The John Cena eras: From Ruthless Aggression to 17-time WWE champ

John Cena's entranceway taxable announces that "my clip is now." But his clip is fleeting.

Cena, 48, announced past summer that 2025 would beryllium the extremity of his clip arsenic an progressive WWE wrestler. Each lucifer brings him person to hanging up the jorts connected Dec. 13 -- including astatine the WWE's inaugural Wrestlepalooza successful Indianapolis connected Sept. 20 (7 p.m. ET connected ESPN Unlimited).

For those joining the farewell circuit precocious and those looking to instrumentality a travel backmost done a singular vocation wrong and extracurricular the ring, we present contiguous the John Cena Eras Tour.

The Prototype

In 2001, the WWE signed John Cena -- a erstwhile NCAA Division III All-American shot subordinate astatine Springfield College, aspiring bodybuilder and lad of an autarkic wrestling manager "Johnny Fabulous" -- to a improvement woody successful Ohio Valley Wrestling.

There were nary jorts. No chains. No "you can't spot me." There was a unit cut, but it was bleached a piercing blonde. There were biceps. Large biceps. Cena was billed arsenic "The Prototype," proclaiming that helium was "50% antheral and 50% machine" during intentionally robotic promos. At best, helium looked similar a video-game quality from a "Street Fighter" knockoff. At worst, helium looked similar Ludvig Borga.

The Prototype would triumph the OVW title successful February 2002 and gain his call-up to the WWE main roster, wherever helium thankfully ditched the dye occupation and instantly became ... ruthless.

Ruthless Aggression

On a June 2002 variation of "SmackDown," Kurt Angle walked to the ringing portion fans chanted "you suck" during his entranceway taxable -- years earlier they'd hijack Cena's taxable to bash the same.

Former WWE proprietor Vince McMahon had precocious commenced an epoch of "Ruthless Aggression" for the roster, encouraging wrestlers to conquer each adversaries. In that spirit, Angle issued an unfastened situation to the locker country -- but lone for an hostile helium hadn't wrestled before.

Wearing reddish and achromatic trunks and matching boots, Cena strode to the ring, oozing assurance with eyes locked connected Angle.

Angle smirked. "Who successful the hellhole are you?" helium asked into the microphone.

"I'm John Cena."

"John Cena, huh?" Angle responded. "Well, you archer me: What is the 1 prime that you person that makes you deliberation that you tin locomotion retired present and travel into the ringing and look the precise champion successful the business?"

Cena sneered and spoke with a guttural growl not dissimilar McMahon's cadence: "Ruthless aggression!" Cena past sucker-punched Angle and jumped him.

The assemblage rallied down Cena successful his impromptu lucifer with Angle and jeered erstwhile Angle pulled retired a desperation pin. But the effect didn't matter. A prima was born.

The Doctor of Thuganomics

Over the adjacent respective months, Cena wrestled steadily successful singles and tag squad matches but hadn't fulfilled the committedness of that iconic "Ruthless Aggression" moment. In fact, Cena said connected an occurrence of WWE Network's 2020 bid "WWE Ruthless Aggression" that helium was told helium believed that the WWE was going to beryllium chopped from the roster successful precocious 2002.

Cena was enjoying what helium believed would beryllium his last European circuit erstwhile 1 night, a radical of wrestlers that included Rikishi and Rey Mysterio were freestyle rapping successful the backmost of the circuit bus. Cena, who had a hidden endowment for rhyming, joined in. Unbeknownst to him, determination was idiosyncratic other listening to his bars from the beforehand of the bus: Stephanie McMahon, the aboriginal WWE CEO who was connected the originative squad astatine the time, asked Cena to adhd freestyling to his character. Gradually, the adjacent iteration of Cena evolved: a Boston-born achromatic rapper who fans instantly mocked with signs referencing Vanilla Ice, whom Cena dressed arsenic connected a Halloween occurrence of SmackDown. He wore oversized sports jerseys, baggy jorts and a concatenation with a fastener connected it.

His catchphrase? "Word Life." His entranceway theme? "Basic Thuganomics," which Cena wrote and performed. (Sample prose: "Never past this, get forgot similar Alzheimer's/Two-faced rappers locomotion distant with 4 shiners.")

Perhaps adjacent much shocking: Cena was a heel! He was a repugnant antagonist for instrumentality favorites ranging from Rikishi to Brock Lesnar, whom Cena would wrestle successful his archetypal WWE title match.

But arsenic we'd spot decades later, the occupation with turning John Cena bottommost is that he's John Cena. It's similar trying to crook escaped pizza heel. Despite his chaotic a...