5 John Cena Matches You’ll Like Even If You Hate Him

John Cena is the most polarizing member of the WWE roster. Some people love the guy, and some people just can’t stand him. Every cheer he gets from a fan is always followed by a boo attempting to drown that cheer out. Many people would say that John Cena has been shoved down our throats for far too long, and he has.

Regardless of the fact that John Cena has overstayed his welcome at the top of WWE, he’s still had one hell of a career. John Cena needs to step down and let someone else have the top spot for a while, we aren’t going to argue that, but when the dust settles on Cena’s career there will be quite a few matches for the fans to appreciate.

We’ve put together a list of 5 John Cena matches that you’ll like, even if you hate him. Let’s get to it.

#5 – John Cena VS Brock Lesnar: Extreme Rules

Coming off of a loss to The Rock at WrestleMania 28, John Cena much like the rest of the world was shocked when Brock Lesnar returned to the WWE the next night on Raw. Brock wasted no time as he went right after the biggest fish in the WWE pond, John Cena.

This feud was great because it added a level of intensity to the WWE product that we hadn’t seen in years. There was blood, brawls, anger, great promos and the match delivered. Even if you don’t like John Cena you can certainly find some sort of entertainment value in the fact that he gets beat down for the majority of this match. This match was unlike anything else going on in WWE at the time and it was almost unreal for the fans to see Cena face off against someone who looked like a legitimate threat. Although some may argue that WWE made the wrong call by letting Cena win, the match is still fun to watch regardless.

#4 – John Cena VS Edge: Unforgiven

John Cena and Edge helped make each other. These two were both making their way into the main event scene at pretty much the same time and they feuded for most of 2006 which proved to be a big help when it came to boosting both of their careers.

After main eventing several pay-per-views Edge decided to put the WWE Championship on the line in a TLC match with the added stipulation that if John Cena lost he would have to leave Raw and go to Smackdown. What follows is easily one of the best matches of both men’s careers and definitely the best match of their feud. Both of these guys give it their all to entertain the fans and prove why they both deserved the main event spots they had been working so hard for.

#3 – John Cena VS Rob Van Dam: ECW One Night Stand

This could be called one of John Cena’s most memorable matches simply based on the crowd reaction alone. John Cena’s character never would have survived in the original ECW and this crowd let’s him know it. Cena has faced quite a few hostile crowds in his day but none of them have reached anywhere near the level of hostility that this one reaches. There’s not a single John Cena fan in this crowd, which is what makes this match extremely entertaining.

The highlight of this match is definitely the atmosphere and the excitement of putting the WWE’s golden boy, John Cena, in an ECW setting. In the end the ECW alumni is too much for John Cena to overcome and the crowd goes crazy as Rob Van Dam wins the WWE Championship. The crowd roasts John Cena for the entire match and like a true professional John Cena takes all the hate with a smile.

#2 – John Cena VS CM Punk: Raw 2/25/2013

John Cena and CM Punk have had what is definitely one of the best feuds of this era. Every time these two step into the ring with each other their matches get better and better. Last year on Raw, John Cena put his #1 contendership on the line as he battled CM Punk to see who would go on to face The Rock at WrestleMania 29, and these two put on one hell of a show.

Each time these two face off against each other they do everything in their power to raise the bar and they certainly raised the bar in this match. This match was a WrestleMania main event given away on free TV and the crowd let’s both men know that they appreciate how much effort they put into this instant classic. CM Punk and John Cena have had many great matches together but in our opinion this one is the best so far.

#1 – John Cena VS Shawn Michaels: Raw 4/23/2007

Coming off of a loss to John Cena at WrestleMania 23, Shawn Michaels had a lot to prove. John Cena was riding high at the top of the WWE mountain, but Shawn Michaels knew he had it in him to defeat Cena. Their match at WrestleMania 23 was good but nowhere near as good as this one.

This is the match that changed how a lot of people view John Cena because he held his own against one of the greatest of all time as Shawn Michaels pushed him to the limit. These two men wrestled for almost a full hour on an episode of Raw which is just about unheard of nowadays. Not too many members of the WWE roster can go for that amount of time and keep every minute of the match interesting. This is one match that will have you on the edge of your seat the entire time and in our opinion, it’s still John Cena’s best match to date.