The following is a recap of John Cena’s appearance on tonight’s new WWE Off The Top Rope segment on ESPN SportsCenter with Jonathan Coachman:
After a video hyping Sunday’s WWE Elimination Chamber PPV, Coach welcomed Cena to the show and asks about Cena’s 16th title win. Cena says he’s most proud of still being able to perform this way, and he loves wrestling so he’s far from retiring, and considers himself to be at his best now. He says Ric Flair congratulated him and it was very humbling, and he says he also shared a moment with referee Charles Robinson (who also officiated Flair’s 16th title win), and it all sunk in. Cena says AJ Styles has pushed him to be his best, and Styles worked to get to WWE, and now he himself had to work to prove he was still the best after Styles questioned it.
Coach brings up Cena’s career outside of wrestling, and asks for some quick answers about his various hosting gigs. Coach starts with the ESPY’s, and Cena calls it nerve wracking and gratifying. He talks about his TODAY show appearances, and Cena says they treat him like family and he is thankful for the opportunity. Cena says he’s been a part of some great films, and he has one coming up called The Wall, and it’s good because he gets roles that are not what he’s used to. Cena says hosting the Nickelodeon Kids Choice is fun because he gets to give back and have fun, and gets to slime everyone.
Coach says he wants to get serious again, and asks what you need to step inside such a dangerous match like the Elimination Chamber. Cena cuts a promo about the match and what the stakes are, and says he stands confident and tall that he will leave the Chamber with his WWE Championship.
Coach says that leads him into the next question, and brings up Cena not wrestling last year, and asks what it means to him this year. Cena says he was told he wouldn’t be there last year but he worked to get back there, and now he’s ready after taking a bit of a back seat and it feels like a Super Bowl to him.
Cena talks about Tom Brady’s Super Bowl win last week, and he says they have some similarities about working to be the best at their jobs, and he knows it meant a lot to New England. Cena says there was a great appreciation and admiration from him for the way the Patriots won and how hard Brady works to be the best.
