3. John Cena Vs. Edge – Unforgiven 2006
WWE’s rivalry of 2006 was John Cena and Edge going head-to-head over the WWE Championship. The Rated-R Superstar was elevated to main event status as he won the WWE Championship twice, and the first time was by cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase at Cena’s expense at New Year’s Revolution. Weeks later, Cena regained the WWE Championship at the 2006 Royal Rumble.
Nevertheless, sandwiched in between Cena and Edge’s respective second WWE Championship reigns was Rob Van Dam’s three-week stint as the WWE Champion. Nonetheless, Cena and Edge’s rivalry continued to dominate the summer and fall of 2006.
Their TLC match for the WWE Championship at Unforgiven 2006 was arguably their best match against each other. Cena wasn’t a TLC match specialist, but he looked right at home in this bout. The stars aligned for Edge as he had the home-field advantage and the advantage of being comfortable in TLC matches.
Those two things didn’t matter in the end as Cena managed to weather the storm. Cena and Edge told an excellent story, with the pair going back and forth. Furthermore, the Rated-R Superstar sustained a lot of punishment by going through several tables. At the end, Cena clinched his third WWE Championship after he put Edge out of his misery by executing the AA through a couple of tables, with Cena retrieving the gold.
