Andrade admits that his perspective on John Cena completely changed after working alongside the 17-time World Champion inside a WWE ring earlier this year.
Speaking in a Spanish-language interview on Soy Eduardo Bates, the former NXT Champion revealed that as a young wrestler, he questioned why Cena was on top when other performers did more athletic moves. It wasn’t until he experienced WWE firsthand that he understood Cena’s genius.
When you’re young, right? Yeah, if he doesn’t do many things, I do more, I do this, that, but when you’re in WWE, you see wrestling differently and you see everything, you realize and say, ‘No, well it’s John Cena, John Cena is there for a reason,'” Andrade explained. (Translated from Spanish)
According to Andrade, Cena’s true brilliance lies not in athletic moves but in his ability to command an audience and create memorable moments. He described watching Cena work as a masterclass in crowd psychology.
He creates the spectacle for the people and that’s why he has so much following, that’s why so many people remember him, that’s why everything, because he knew how to manage the crowd,” Andrade noted.
Learning from the Greatest of All Time
The Mexican star outlined specific lessons he learned from observing Cena, including the importance of listening to the crowd above all else and maintaining awareness of every element in the arena.
You learn that you have to listen to the people a lot. You have to find a way. You learn a lot that he’s mostly in everything, he’s enjoying the match, but he has eyes everywhere. He has eyes on the cameras, where the cameras are, where the people are,” he said.
Perhaps most impressively, Andrade noted that Cena is always thinking about the television audience while simultaneously performing for the live crowd—a multitasking skill that separates good wrestlers from legendary ones.
Andrade compared great wrestling matches to movies, explaining that audiences remember the entire story, not just individual fight sequences. This philosophy shift helped reshape his own approach to the business.
The comments come as John Cena prepares for his final match this weekend. Andrade’s tribute serves as a reminder of the impact Cena has had on an entire generation of performers who came up watching him main event.
