Looking at John Cena vs. Rusev at Wrestlemania 31

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We’re less than a week away from the biggest night of the year for WWE, WrestleMania.

Having spent the last couple of weeks watching all the WWE pay-per-views, from the last year’s ‘Mania right up to their last offering Fast Lane, there’s one thing that I was left asking myself…

“If John Cena beats Rusev, does that basically waste the last year of the adopted Russians career and make everything he’s achieved mean nothing?”

After a slow start on the main roster, the “Hero of the Russian Federation” was born. In the last year he’s beaten many flag waving American’s, Big E, Mark Henry, Big Show and Jack Swagger amongst them before butting heads with Sheamus to win the US Title.

A feud with Cena has already seen him beat the company’s top dog by submission, after Cena passed out in the Accolade at Fast Lane. Now they clash on the grandest stage of them all. But there’s more to lose with a Cena win on this sundays card than there is from a Rusev victory.

Rusev has still never been beaten by pinfall or submitted. A loss to Cena, as well as losing the title he wears around his waist, does more damage to Rusev and his character than it can do good.

The company is reportedly looking to elevate the US and Intercontinental titles to give them more meaning and precedence amongst the fans. For me, the best way to do that would be to have Cena lose to Rusev on Sunday night, then profess his desperation to win that belt. In this position, Cena can do more as the man who wants the fans to cheer him to that title against the dastardly foreign heel, than he can as the man being chased by that same man.

With everything the WWE has done to build up Rusev, from “attacking” American servicemen, to proudly waving the Russian flag, to making everyone tap to his finishing move, that will all mean nothing if Cena takes that title away from him.

In the past we’ve seen similar characters come in as patriotic to a foreign country. It’s one of the easiest ways to fire up a crowd against them, only to lose all that heat and disappear when beaten by the American hero. Exactly the same is likely to happen in this situation.

I honestly think there’s so much more to come from Cena and Rusev. There’s so much more they could do with Cena chasing the belt to vanquish the evil Rusev, than they could with Rusev chasing Cena.

It’s time for Cena to give Rusev a big push up to, potentially, become the biggest heel the company has seen for a long while.

If Cena beats Rusev, I think you’ve basically thrown away the last year of building him up as a monster.

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WWE WrestleMania 31: John Cena vs Rusev – Who’s Got the Most to Lose?

By Carl Gac | Mar 23, 2015