John Cena: ‘I don’t think it’s soft, I think it’s different.’
John Cena offered his insight to a controversial statement from another multiple-time WWE champion.
Words go a long way, and John Cena’s comments regarding the “softness” of today’s wrestling era were made known on Wednesday. While speaking to Alfred Konuwa of Forbes, Cena responded to recent words from WWE Hall of Famer, the Undertaker offering up his opinion on today’s wrestling industry.
“I’ve seen it evolve, but I’ve also been called ‘everything that’s ruined sports entertainment,” Cena said during the conversation. “I could look at the economics of it and make an argument that between myself—and the large amount of folks that carried on the roster beyond the Attitude Era into the Ruthless Aggression Era and the Reality Era—the fans of the Attitude Era certainly looked at our product as not what they’re used to, and it wasn’t. So, I may have a bit of disagreement with Undertaker’s word choice because I do not think it is soft, I think it’s different.”
The start of this back-and-forth goes back to when the Undertaker appeared on the Joe Rogan Experience and talked about a host of different topics. One of which was whether Taker watches the current product to which he responded in a way that created a bunch of headlines in the days to follow.
“I try, it’s tough right now for me,” Taker said on the podcast. “The product has changed so much and it’s kind of off. I will probably piss a lot of people off, but they need to hear it. It is what it is. To the young guys [who think] he is a bitter old guy, I am not bitter. I did my time, I walked away when I wanted to walk away. I just think the product is a little soft. There are guys here and there that have an edge to them but there’s too much pretty and not enough substance I think right now.”
While many wrestling media members, fans, and performers alike stood up to defend those in the locker rooms today, there were still some that stood with the Undertaker’s opinion. Regardless of the debate, it is understandable that there is a clear difference between the product today and any era that has come before it. That difference may not ring positive with every viewer and performer, but that does not mean that the men and the women in the locker room should be viewed in a manner deemed as “soft.”
“I remember one of the first time Steve Austin came back during the height of the PG era, and he was just befuddled. Because Steve Austin goes out there and runs it. And if he gets stuck, he can curse, he can throw up some middle fingers, he can ask for a beer…but we took away three of the biggest clubs that he can hit with and told him to go out there and be himself. And he came back shaking his head and said, ‘I don’t know how you do this!’ But if he had enough time, he is a great performer, he could get used to it.”
Fans often complain about the desire to have a return of the Attitude Era, as if that would be an immediate fix to all the issues plaguing the WWE. That could not be any further from the truth. WWE Creative issues cannot be fixed by curse words, alcohol, and bathing suit matches. Men and women like Sasha Banks, Bayley, Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins are prepared to perform at the level needed to make fans of the product. Unfortunately, the problem is the stranglehold that WWE Creative has on every aspect of the product, stifling anything in the long run.
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John Cena’s response to the Undertaker is spot on. Today’s wrestling is different than that which brought in television ratings that dwarf what is seen in today’s product. Does that make the people working in the ring and behind the scenes any less than? The clear answer to that is no, not by a long shot.