Wrestlemania XXVIII Preview: The Rock vs. John Cena

Welcome Ladies and Marks to the first in a series of articles previewing the biggest match ups that will take place at the biggest event of the year!  So far, only one match has been officially announced for Wrestlemania 28, but have no fear, once the rest of the card is announced, you can count on me to preview it for you!


Let's get this thing started with John Cena vs. The Rock!


With one of the biggest matches of all time set to take place at this year's Wrestlemania, I find it necessary to analyze the critical factors that will come to play in the epic battle between The Rock and John Cena.  It's near impossible to determine who will win the war between these two titans, but what we CAN do is determine who really has the advantage going in.


Find out which of these legends is better prepared after the jump!







TALE OF THE TAPE





JOHN CENA

Hometown: West Newbury, MA
Age: 34
Height: 6'2"
Weight: 251 lb
Finishing Moves: Attitude Adjustment (AA), STF
Accomplishments: 12x World Champion (10 WWE, 2 World Heavyweight), 3x United States Champion, 4x Tag Team Champion, 2008 Royal Rumble winner, 2x Slammy Award winner, 8 Wrestlemania Main Events
Wrestlemania Record: 6-2





THE ROCK

Hometown: Miami, FL
Age: 39
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 275 lb
Finishing Moves: The Rock Bottom, The People's Elbow
Accomplishments: 9x World Champion (7 WWE, 2 World Heavyweight), 2x Intercontinental Champion, 5x Tag Team Champion, 2000 Royal Rumble winner, Sixth Triple Crown Champion (WWE, IC and Tag Team Champion), 6 Wrestlemania Main Events
Wrestlemania Record: 4-4





My Take: I think they stack up pretty evenly all things considered.  It's interesting to note that Cena has never managed to get his hands on the prestigious IC Championship.  On the flip side, The Rock has competed in fewer Wrestlemania Main Events than Cena, leaving him with a slight big match disadvantage.  Cena also possesses a better win-loss record at the event.





Needless to say, both men's resumes are very impressive.  Still, we can not decide who to bet our money on using these stats alone.  That gave me the idea of listing 10 ESSENTIAL categories that will help us decide! 





Fan Base


While a cynical viewer would note that John Cena has been receiving more boos than cheers as of late, he still possesses one of the most passionate fan bases in the history of the business.  The fan backlash is more a result of monkey see monkey do at this point then pure Cena hatred.  With that said, The Rock is arguably, the most popular superstar of all time.  Only two other performers (Hulk Hogan and Steve Austin) in WWE history can lay claim to louder reactions.  The Rock is also the only superstar able to elicit an equally loud crowd response without even being in the arena.  Going into Wrestlemania 28 in Miami, The Rock will have the hometown advantage, easily earning the support of the audience in attendance.

Advantage: Rock





Match Strategy


The Rock is not known to watch and study tape after tape (unless of course, you're talking about his own films).  Still, this has never caused a major problem for him.  Cena on the other hand, is always on top of his game and constantly trying to find ways to improve.  Focusing on this match alone, I'd say that Cena will probably watch the matches on The Rock's upcoming DVD and try to find a chink in the great one's armor.  Dwayne is also primarily focused on promoting his new film right now and doesn't seem to take John very seriously.  Boots to Asses may look cool on a T-shirt, but I don't think Triple H became known as 'The Game' by making sure he wore the right pair of shoes.

Advantage: Cena





Focus


John Cena has the big match advantage but he will have his work cut out for him heading into Miami on April 1st.  The crowd will boo him out of the building, but he is the WWE's greatest soldier when it comes to battling in enemy territory.  However, Cena has been very distracted by Kane as of late, keeping his mind occupied for the time being.  I know that most of you think that because The Rock has been promoting movies for most of the past year, that it will hinder him from keeping his eye on the prize, but that is not true.  You want proof?  Every time Rocky has made an appearance (however rare), he has made it a point to completely OWN John Cena....


...take this little nugget for example....

I think it's safe to say that John Cena has been on the losing end of this feud for the better half of the year, giving The Rock the utmost confidence going into the match.

Advantage: Rock





Ring Presence


Few men eclipse John Cena when it comes to intimidation and ring generalship.  Unfortunately, The Rock appears to be one of those few.  No other superstar in history has a more commanding presence than The Rock.  The minute he walks in an arena, he owns it.  With just one look, the biggest WWE superstars feel like Hornswoggle did when coming face to face with Mike Tyson.




Advantage: Rock





Momentum

This is a difficult area to grade given the fact that while Rocky makes seldom appearances, he has much more momentum going into the match in terms of one-upsmanship.  Cena competes much more often, but he has lost a bit of his aura as a result of the fan backlash and The Rock's polarizing shadow.

Advantage: Rock





Conditioning

Believe it or not, John Cena doesn't even do cardio.  He is a physical specimen we have not seen the likes of since Brock Lesnar.  His strength and stamina are the stuff of legend and he steadily improves in both areas.  The Rock has been training for the new GI JOE film and he looks to be in the best shape of his life.  I can't imagine either man slacking off in the gym heading into the biggest match of their careers.  Expect both Rock and Cena to arrive at Wrestlemania in peak condition.

Advantage: Neither





Toughness


The Rock has had some legendary hardcore wars with Mankind, but let's face facts.  While the great one may look impressive and physically imposing, he is very careful about damaging his 'hollywood looks' and shys away from matches that are too extreme.  Add in the fact that he hasn't been a full time competitor since 2002, and you have to realize that he may not be up to standard.  John Cena is one of the toughest superstars of all time.  He has a 'never say die' attitude and you can bet your ass he'll be bringing that with him into the Sun Life Stadium.

Advantage: Cena




Desire


Love him or hate him, John Cena is the single most passionate and dedicated WWE superstar today.  The Rock still can barely decide if he even wants to be a part of the company at all.  Cena has one goal in mind to cement his legacy, while The Rock has made the brutal mistake of underestimating the most dominant competitor in the sport.

Advantage: Cena





Repertoire


Neither man can claim that he is a technical mastermind, but both always seem to get the job done.  Here is the one category where The Rock and John Cena have a lot in common.  Both men utilize too many moves that offer style over substance.  Thus sparking the debate over the impact of the glorified fist drop vs. the glorified elbow. Both moves are flashy and effective but utterly ridiculous.  Fortunately, both men also have a lot of knockout power in their respective main finishing moves.  The Attitude Adjustment has rarely seen a kick out and the appropriately named Rock Bottom has earned The Rock many victories as well.  With that being said, I'd have to say that John Cena separates himself here by constantly innovating and improving his offense to ensure victories over a wide variety of opponents.

Advantage: Cena





Quality of Competition


The Rock has faced a who's who of WWE legends such as; The Undertaker, Triple H, Hulk Hogan, Kurt Angle, Chris Jericho, Mick Foley, The Big Show, Kane, Chris Benoit, Eddie Guerrero and most notably, Stone Cold Steve Austin.  Cena has defeated many of the same legends and has added some of the top talent of today like Randy Orton, Rey Mysterio, Dolph Ziggler, Batista, Edge and CM Punk.  It's reasonable to assume that The Rock edges Cena out here, but Cena has beaten his foes cleanly on multiple occasions, while The Rock even at his peak, had trouble beating many of the same superstars.  Add in the fact that Cena has beaten perhaps the WWE's greatest competitor, Shawn Michaels, in the main event of Wrestlemania 23 (the one legend The Rock has never faced), and that makes his legacy much more prominent.  A win over The Rock could easily place him above the most successful superstars of all time.

Advantage: Cena




Final Thoughts


This match up will go down as possibly, the biggest match of all time.  With everything on the line, neither man is going to want to lose here.  Still if I were a betting man, I would place my money on the competitor who's been on the road consistently over the past year.

Overall Advantage: John Cena







Thanks everyone for reading and I look forward to previewing the rest of the card with you all next month!



Let me know your thoughts,



Until then....

May the best man win!



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