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A graphic of WWE legend John Cena.
December 8, 2025 By  History, WWE, WWE Universe

5 WWE Wrestlers that John Cena Couldn’t Get “Over”

Rene Dupree

  • Number Of Singles Matches On PPV: 1
  • John Cena’s Wins: 1 (Judgment Day 2004)
  • Rene Dupree’s Wins: None
  • Rene Dupree’s WWE Accomplishments: 1x World Tag Team Champion; 1x WWE Tag Team Champion

This is easily the most controversial entry on this list, as John Cena himself was still relatively green when he feuded with Rene Dupree over the United States Championship. The former La Resistance member was drafted from Raw to SmackDown after WrestleMania 20. Dupree had already been World Tag Team Champion on the red brand and was the youngest titleholder in WWE history at that time.

A photo of former John Cena WWE rival, Rene Dupree.
Photo Credit: By Spc. Sherree Casper – http://www.defendamerica.mil/articles/Dec2004/a122104cm5.html, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=946537

Meanwhile, Cena had just won the US Title from Big Show in the opener of ‘Mania 20. Their feud wasn’t necessarily bad, but it was largely forgettable. John Cena retained the belt against Rene at Judgment Day (as well as a few multi-person matches throughout the spring) before moving on to a much bigger program with Booker T.

Meanwhile, Dupree briefly returned to the tag team division, teaming with Kenzo Suzuki, and slowly moved down the card.

About Tomás Cunha

Tomás Cunha is a Portuguese freelance wrestling writer and editor with nearly a decade of experience. Before joining Last Word on Sports, Tomás worked for notable pro wrestling websites such as TheSportster, WhatCulture and WrestleTalk. Aside from pro wrestling, Tomás enjoys watching football/soccer and he is a massive supporter of both FC Porto and the Portuguese National Team.

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