At Wrestlemania 28, after over a year of build-up, we witnessed what was repeatedly promoted by WWE as a “Once in a Lifetime” match between The Rock and John Cena. A “dream match” which fans had thought about for years, since Cena first started publicly taking personal shots at Dwayne Johnson in The Sun Newspaper in March 2008 for moving onto movies and retiring from wrestling (as if he didn’t have the right to retire!).
Yes, and it got WWE more purchases than any other wrestling event in history. The entire calendar year's worth of hyping the Cena VS Rock match got the job done. It was a legit dream match and just because you may not have wanted to see doesn't mean the 1,200,000+ others who ordered it did not.
These unjust, illogical and disrespectful remarks by Cena, which were NOT part of a WWE storyline, angered many fans, especially fans who watched WWE during Attitude Era and were entertained by The Rock for many years.
Where and when did this happen? I seem to recall a lot of fans AGREEING with Cena's remarks. Myself included, and this coming from someone who has been watching since Wrestlemania 3 who includes The Rock among his favorite wrestlers of all time. This is nothing but garbage from yet another Cena hater who has nothing better to do but complain. Seriously, Cena haters provide some of the worst arguments I have ever seen on here.
This anger increased weekly during the yearlong build-up to their “Once in a lifetime” match as Cena continued his (non-storyline) disrespectful and unprofessional behaviour towards Johnson (the person rather than The Rock character)
It's called promoting a match. Cena and The Rock were SUPPOSED to be showing animosity towards one another. They were building up a match between two living legends at the biggest show of the year, not a group hug segment with Dr Shelby. You thinking that this was legit disrespect is almost as crazy as you thinking that your little boycott is going to prevent even one tiny fraction of the fanbase from purchasing Wrestlemania 29. Face the facts, that show would sell better than any other PPV event this year even if Cena VS Rock II was the only match on the card.
by for example smiling when Rock was giving serious promos, exposing to the audience that Rock may have had notes on his arm, and frequently referring to him as “Dwayne” on WWE TV rather than his character name “The Rock”, which is like referring to Undertaker as “Mark” during a promo on WWE! Completely unprofessional!
Do you not understand how pro wrestling works? Two wrestlers do something called PROMOTING A MATCH before the match takes place. This sometimes consists of them making fun of one another on television. Cena trying to humilate The Rock was meant to build animosity WITHIN KAYFABE so that the storyline could progress.
But the most disrespectful thing Cena did was feeding the public (especially the young impressionable fans) the vile lie that Johnson’s absence from weekly Raws and SmackDowns was because he neither cared much for or loved wrestling or its fans, and that Cena being there proved he did – the truth being of course that Cena was there every week because it’s his full-time job! And Johnson’s job was now as a full-time movie actor and coming back to WWE was like doing 2 jobs at once.
Yep, I'm 100% convinced now that you don't understand what promoting a match is. Stop searching for idiotic reasons to dislike Cena when none of them are justified. He's the face of the WWE and will continue to be whether you like it or not. The Attitude Era ended years ago, time to move on! Cena DOES care. He's the face of this generation, just as Rock was during the Attitude Era. There was a time when The Rock didn't acknowledge his wrestling past and wouldn't respond to his WWE ring name, wanting to only be called Dwayne Johnson. That obviously stopped since he did come back, but the point is it still happened so don't put The Rock up on a pedestal. There were many fans who were upset by this, and they enjoyed each of these actions of Cena's that you are complaining about.
Something else Cena never mentioned is that Johnson WAS at Raws and Smackdowns and PPV’s and Houseshows, sweating and bleeding, week after week, month after month, year after year for almost 8 YEARS and achieving levels of popularity and success that NO Superstar has achieved since!
Cena has done the exact same thing. For TEN years. He's done it LONGER than The Rock did, and has been the undisputed top guy in WWE for half of the past decade. The Rock shared the spotlight at the top with Stone Cold. Cena deserves far more credit than you haters ever give him and for whatever reason simply refuse to. It disgusts me how disrespectful some of you haters can be.
If Cena can be so disrespectful to someone who’s done so much for so long for WWE like Dwayne Johnson, then in our opinion it just shows the type of dishonorable and jealous person he is! Frankly Cena did not deserve the privilege of being able to work a program and match with Rock.
You CAN'T be serious. Cena, who has done MORE in the federation than The Rock ever did, DIDN'T deserve to work an angle with him? Really, OnceMeansOnce, REALLY!? Let's take a look at their respective lists of accomplishments:
THE ROCK
10 time World Champion (2 WCW, 8 WWF)
2 time Intercontinental Champion
5 time Tag Team Champion (3 w/ Mankind, 1 w/ Taker, 1 w/ Jericho)
1 time Royal Rumble winner (2000)
4 time Slammy Winner (1 of which he shares with Cena)
JOHN CENA
12 time World Champion (10 WWE, 2 World Heavyweight)
3 time United States Champion
4 time Tag Team Champion (Miz, Otunga, Batista, Shawn Michaels)
Mr Money In the Bank (2012)
2 time Royal Rumble winner (2008, 2013)
7 time Slammy Winner
Cena has won 2 more world titles, 1 more midcard title, 3 more Slammy awards, 1 more Royal Rumble, and 1 Money In the Bank briefcase than The Rock. He's 1 time shy of having an equal number of tag team title reigns as well. John Cena has accomplished more in the WWE than The Rock whether you choose to accept it or not. To say that he did not deserve to work an angle with The Rock is ridiculous.
Tell me then, if not Cena, then who? Who on the roster a year ago could POSSIBLY have "deserved" the honor if not John Cena?
But after years of Cena’s disrespect towards Johnson (some of which we suspect was done to “lure” Johnson back into WWE just so Cena could beat Rock and elevate himself..and his ego) the “Once in a lifetime” match finally happened at Wrestlemania28, and Rock beat Cena cleanly. A result which can best be described as Justice! The Cena – Rock chapter had finally ended with a moment which will forever live on in the minds of fans as one of the greatest in WWE history. Unless…..
Justice? What you call "justice" I call the worst booking decision of the modern era. Cena needed that win. Having The Rock win accomplished absolutely nothing. The torch is supposed to be passed from an icon of an older generation to that of the current one. Had Cena won then the match could truly have been "once in a lifetime" and it could have ended on that note. WWE realized what a huge mistake they made and what better way to make a large amount of money than to do a rematch, but for a title this time around, with the proper result.
At RoyalRumble2013, Rock won WWE Championship and Cena won Rumble match. It’s obvious WWE are again planning on Cena V Rock main-event at Wrestlemania. And if it happens, the result is also obvious, with Cena certain to win.
You say that like it's a bad thing. Cena will win and he SHOULD win. Get over it. You're only complaining because it's John Cena.
Having the same main event at Wrestlemania for the second year is an unattractive idea!
There is absolutely no reason for any other match to close the show. Nothing that they could possibly come up with could generate any more interest than a Cena VS Rock rematch, let alone one for the WWE Championship. Two heroes of their respective generations facing each other AGAIN at the biggest show of the year for the most prestigious prize in the business. Seriously, what more could you possibly want?
And Cena beating Rock, for championship, at Wrestlemania is a sickening prospect! Not least because all the disrespect Cena has shown Johnson over the years (for which he has still yet to publicly apologise for!)
but also because Cena is not comparable as a top superstar to The Rock, if looking at what Rock achieved during his active years from late 90’s to early 2000’s. During Rock’s career, he became extremely popular with virtually entire audience, his popularity extended beyond wrestling and became a mainstream star, and he attracted people who weren’t wrestling fans to watch, with Raw getting record ratings in the 7’s.
That's not a good enough argument. Had Cena been around in the Attitude Era then I guarantee you there would be a different side to the argument. He would have done just fine at that time, he can be extremely edgy he just gets held back by the PG rating. Plus, the Monday Night Wars was a time that will never be replicated. The internet and No Compete Clauses have pretty much made it to where that can never happen again. Fans know a lot more about the business now and it's much more difficult to federation jump today than it was 10+ years ago. As for viewers, people are spoiled by the inventon of the DVR nowadays.
Cena on the other hand is disliked (to put it mildly) by more than half the audience (who wish he would just retire)
More than half? Come on now. Sure the haters are still vocal, but this isn't 2007 anymore. Attend any WWE show at any given day of the year, you'll see John Cena merchandise EVERYWHERE. The majority of fans LIKE John Cena. Get over it already! He's not going anywhere!
he’s not known in the mainstream much, and he’s not attracting non-wrestling viewers (apart from 8 year olds) to watch WWE. In fact he’s turning viewers away (especially former adult WWE fans)
Cena may not be as successful in mainstream as The Rock but he's had enough success to where he is recognized for what he does by many including non-fans. As for attracting non-wrestling viewers apart from 8 year olds? That's entirely untrue. During my college years I turned several (lost count, honestly) adult males in the 19-22 age range into wrestling fans. At one point or another each of them watched with me while hanging out and CENA was more often than not someone they thought was cool. Since I was known around my campus for my WWE fandom I would get approached at events by classmates and members of organizations I was involved with asking my input on current angles or upcoming PPV matches, nearly all of which were interested in who Cena had beaten or was about to face. I highly doubt I'm the only adult male Cena fan who has had this type of experience. The only people he is turning away are Attitude Era fanboys who refuse to grow up and move on.
Raw ratings during Cena’s era has been 3’s and 4’s.
That's what happens when there's no WCW to compete with anymore. TNA tried but they aren't at that level yet.
Cena and Rock are simply on different levels in terms of success and popularity as a WWE Superstar. They shouldn’t even be in the same ring. At least not more than once!
The Rock is more popular, I'll give you that. However.... Cena has been more successful. In the WWE anyway. The Rock's been more successful in movies but I already explained how Cena has accomplished more in wrestling than The Rock.
Also, the suggestion that Rock needs to “pass the torch” is ridiculous as Cena’s had “the torch” for almost 9 years already!
Cena's had the torch for 9 years? That's news to me. When exactly did this happen? 9 years ago Cena was feuding with Big Show over the US Championship.
Cena should be looking to pass it to someone soon! And Rock DID “pass the torch” at SummerSlam 2002 when Lesnar beat Rock cleanly, winning the championship. So Rock’s already done his “passing the torch” duty.
Cena will surely pass the torch to the next top face, there's no reason why he wouldn't. Rock already passed the torch to Lesnar at Summerslam 2002? Lesnar left. His time as the top guy was very brief. It's less about a legitimate torch passing and more about showing respect for the modern era by putting over the younger guy. The Rock will be over forever no matter what he does. Cena, however, NEEDED that win.
If Rock must drop title by April due to his movie schedule, there are many options: re-match with CM Punk, match with Undertaker or a rematch with Lesnar! Rock could also win WrestleMania match and relinquish title.
All of which are possible. I personally would rather see the 2013 Royal Rumble winner go on to challenge for a world title in the FINAL match of Wrestlemania and WIN for the first time since Batista in 2005. It just happens to be John Cena this year. You're not a fan. Fine. We get it. Your boycott is ridiculous though. LOTS of people want to see the match and it's not going to get cancelled unless through some miracle WWE comes up with something that would make them more money.
Last year WWE, you gave us a “Once in a Lifetime” match with a dream ending. Don’t run it again and turn it into a nightmare.
A nightmare? How is a rematch that may result in Cena winning a nightmare? Even if "Once in a Lifetime" turns into "Once in a Lifetime except we made a ton of money last year so here is a rematch you will surely enjoy with a championship up for grabs" then that's NOT a bad thing.
Unless another match is set for Rock which does NOT involve Cena, then we will boycott Wrestlemania and ALL of WWE’s sponsors. Because, to use an Attitude Era phrase, there is No Chance in HELL we will pay a single dollar to watch Cena beat The Rock!!
You might not pay to watch Cena beat The Rock but I guarantee you that this PPV will be incredibly successful, partially due to this match. John Cena is GOING to face The Rock at Wrestlemania 29 and will most likely defeat him to win his 13th World Championship. Don't like it? Then don't watch. Cena is not going anywhere and the haters need to realize that once and for all. You can complain all you want but the WWE doesn't care. He makes them money and most of the fans like him. That means he will stay the face of the federation until somebody better takes the spot.
Really? You really believe "No boycott" will work? What if a million people say they will boycott, it still wont work?
This boycott is not going to affect the success of this show whatsoever.
Wrestlemania usually gets around a million buys
Exactly and you'd be surprised at how powerful brand loyalty really is. There are people who have grown up watching Wrestlemania year after year. If they watch only one show the entire year, they try to make that show be Wrestlemania. Then you have all the people who may order it due to this rematch. The show is going to do well and it would take more than an online petition to stop it from being a success.
Because i am 100% sure of this, if right now every single WWE fan in the world, which is tens of millions of people, were asked whether or not they want to see Cena v Rock again as Wrestlemania main event, im certain the majority would say NO!
I highly doubt that.
So lets stop being so negative and pessimistic, just take 5 seconds and sign the petition and lets spread the word on this and get the numbers up and see what happens!
I'll tell you what's going to happen. All of the Cena haters can unite in this petition while the rest of us sit back and enjoy the show. I for one cannot wait for Wrestlemania 29 and the best part will be when John Cena defeats The Rock for the WWE Championship. You know, in that match that will still be happening regardless of how much you hate the wrestler that is most likely going to win it. Feel free to sit this one out. Those of us who do want to see the match, in other words the majority of the fanbase, plan on watching it. Order the PPV and give the match a chance, or skip it. No one is forcing you to watch and the petition is not going to change anything. It's not like they are making Hornswoggle end Undertaker's streak or anything, now THAT is a match that would deserve a boycott petition. This year's potential main event? Not so much. Like I already said, this boycott will not stop the match from happening.
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