John Cena's top five matches of all time

The champ is here for one last WrestleMania match. Newly minted villain John Cena is looking to take the title from Cody Rhodes, take the record from Ric Flair, and ruin our favorite show before he retires with its top prize. It is frankly hard to tell if he will succeed in any or all of these endeavors. However, can he also take the cake and have his last WrestleMania be his best? To know that, it helps to consider the top five John Cena WrestleMania matches as they stand so far.

Honorable Mentions: The Undertaker and The Rock

Dream matches do not always pan out how you would hope. John Cena knows that well, with not one but three WrestleMania fights touted as a dream match that did not live up totally to the hype. Some of that was self-inflicted by the WWE, like booking "once in a lifetime" twice in back-to-back years. Cena and The Rock put on solid matches, and as two of the biggest stars in the promotion history, fans were willing to be interested. WWE did very little to respect fan intrigue, though, and the rarity factor was totally abolished by WrestleMania 29.

Other matches, like his brief fight with The Undertaker, were just poorly wrestled. In what was only their third matchup, Cena, desperate for a WrestleMania match, tried to coax the recently retired Undertaker back for a match at WrestleMania. The build was very good and was carried entirely by a very entertaining Cena each week. The match itself fell flat. What should have been a dream match became nothing more than a glorified segment.

The Firefly Funhouse Match at WrestleMania 36

If John Cena hadn't beaten the late great Bray Wyatt in their last match, this would have been a dud for a lot of people. Some fans liked everything about the creative genius that Bray brought to WWE. Others did not share in his vision of sports entertainment. Both factions, though, could get behind Wyatt's Fiend persona getting the win back at WrestleMania. With no fans in attendance due to COVID-19 lockdowns, the build had a lot of pretaped segments, which allowed the creative team to flex their talents.

WrestleMania itself was also closed to the public, so the cinematic match was timed perfectly to coincide with the location where 100% of the crowd was watching: at home. The match itself was a tribute and satire of the pro wrestling industry and John Cena's status as the face of it for so long. All the history and lore between the two of them, and WWE more broadly, was up for grabs, and they both went to work twisting it to extract a bizarre sense of entertainment out of it. It remains one of the most ambitious things WWE has tried with its format and was, by and large, a success.

JBL vs John Cena at WrestleMania 21

As the adage goes, you always remember your first. John Cena is looking to break the record in his next WrestleMania matchup, having won 17 world titles if he defeats Cody Rhodes. The journey to 17 begins with a single strap, though. John Cena took the WWE Championship off of JBL in a WrestleMania match that would launch the Massachusetts rapper into the highest echelon of pro wrestling icons. It was blue collar and white collar, and Cena was the hardscrabble guy from modest means relying on grit to succeed while Batista was becoming the face of Monday Night Raw, and presumably the company itself on the same show if he and Cena's Royal Rumble botch was any indication.

John Cena rose to the occasion, blending his former edge with his newfound popularity to become the people's choice against a coincidentally perfect foil in the elitist and self-important Bradshaw. Both men added to a solid wrestling card, in hindsight, overshadowing the rest of the matches. The match was typical of Cena's in that era, which is to say, rudimentary in its structure and layout. However, sometimes, the best part of the match is how it ends. John Cena's becoming the new champion set him up to surpass Batista and end up as the top guy in WWE.

Batista vs. John Cena at WrestleMania 26

In 2010, John Cena was well-established as the face that runs the place in WWE. His 2010 opponent for WrestleMania ended up being the man that he surpassed, and he rose to prominence the same night in 2005, Batista. Firmly an arrogant heel at this time, Batista sided with the powers that be to take the title off John Cena in an unfair impromptu match. Their real-world connections were then used to add depth to a pretty simple story: Cena wanted his title back. This drive is what set up two of the biggest stars of their era and two future Hollywood blockbuster actors to face off at WrestleMania with the world title on the line.

The match is exactly as one would expect, with two of the biggest stars in the company facing off. These weren't icons passing the torch or stars of tomorrow facing off today. John Cena was the unquestionable biggest face in wrestling, and Batista was one of its top heels. They both came up together, got famous together, and became world champions at WrestleMania together. There was not a bigger match or two bigger performers to put together in 2010 than those two, and their physically grueling "test of wills," as Cena would presciently predict it would become, is a top addition to his work on the WrestleMania platform.

Rusev vs John Cena at WrestleMania 31

Most people remember the tank, and it was cool that Rusev had a tank at WrestleMania 31. It was also a fantastic match that not only proved John Cena capable of performing anywhere on the card but also revived his career and kicked off a string of even better matches. The United States championship open challenge was a direct result of this match, and it was really the first high-work rate match in a string of them that revived the performer and the title that topped WWE's mid-card division.

Rusev smashes his role, allowing John Cena fans to see all of John's classic stuff while still looking strong. Cena's patented resilience, something he plays at better than almost any of his colleagues at the top of the WWE Universes pantheon, was also on point for the 20-something-minute bout. It made Rusev look good that Cena was in such a fight, and it allowed Rusev to build on his frustration that it wasn't enough until Cena capitalized. It would not meet the standards of several open challenge matches later, but it started them all and is an iconic addition to the Cena at Mania canon.

Shawn Michaels vs. John Cena at WrestleMania 23

John Cena is a legend, but he is no "Mr. WrestleMania." Most of his big moments happened on other shows; even with 16 matches, his successes are more prominent on different shows. He is not a WrestleMania allstar. It should be no surprise, then, that his best WrestleMania match was with Mr. WrestleMania himself, Shawn Michaels. Each WrestleMania, HBK would ascend into a tier above all others for a night. John Cena, for his part, didn't just meet the demands of his legendary challenger; he surpassed them and made an incredible match for WrestleMania that both can consider among their best work.

The build-up worked well, with the veteran Michaels teaming with the young champion for a while as tag team champions. Ultimately, it became clear he wanted the world title for himself, and the duo put on a fantastic match at that year's WrestleMania. As with so many of the Cena matches, it was chock full of story beats and moments. As with many of Shawn's matches on the grandest stage, the action was top-notch, and both guys gave it bad, got beat down, and groaned back up with determination. Keeping up with the showstopper on his home court helped John prove he is clearly as talented as WWE portrayed him.

Will Cody Rhodes land in the top five John Cena WrestleMania Matches?

There is plenty of reason to assume that Cody and John will find themselves in future discussions of the top five John Cena WrestleMania matches. The match is between generations: a retiring 16-time champion vs a man in his first-ever world title reign. The heel turn alone will make the match memorable as, for the first time ever, Cena is the aggressor, and the boos that greet him will be how he intended it. There is a lot to digest with this match as a story, which is where Cena thrives. Cody Rhodes, for his part, is an excellent storyteller and an even better wrestler when the bell rings. The balance should be just right for a new classic to emerge right as John calls it a career.