Black Widow
08-02-2008, 01:05 PM
August 1, 2008 - John Cena's going into the WWE Hall of Fame one day, whether you like it or not. The man, as the kids like to say these days, puts asses in seats. Whether said asses boo or cheer is another story altogether, but it doesn't matter -- they make noise, which shows off how Cena's charisma and style allow him to excel at his profession. Throw in the fact that he's released a top-15 CD and will be starring in his second feature film late this year further exemplifies the absurd work ethic the man has. We talked to Cena, who appears on Saturday Night's Main Event this upcoming weekend on NBC at 9:00 PM, about a variety of topics related to his career and got some incredibly honest answers, including a shocking one about who he expects to be main-eventing WrestleMania in five years.
Note that since we conducted this interview Thursday morning, the most pressing issue on our mind was, in fact, Manny Ramirez.
IGN: John Cena, first question: As a Massachusetts native, we gotta ask you -- what's up with the Manny Ramirez situation?
John Cena: Any Massachusetts native knows that this is just true as the fall or winter, it's just Manny being extremely selfish. Manny being Manny was coined after each year that he demands to be traded, only for the Red Sox to keep him, followed up by him hitting 25 homers, knocking in 60-80 runs, and being one of the best clutch hitters ever in the postseason. He stays where he is, plays out his contract, and the Red Sox even pick up his option in the offseason.
IGN: Fair enough. How are you feeling these days? How's the pec?
John Cena: Stronger than ever. I'm actually training more of a powerlifting style than ever before because I'm in, really, the peak physical shape of my life. I have Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham to thank for that, as well as his rehab staff.
IGN: You've been working pretty closely with JBL for several months now for the first time since you guys feuded back in the Smackdown days. What's your favorite part and least favorite part about getting in the ring with him?
John Cena: My favorite part is that he makes you earn everything you get inside the ring. My least favorite part is that he makes you earn everything you get inside the ring.
IGN: Do you find that your matches are the same as they were from back then?
John Cena: It's very different, but it has the same sort of stuff. He still has the cowboy hat and the limo, but it's very different scenarios. For some reason, we have that magical ability to bring the best out of each other. The people are into it, and if the people are into it…
IGN: Before that, you were working with Triple H and you really spent a lot of time hyping up how much of a classic the match at Night of Champions was going to be, and how it would become a part of both your legacies. How happy were you with the match, and how important is that idea of having a legacy to you?
John Cena: I'd have been a lot more happy if I won! I'm just kidding. I'm not gonna be around to reap the benefits of a legacy, but…I really just like getting the fans excited for what I think are historical moments. I'm a wrestling buff, and we have more of a youth-based audience, so it's amazing to see kids get wide-eyed at something just like when I was a child. I try to make each moment, especially moments like that match, stand out.
IGN: Since you are such a historical buff, if you could go back in time to one period of the wrestling business and play a part in it, what would that be?
John Cena: The growth of the WWF and going from New York territory to a worldwide company. Vince McMahon made it a point to get the best workers of every territory, so the halls of New York were lined with some of the most incredible talent this business has ever seen. Nowadays, the developmental system of how we get talent and groom talent is a lot different, but it would've been cool to see different characters develop out of the territorial era.
IGN: How do you think your style or character would have changed if the territorial system still existed?
John Cena: It's a hypothetical, it's a different time, but I would've enjoyed it…my least favorite part of this business is the air travel, but I really like the commuting travel -- you make good friends and conversation in those car rides, and you learn a lot.
IGN: In that time period, CM Punk's become the World Heavyweight Champion and really elevated his game. Obviously, you want to win the World Title, but how do you think a match with Punk would go? What would you want to do stylistically in the match?
John Cena: I think our fans need to acclimate themselves more with CM Punk. He's a hell of a talent, and unorthodox, which is their way of saying I'm not any good, but he does stuff that no one else does. I'd like to see him in front of the camera more, doing his stuff. He hasn't had a chance to express his true talent level. When he does, he'll wake up a lot of skeptics inside the industry.
I enjoy challenges versus anyone, and whether it be the Great Khali or Rey Mysterio, I look at each match as a different story. I certainly would be caught off-guard by Punk's stuff because I haven't experienced it as much, but I think it would work out really well.
IGN: You've gotten a mixed reaction from the fans for a long time; a passionate one, but mixed nonetheless. Do you ever just think about what it would be like to just go the Edge route and become just the most hated guy you can?
John Cena: I think about that all the time, but, well, there's a reason it's a mixed reaction. It's not a 100% reaction. If the people genuinely hate you, you can ask for their generosity for a certain period of time, but you gotta say enough is enough. It's mixed, but the sad part is that it's an older male demographic telling me to go to hell, and the youth base of our audience and the women, the mothers who are taking their children to events, they're saying that guy's a good role model. I see exactly where the pattern of fan reaction is going. It's much tougher to tell that six year old kid to 'F' off when he sees you as a role model. Every time I step through the curtain, I'm conscious of that.
IGN: What's the funniest sign you've ever seen in the crowd relating to you?
John Cena: The classic is the "We've seen enough" or my Hindenberg disaster of a marketing campaign, "Ruck Fules", led to "Cuck Fena". In so many ways, hundreds of signs claiming that I can't wrestle. "If Cena wins, we riot" was good. Stuff like that.
IGN: Filming on your next movie is done, correct?
John Cena: Yeah, 12 Rounds is wrapped. Three's a corporate screening next week in Connecticut and we're going to have a finished cut soon.
IGN: How was the experience this time around? What was different?
John Cena: Much much better. As WWE makes more movies, they grow as a company, and they get better. It was a real movie with a great director, and that's not to say anything bad about "The Marine", but Renny Harlin was just fantastic. He knew exactly how to shoot, and we had a great cast, a lot of people from television, a much more well-rounded cast than "The Marine". We didn't have Robert Patrick or Kelly Carlson, but we had a lot more experienced actors in surrounding roles.
We let Lenny Harlin direct it however he wanted, and I never met someone more ambitious when it came to filming stuff. He came in with a Vince McMahon-like attitude where he'd say everything that he wanted to get done that day, no one would think it was possible, and then he'd go and do everything he said he would.
IGN: Back when you were first starting out, you were a featured trainee on "Inside Pro Wrestling School". It depicted your life as a trainee, which involved eating absurd amounts of steak. Do you still do that? Is that even possible?
John Cena: I've actually accommodated my nutritional needs to my schedule. I'm traveling much, much more than I did back then. In a perfect world, I would eat it 3-5 times a day if I could, but I use supplements and protein powder to get nutrition. I work five matches a week and eat six days a week…if you talked to a professional strongman, he'd laugh at how little I eat!
IGN: Alright, hypothetical: Five years from now, you're headlining WrestleMania XXIX at Fenway Park, fighting for the World Heavyweight Championship. Who do you think you're facing?
John Cena: Ted Dibiase, Jr.
IGN: Really. Why?
John Cena: I've had a chance to be in the ring with this young man, and at 25…I think Randy Orton's the best around that age, but [Dibiase] is younger, bigger, and he moves like he's Randy Orton 2.0. If you're asking me to give the endorsement to someone, and that's what headlining WrestleMania is, Ted Dibiase Jr. is that guy.
Note that since we conducted this interview Thursday morning, the most pressing issue on our mind was, in fact, Manny Ramirez.
IGN: John Cena, first question: As a Massachusetts native, we gotta ask you -- what's up with the Manny Ramirez situation?
John Cena: Any Massachusetts native knows that this is just true as the fall or winter, it's just Manny being extremely selfish. Manny being Manny was coined after each year that he demands to be traded, only for the Red Sox to keep him, followed up by him hitting 25 homers, knocking in 60-80 runs, and being one of the best clutch hitters ever in the postseason. He stays where he is, plays out his contract, and the Red Sox even pick up his option in the offseason.
IGN: Fair enough. How are you feeling these days? How's the pec?
John Cena: Stronger than ever. I'm actually training more of a powerlifting style than ever before because I'm in, really, the peak physical shape of my life. I have Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham to thank for that, as well as his rehab staff.
IGN: You've been working pretty closely with JBL for several months now for the first time since you guys feuded back in the Smackdown days. What's your favorite part and least favorite part about getting in the ring with him?
John Cena: My favorite part is that he makes you earn everything you get inside the ring. My least favorite part is that he makes you earn everything you get inside the ring.
IGN: Do you find that your matches are the same as they were from back then?
John Cena: It's very different, but it has the same sort of stuff. He still has the cowboy hat and the limo, but it's very different scenarios. For some reason, we have that magical ability to bring the best out of each other. The people are into it, and if the people are into it…
IGN: Before that, you were working with Triple H and you really spent a lot of time hyping up how much of a classic the match at Night of Champions was going to be, and how it would become a part of both your legacies. How happy were you with the match, and how important is that idea of having a legacy to you?
John Cena: I'd have been a lot more happy if I won! I'm just kidding. I'm not gonna be around to reap the benefits of a legacy, but…I really just like getting the fans excited for what I think are historical moments. I'm a wrestling buff, and we have more of a youth-based audience, so it's amazing to see kids get wide-eyed at something just like when I was a child. I try to make each moment, especially moments like that match, stand out.
IGN: Since you are such a historical buff, if you could go back in time to one period of the wrestling business and play a part in it, what would that be?
John Cena: The growth of the WWF and going from New York territory to a worldwide company. Vince McMahon made it a point to get the best workers of every territory, so the halls of New York were lined with some of the most incredible talent this business has ever seen. Nowadays, the developmental system of how we get talent and groom talent is a lot different, but it would've been cool to see different characters develop out of the territorial era.
IGN: How do you think your style or character would have changed if the territorial system still existed?
John Cena: It's a hypothetical, it's a different time, but I would've enjoyed it…my least favorite part of this business is the air travel, but I really like the commuting travel -- you make good friends and conversation in those car rides, and you learn a lot.
IGN: In that time period, CM Punk's become the World Heavyweight Champion and really elevated his game. Obviously, you want to win the World Title, but how do you think a match with Punk would go? What would you want to do stylistically in the match?
John Cena: I think our fans need to acclimate themselves more with CM Punk. He's a hell of a talent, and unorthodox, which is their way of saying I'm not any good, but he does stuff that no one else does. I'd like to see him in front of the camera more, doing his stuff. He hasn't had a chance to express his true talent level. When he does, he'll wake up a lot of skeptics inside the industry.
I enjoy challenges versus anyone, and whether it be the Great Khali or Rey Mysterio, I look at each match as a different story. I certainly would be caught off-guard by Punk's stuff because I haven't experienced it as much, but I think it would work out really well.
IGN: You've gotten a mixed reaction from the fans for a long time; a passionate one, but mixed nonetheless. Do you ever just think about what it would be like to just go the Edge route and become just the most hated guy you can?
John Cena: I think about that all the time, but, well, there's a reason it's a mixed reaction. It's not a 100% reaction. If the people genuinely hate you, you can ask for their generosity for a certain period of time, but you gotta say enough is enough. It's mixed, but the sad part is that it's an older male demographic telling me to go to hell, and the youth base of our audience and the women, the mothers who are taking their children to events, they're saying that guy's a good role model. I see exactly where the pattern of fan reaction is going. It's much tougher to tell that six year old kid to 'F' off when he sees you as a role model. Every time I step through the curtain, I'm conscious of that.
IGN: What's the funniest sign you've ever seen in the crowd relating to you?
John Cena: The classic is the "We've seen enough" or my Hindenberg disaster of a marketing campaign, "Ruck Fules", led to "Cuck Fena". In so many ways, hundreds of signs claiming that I can't wrestle. "If Cena wins, we riot" was good. Stuff like that.
IGN: Filming on your next movie is done, correct?
John Cena: Yeah, 12 Rounds is wrapped. Three's a corporate screening next week in Connecticut and we're going to have a finished cut soon.
IGN: How was the experience this time around? What was different?
John Cena: Much much better. As WWE makes more movies, they grow as a company, and they get better. It was a real movie with a great director, and that's not to say anything bad about "The Marine", but Renny Harlin was just fantastic. He knew exactly how to shoot, and we had a great cast, a lot of people from television, a much more well-rounded cast than "The Marine". We didn't have Robert Patrick or Kelly Carlson, but we had a lot more experienced actors in surrounding roles.
We let Lenny Harlin direct it however he wanted, and I never met someone more ambitious when it came to filming stuff. He came in with a Vince McMahon-like attitude where he'd say everything that he wanted to get done that day, no one would think it was possible, and then he'd go and do everything he said he would.
IGN: Back when you were first starting out, you were a featured trainee on "Inside Pro Wrestling School". It depicted your life as a trainee, which involved eating absurd amounts of steak. Do you still do that? Is that even possible?
John Cena: I've actually accommodated my nutritional needs to my schedule. I'm traveling much, much more than I did back then. In a perfect world, I would eat it 3-5 times a day if I could, but I use supplements and protein powder to get nutrition. I work five matches a week and eat six days a week…if you talked to a professional strongman, he'd laugh at how little I eat!
IGN: Alright, hypothetical: Five years from now, you're headlining WrestleMania XXIX at Fenway Park, fighting for the World Heavyweight Championship. Who do you think you're facing?
John Cena: Ted Dibiase, Jr.
IGN: Really. Why?
John Cena: I've had a chance to be in the ring with this young man, and at 25…I think Randy Orton's the best around that age, but [Dibiase] is younger, bigger, and he moves like he's Randy Orton 2.0. If you're asking me to give the endorsement to someone, and that's what headlining WrestleMania is, Ted Dibiase Jr. is that guy.