John Cena has reflected on his iconic rivalry with CM Punk, explaining that what made their chemistry so special was a shared desire for the top spot, coupled with a deep and genuine love for the professional wrestling business. In an appearance at Fan Expo Chicago, the 17-time world champion spoke about the dynamic between the two superstars, who, despite their vastly different personalities, shared the same core values and a desire to bring the best out of each other.
Their rivalry, which produced some of the most memorable matches and moments of the modern era, remains a fan favorite, and Cena himself wishes they could have had more time to create magic in the ring.
“A few things. First of all, we both want the same spot. And I also think we both love the same thing. A lot of people that want that front spot, purely want it for selfish reasons. Every once in a while, you get somebody who wants to sit in the front that loves the business, and we love it in different ways, too,” Cena said. “I think we’re such different personalities, but we share a lot of the same core values. So we just want to bring the best out of each other. For some reason, we kind of found each other and found each other at the right time and man, I wish I could have kept him with us. I wish he didn’t have to take all that time off because we could have had some more matches, but I’m grateful for the moments we’ve had. And I think that, I think we just, we both want to sit in front. We both really love the business.”
The rivalry between John Cena and CM Punk defined an era in WWE. Their most famous bout was at Money in the Bank in 2011 and is still regarded as one of the greatest matches in the company’s history. The storyline, which was fueled by Punk’s infamous “Pipebomb” promo, blurred the lines between reality and fiction and made Punk a top star. Their feud continued for several years, producing a series of matches that consistently delivered on both an in-ring and storytelling level.