It’s the Face That Runs The Place versus The Champ That Runs The Camp. A nearly year long rivalry between two of the biggest names of the industry of the past decade. On one side, is the reigning WWE Champion, AJ Styles, who dominated TNA, the indies and Japan for a decade. On the other hand, is the ultimate WWE Superstar of the 2000’s, the 15-time World Champion, John Cena.
Like most of the Royal Rumble card, including the Rumble itself, the “experts” all seem divided on what the outcome of this match could be, which is a testament to the unpredictability that WWE has instilled of late, after years of what felt like predictable or lazy booking. With the news that John Cena may be taking the summer off for filming commitments, both television and motion picture, there have been those saying that a WWE title run at this point may not be in the cards. Especially with AJ Styles so hot right now.
But what if this Royal Rumble match-up is actually leading to a recreation of sorts of the infamous Wrestlemania 13 “I Quit” match between Bret “Hitman” Hart and “Stone Cold” Steve Austin. Heading into the match, Hart was the undisputed face of the WWE, a hero to millions, a champion to young and old alike. His rival, “Stone Cold” Steve Austin, was a burgeoning heel, a reprehensible rattlesnake who had been tormenting many of the companies top faces in the previous year. But when Hart relentlessly attacked Austin throughout the match – using tactics more akin to the villains than the heroes – the crowd began to turn. And Austin’s resilience and unwillingness to give up, even when he was lying in a pool of his own blood by the matches end, also swayed the crowd. By the time the match was called due to Austin passing out, the crowd was now booing their hero Bret Hart and standing on their feet at the testicular fortitude of Steve Austin. It’s heralded as perhaps the greatest double turn in the history of the sport, with both Hitman and Stone Cold recalling this as one of their greatest matches.
The scene is set for potentially the exact same thing to happen this coming Sunday when WWE Champion AJ Styles – who has been coming to the ring to more and more vocal choruses of “AJ STYLES!” than before – faces John Cena, who has been showing slow signs of morphing back into this heel Thuganomics character from earlier in his career. The rhythmic, almost freestyle pace of some of his diatribes against Styles, his continual berating of the indie scene and, perhaps his most telling sign, the fact that a few weeks ago, he actually referred to the people who chant “John Cena sucks!” as “losers” on Smackdown Live. For years previous, Cena always stood up for even them, saying he loved the passion even they showed at live events. But now he was turning on them. The cracks were showing.
The New Era has seemed to get under John Cena’s skin, as more and more of his peers from his earlier days are disappearing. Where once stood Randy Orton, Dave Batista, Shelton Benjamin, Kurt Angle, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero, there is now AJ Styles, Seth Rollins, Kevin Owens, Cesaro and Bray Wyatt. Lesnar has returned, but even Orton has seemingly given in to the New Era, as a follower of Bray Wyatt. For all intents and purposes, Cena is the last vestibule of the old guard of the WWE. And he seems intent on not only showing that he still belongs in the WWE, but that he should be the greatest of all time. A win this Sunday will go a long way towards that, as he would tie with the record of 16 World Championships currently held by two-time WWE Hall of Famer “The Nature Boy” Ric Flair, one of the most revered icons of all time.
To the dismay of many fans, John Cena is going to tie Ric Flair this Sunday. But expect his actions to take a rather Thuggish approach, as he employs tactic after tactic unbecoming of the Hustle, Loyalty and Respect John Cena, and more of the Doctor of Thuganomics John Cena. By the time John Cena raises that belt for his 16th time, the crowd will be firmly behind AJ Styles, while the chorus of boos towards John Cena will rival that of even Roman Reigns. Like Bret Hart at Wrestlemania 13, the WWE’s greatest hero will become it’s destroyer. And like the Texas Rattlesnake on that same night years ago, we will see a new Southern hero rise from the ashes of defeat.
