{"id":148116,"date":"2025-12-09T09:00:43","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T14:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/?p=148116"},"modified":"2025-12-08T23:38:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-09T04:38:13","slug":"john-cenas-5-best-wwe-world-title-wins-ranked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/12\/09\/john-cenas-5-best-wwe-world-title-wins-ranked\/","title":{"rendered":"John Cena&#8217;s 5 Best WWE World Title Wins, Ranked"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;The Never Seen 17&#8221; John Cena&#8217;s WWE career is coming to an end this week at Saturday Night&#8217;s Main Event on December 13, 2025. Cena will face two-time World Heavyweight Champion Gunther, and it promises to be an emotional night in the final match of his legendary wrestling career.<\/p>\n<p>Nevertheless, the GOAT is one of the most recognizable world champions in WWE history. He&#8217;s a record-setting 14-time WWE Champion and a three-time World Heavyweight Champion. Some of Cena&#8217;s world title victories were memorable, and others were forgettable.<\/p>\n<p>RELATED: <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/12\/05\/5-times-john-cena-main-evented-a-wwe-ple-he-shouldnt-have\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">5 Times John Cena Main Evented A WWE PLE He Shouldn&#8217;t Have<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Cena&#8217;s beaten some of the all-time greats to clinch a world championship in WWE. He&#8217;s battled in different gimmick matches to secure his 17 world title wins. Furthermore, Cena chasing a world championship is an interesting storyline to see how many times it takes Cena to get over the line.<\/p>\n<p>An honorable mention goes to Cena&#8217;s first WWE Championship win over John &#8220;Bradshaw&#8221; Layfield at WrestleMania 21. While the title match itself wasn&#8217;t great, it is a significant moment that kicked it all off in Cena&#8217;s iconic career.<\/p>\n<h2>5. John Cena Vs. Randy Orton &#8211; Bragging Rights 2009<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"FULL MATCH: Randy Orton vs. John Cena | WWE Title WWE Iron Man Match: Bragging Rights 2009\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/f_Oh-CDFUHE?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The WWE Championship became a yo-yo between John Cena and Randy Orton in 2009. They traded the WWE Championship three times. Cena and Orton clashed in the sixth Iron Man match in WWE history at Bragging Rights. There was a caveat, as Cena would move to SmackDown if he failed to regain the WWE Championship from Orton. Their Iron Man match was also Falls Count Anywhere.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/05\/10\/all-john-cena-vs-randy-orton-wwe-ple-matches-ranked\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">Cena and Orton had a good match here<\/span><\/a>, with both men desperate to escape with the WWE Championship in their clutches. The scores were 5-5, and the closing stages were tense. Orton attempted his devastating Punt Kick, but Cena averted trouble. Cena cinched in the STF for almost a minute, and with five seconds to spare, Cena forced Orton to submit to the STF. The leader of the Cenation became a seven-time world champion.<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2>4. John Cena Vs. Batista &#8211; WrestleMania XXVI<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"FULL MATCH \u2014 Batista vs. John Cena \u2014 WWE Title Match: WrestleMania XXVI\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/fIgMCtwyDc4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>One thing that John Cena hadn&#8217;t achieved by the time WrestleMania XVI rolled around was defeating Batista in a one-on-one PLE match. At Elimination Chamber 2010, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/11\/18\/john-cenas-17-wwe-world-title-reigns-ranked\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">Cena won his eighth world championship<\/span><\/a> inside the Elimination Chamber. However, Cena&#8217;s joy was short-lived. Batista was awarded a WWE Championship match, and the Animal destroyed Cena to become a six-time WWE world champion.<\/p>\n<p>Cena and Batista had a rematch for the WWE Championship on the Grandest Stage of Them All. Their WWE Championship match was massively underrated, and they put on a good match. Batista threw the kitchen sink at Cena, but Cena hadn&#8217;t forgotten about what had happened to him at Elimination Chamber.<\/p>\n<p>Cena regained the WWE Championship with the STF, and the victory was the first time that the WWE Championship changed hands at WrestleMania since he dethroned JBL for the title five years prior.<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2>3. John Cena Vs. Randy Orton &#8211; Breaking Point 2009<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"FULL MATCH: Randy Orton vs. John Cena | WWE Title &quot;I Quit&quot; Match: WWE Breaking Point 2009\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/MkImSUkk4Js?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The rivalry between John Cena and Randy Orton truly heated up in 2009. They feuded in 2007 over the WWE Championship in a series of matches, but their feud a couple of years later was at its peak.<\/p>\n<p>Orton retained the WWE Championship against Cena at SummerSlam, but three weeks later, they clashed in an &#8220;I Quit&#8221; match for the WWE Championship at Breaking Point 2009. However, Orton would&#8217;ve been stripped of the title had anyone interfered on his behalf.<\/p>\n<p>Arguably, this was the best match in their rivalry in 2009, which was well constructed. Orton was sadistic by handcuffing Cena to the ring post, and he showed no mercy by nailing Cena repeatedly in the sternum with a Singapore cane.<\/p>\n<p>Cena showcased his toughness by refusing to utter the words &#8220;I Quit&#8221; and breaking free from the handcuffs. Fans couldn&#8217;t decide who to back with chants of &#8220;Let&#8217;s go Cena&#8221; and &#8220;Let&#8217;s go Orton&#8221; reverberating around the arena.<\/p>\n<p>The Viper attempted to retrieve the keys that tied the handcuffs. However, Cena reacted rapidly and applied the STF, leaving Orton no choice but to quit. With the win, Cena secured his sixth WWE world championship and one of his most important victories.<\/p>\n<p><!--nextpage--><\/p>\n<h2>2. John Cena Vs. Edge &#8211; Unforgiven 2006<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"FULL MATCH: Edge vs. John Cena | WWE Title TLC Match: WWE Unforgiven 2006\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/xu4jZEP-fpc?start=3&#038;feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Competing in hostile environments doesn&#8217;t faze John Cena one single iota. As far as the WWE Championship is concerned, Cena will do anything to hold the gold. The roles were reversed at Unforgiven 2006.<\/p>\n<p>Cena had the hometown advantage in his WWE Championship match with Edge in Boston at SummerSlam 2006, but at Unforgiven, the Rated-R Superstar had the Toronto crowd on his side. Cena challenged Edge for the WWE Championship in a TLC match, which was the first time that Cena competed in a TLC match.<\/p>\n<p>For sure, it was a huge hurdle for Cena to overcome as Edge had the experience in a TLC match and the home-field advantage. Nevertheless, they hit a home run in one of the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/10\/14\/definitive-rival-john-cena-in-wwe-the-goats-greatest-enemy\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_self\">greatest TLC matches in history<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Edge&#8217;s hatred for Cena was there for everyone to see. Cena was booed heavily as expected, but both competitors had a stellar performance. Edge did his trademark spear off the ladder to Cena onto the ground, which was perfectly executed.<\/p>\n<p>In the closing stages, Edge took a couple of brutal table bumps. Lita nailed Cena in the back with a steel chair, into Cena, who inadvertently pushed Edge off the ladder. Moments later, Edge regrouped but fell victim to an AA from Cena through a couple of tables, with Cena regaining the WWE Championship. Cena&#8217;s third WWE Championship win was academic as he went <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/12\/02\/john-cenas-3-longest-and-3-shortest-wwe-championship-reigns\/5\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">on to hold the title for 380 days<\/span><\/a>.<\/p>\n<h2>1. John Cena Vs. AJ Styles &#8211; Royal Rumble 2017<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"FULL MATCH - AJ Styles vs. John Cena - WWE Championship Match: Royal Rumble 2017\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/MLylfh3atzA?start=1458&#038;feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Arguably, <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/2025\/12\/03\/john-cenas-top-5-matches-that-cemented-his-wwe-legacy\/\" target=\"_self\"><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\">WWE&#8217;s 2017 match of the year was John Cena and AJ Styles&#8217; WWE Championship match<\/span> <\/a>at the Royal Rumble. Cena and Styles&#8217; WWE Championship match was worthy of headlining WrestleMania; that&#8217;s how good it was. They were unfortunate not to go on last as a show-stealer. Cena attempted to capture a then-record equaling 16th world championship. Cena and Styles&#8217; chemistry was remarkable, and the Phenomenal One was celebrating one year since he debuted in WWE.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_147684\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-147684\" style=\"width: 640px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-147684 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/11-3-1024x566.jpg\" alt=\"A WWE graphic featuring John Cena and matches that cemented his legacy.\" width=\"640\" height=\"354\" srcset=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/11-3-1024x566.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/11-3-300x166.jpg 300w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/11-3-768x425.jpg 768w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/11-3-1536x850.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/15\/2025\/12\/11-3.jpg 1918w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-147684\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo Credit: WWE<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Styles expertly targeted Cena&#8217;s ribs throughout, and he was unable to put Cena away with the Phenomenal Forearm. The exchanges were brilliant between the two veterans, and the fans were captivated by what they were witnessing. The crowd went nuts when Styles connected with the Styles Clash, but Cena kicked out.<\/p>\n<p>Fans thought it was over when Cena connected with an Avalanche AA, but Styles wasn&#8217;t going to surrender the WWE Championship easily. Styles connected with another Styles Clash but was unable to capitalize. The leader of the Cenation ensured that the Champ is Here for the 16th time as he put Styles away with a couple of AA&#8217;s.<\/p>\n<p><strong><b>More From LWOS Pro Wrestling<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em><i>Header photo \u2013 WWE \u2013 Stay tuned to the\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/\" target=\"_self\"><em><u><i>Last Word on Pro Wrestling<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i> for more on John Cena and other stories from around the world of wrestling, as they develop. You can always count on LWOPW to be on top of the major news in the wrestling world, as well as to provide you with analysis, previews, videos, interviews, and editorials on the wrestling world.<\/i><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em><i>You can check out WWE programming on\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.netflix.com\/title\/81788927\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Netflix<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(Raw),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usanetwork.com\/wwe-friday-night-smackdown\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>USA Network<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(SmackDown),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cwtv.com\/shows\/wwe-nxt\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>The CW<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(NXT),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/tubitv.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Tubi<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Evolve),\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aetv.com\/wwe\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>A&amp;E<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Superstar Sunday \u2013 Rivals, WWE LFG, and Greatest Moments), and\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.peacocktv.com\/watch\/home\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>Peacock<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>\u00a0(WWE Main Event, as well as archives and premium live event streaming). Follow WWE on social media to relive top moments and matches on\u00a0<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/wwe\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>YouTube<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>, and catch fast-paced action on X (<\/i><\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/i\/events\/1773457579022155776?lang=en\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><em><u><i>WWE Speed<\/i><\/u><\/em><\/a><em><i>).<\/i><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;The Never Seen 17&#8221; John Cena&#8217;s WWE career is coming to an end this week at Saturday Night&#8217;s Main Event on December 13, 2025. Cena will face two-time World Heavyweight Champion Gunther, and it promises to be an emotional night in the final match of his legendary wrestling career. Nevertheless, the GOAT is one of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5695,"featured_media":148162,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[7205,4,3],"tags":[165],"class_list":["post-148116","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-history","category-wwe","category-wwe-universe","tag-john-cena"],"modified_by":"Michael Joseph Sugue, Manager","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148116","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5695"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148116"}],"version-history":[{"count":29,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148116\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":148164,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148116\/revisions\/148164"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148162"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148116"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=148116"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/prowrestling\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=148116"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}