5 Ruthless Aggression Era Wrestlers John Cena Loved (& 5 He Didn't)

The Ruthless Aggression nostalgia is high today with WWE’s documentary series and various performers coming back to make fans appreciate the time. John Cena is undoubtably the biggest success story from the time since he broke out and eventually changed the landscape. WWE saw something special in Cena, but he had many tough moments during his journey, including issues with some of his peers.

We will look at how Cena’s interactions with wrestlers were during the time. Quite a few memorable wrestlers loved Cena and felt he was a cool person or great talent. Others believed he had no business in the wrestling industry. Find out what caused each scenario to play out in the way it did. The following wrestlers either loved Cena or had issues with him during the memorable era.

10 Loved: Chris Jericho

Chris Jericho always had love for John Cena from the latter’s start in WWE. Everyone remembers Cena challenging Kurt Angle on his first night, but Jericho was his first real program with a PPV match in the plans. Jericho revealed on his podcast that he demanded to lose after seeing plans that he was winning.

The rivalry between Cena and Jericho almost always created great moments. Jericho left WWE in 2005 with the final matches putting over Cena again before departing. The two became good friends that have nothing but kind words to say about the other.

9 Had heat with: Mickie James

The relationship between John Cena and Mickie James showcased an example of why dating within the wrestling business is often second guessed. WWE tried to place Cena and James together on-screen with a few backstage segments, but they broke up in real life before the angle had momentum.

Rumors indicated that Cena was behind the Piggie James storyline of Michelle McCool essentially bullying Mickie every week. Cena and James had hostility backstage after the relationship ended ugly. If the belief that Cena inspired such cruel booking towards James is ever confirmed, it would be a disaster for his reputation.

8 Loved: Big Show

The Ruthless Aggression special about the rise of John Cena featured an interesting story from Big Show. When discussing their WrestleMania 20 opening match, Big Show revealed other wrestlers tried to talk him out of putting over Cena.

The belief was that Cena didn’t deserve the push he was getting. Big Show always clicked with Cena and didn’t give their opinions a second thought. The match saw Cena hitting the powerful FU on Big Show to win the United States Championship and start his push to the top of the card.

7 Had heat with: Batista

Batista and John Cena had many differences in their approaches to wrestling. The two had mutual respect, but there was some heat between them in the Ruthless Aggression years. WWE placed them in an unofficial competition with similar pushes at the same time.

Both men would become world champions, but Batista reportedly trash talked Cena and others on the Smackdown brand for having lower ratings than Raw. The criticism from Batista continued years later when upset about Cena’s contributions to WWE going PG.

6 Loved: JBL

WWE built JBL up for a full year as the top heel of the Smackdown brand with John Cena in mind. JBL’s push came out of nowhere, but WWE continued to keep his WWE Championship going with disappointing matches and non-clean finishes.

The long-term plan paid off with Cena winning the title for the first time in 2005. JBL has been one of Cena’s biggest supporters both backstage and in person. Fans have even joked that they like each other too much since Cena’s hair grew and looked quite like JBL’s hairstyle.

5 Had heat with: Chavo Guerrero

Chavo Guerrero never meshed with John Cena and it led to them having issues behind the scenes. Cena skyrocketed in WWE moving past many of the long-time mid-carders waiting for their biggest opportunity.

The release from WWE years later saw Chavo revealing that he never liked Cena. Guerrero called Cena out for using backstage politics to his advantage and presenting a phony façade to the media. Don’t expect to see Chavo back in WWE any time soon!

4 Loved: Ric Flair

John Cena was criticized by a few members of Evolution, but Ric Flair always supported him. Any wrestler coming up would love the respect of Flair since he’s an all-time legend. Flair has often praised Cena for his improvements in the ring and general work ethic.

Cena and Flair would grow closer through the years when both started working together on the Raw brand. Flair shared stories on his old podcast about challenging Cena to outdrink him to prove he was the real champion. There is no way Flair could have guessed Cena would be the first WWE star to tie his record of 16 world title reigns.

3 Had heat with: Mr. Kennedy

Mr. Kennedy’s WWE career had a few huge plans all fizzle out due to variables like injuries, suspensions and backstage heat. The loudmouth persona of Kennedy on the mic and a few allegedly sloppy matches earned him heat with a few noteworthy names in WWE.

John Cena and Randy Orton were singled out as the two talents who complained to management about not wanting to work with Kennedy. WWE released him in surprising fashion and never elected to bring him back for another shot.

2 Loved: Edge

Both Edge and John Cena were among the most important names WWE wanted to rebuild around after Steve Austin retired and The Rock left for Hollywood. They each would eventually become legends despite a few bumps on the road.

Edge’s heel character feuding with Cena made them the perfect rivals for WWE in the mid-2000s. Cena found his groove when working with Edge in the main event angle for Raw in 2006. The friendship allowed them to trust each other to continue moving up the ladder in WWE.

1 Had heat with: Triple H

Triple H was one of the most vocal critics of John Cena during the Ruthless Aggression era. The fan attacks of Cena not knowing how to wrestle started with rumors and later documented confessions that Triple H believed the exact same thing.

Cena was insulted by Triple H and many others for not having the traditional in-ring skills. Triple H eventually gave Cena his respect after the two worked together. Cena’s desire to improve and become a great wrestler led to the end of their heat, especially with Triple H moving to a management role.

NEXT: John Cena: 10 Most Emotional Moments In His WWE Career, Ranked