mayweather, etc.. will all get the treatment that Jordan, Hogan, and Tyson got during the 90s, and they will deserve it. You watch.

And the scary thing is, Cena is not done yet. He will likely become the senior vet in the locker room, once Taker is gone. We haven't seen a heel run since 2003 when he was a rookie, so there is that again. Plus Flair's record is breathing it's last breath.

 

[Trance Metaphor]

John Cena beat The Undertaker, The Rock, Shawn Michaels, Triple H, Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle, Randy Orton, CM Punk, etc. He has an extensive list of highlights. He has the most WWE Championship reigns. He's one of the few that has won multiple Royal Rumbles. He's headlined major PPVs. He's really big-time and they've treated him that way for so long that it is a big deal to beat him. He has done a lot for the Make-a-Wish foundation. He has starred in movies. He has the grand charisma. I'm gonna have to rank him in the top 5 because he is the Hulk Hogan of today's era and the past decade. Love him or hate him, you can't deny the fact that he's had the most impact on WWE in the past 10 years. Hulk Hogan, Bruno Sammartino, Stone Cold Steve Austin, Shawn Michaels and John Cena are in my top 5 greatest WWE superstars. After that comes Randy Savage, The Rock, Bret Hart, Undertaker and Ultimate Warrior. I didn't add Ric Flair to the list because I think Ric Flair's legacy was more NWA/WCW.

 

[shooter_mcgavin]

In the history of WWE, from 1980 onwards, five wrestlers stand out.
Hulk Hogan, Steve Austin, The Undertaker, Shawn Michaels and John Cena.

These five are on a different level than all others. All other wrestlers like Randy Savage, Piper, Rock, Triple H and Chris Jericho fall below the top 5.

I say The Rock, Bret Hart, and Randy Savage out rank Cena at this point. The Rock carried the ball in the Monday Night Wars when Austin was out and managed to end up being more over than Austin by late 2000. Bret Hart made an impact in this sport due to him breaking the barriers of a guy his size and physical stature in being the top guy of the company. Savage might be more arguable but I still say he ranks above Cena due to his contributions during 1987 to 1989 and his relationship with Miss Elizabeth. Heck he closed SummerSlam 1991 and it wasn't even a match.

I have already made my reasons why I don't think Cena belongs on the Top 5. But considering guys Austin, Hogan, Sammartino, Andre the Giant, The Rock, Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, Triple H, Undertaker, Randy Savage, Mick Foley, and Bob Backlund. That's already 11 names right there, while some can be argued that Cena ranks above them. Is anyone going to question Austin, Sammartino, Andre, Rock, and Hogan being ranked lower than Cena?

I think the problem with striking Cena so high is that despite being the top guy for 9 years what moment in John Cena's career can be seen as memorable as any of the others in the list? Foley had that HIAC bump, Savage had that reunion with Elizabeth, The Rock and that "this is your life segment" with Foley and created an epic moment at WMX8 with Hogan, Hogan body slammed Andre, Austin's 1998 was pretty much a highlight reel and people still remember the imagrey of him bleeding at WM13, Bret Hart headlined SummerSlam as the Intercontinental Champion in England and won the first KOTR on PPV, Michaels had that Ladder Match at WMX and would have a string of MOTN and MOTY caliber bouts through most of his career, Retired Flair.

As long as Cena has been in the WWE what really stands out in his career? I mean even if you look at past PPV (especially WM) how many of those matches where Cena stole the show? It's not a very long list.

 

[BigBombB]

When you factor in long forgotten guys like Ed Lewis, Georg Hackenschmidt, Frank Gotch, and Lou Thesz, suddenly a list like this becomes a little less obvious. These guys made wrestling a viable form of entertainment and drew people out in droves, albeit under significantly different conditions. Wrestling has been on television for as long as television has existed and it was the ground work of these guys; guys who were legitimate legends among men around the world back before many of our modern conveniences used for global exposure; that made it clear that wrestling would be a huge draw.

But, in terms of WWE, it is still hard to place him above guys like Savage and Andre. Going back as far as WWWF makes it an even more difficult decision.

I said top 10 simply because being a top guy for this long is unheard of in this era and he shows no sign of slowing down. He will probably be top 5 by the time he retires but can anyone remember the last FEUD Cena was in that drew? With CM Punk maybe? And before that? Cena has been stuck in a bad holding pattern that is bound to hurt his overall legacy when people look back at his career. Hell, even Brock Lesnar can make a claim to being close to Cena's equal, albeit he draws a lot of his star power from UFC.