Big Match John reminds everyone else that, even if he doesn't show "ruthless aggression" in the ring, he sure as hell does on the mic:
- On the last episode of Raw before WrestleMania XXVI, he delivers one to Batista, calling him out on being a Dirty Coward who hides behind security, should be fired for not doing his job properly, and thus proving that he can be beaten.
- On the July 18, 2011 episode of Raw, he delivers an epic one to Vince McMahon, calling him out on the Montreal Screwjob and what it did to Shawn Michaels' career and how he had no intention of being the next one to be Vince's fall guy and get a black mark on his career all just because Vince doesn't like the guy he's going up against. (If you're a Cena-lover, you'll relish this. If you're a Cena-hater, you're liable to just roll your eyes and think "There goes WWE's self-appointed moralist again.")
- Cena again delivers such a speech on the November 21, 2011 episode of Raw, reversing a planned Hannibal Lecture by Awesome Truth into a brilliant TRYSS, meant to drive the two cohorts against one another. It works.Two things happened last night; the world found out the Rock never lost it, he's just as good as he ever was, and now all eyes are focused on April 1 in Miami for Wrestlemania!... And two; nobody cares about you guys! AT! ALL! I mean after all this you try so hard to convince people that you're a legitimate threat. Everybody should be afraid of the Awesome Truth? You wanna know what's awesome? (To R-Truth) He thinks you're a wacked-out nutjob who never had any talent in the first place who's just riding his coat tails. (To The Miz) And you want to know what the truth is? The truth is he thinks you're a pompous, arrogant, attention stealing D-Lister whose greatest accomplishment was being a skinny loud mouth on a crappy reality show. But don't boo me, you should be booing yourselves.
- On the May 14, 2012 edition of Raw, John Cena was at it again, verbally tearing apart John Laurinaitis and his egotistical rule as General Manager of both Raw & SmackDown, calling him out on his It's All About Me mentality, chewing him out for firing the Big Show for mocking his voice while mocking his voice, and cutting him off whenever he started talking to call him a loser.
- He delivers a great one on CM Punk during the main event segment of the October 9, 2012 episode of RAW, calling out the recently heel-turned Punk on his vicious quest for "respect" and telling the supposed Voice of the Voiceless that his campaign for change in WWE was nothing more but Punk being in the business for himself.
- Interesting enough, John Cena delivers one on December 31, 2012 Raw, finishing up the show with a "messy" gift for both Dolph and AJ
. - He also called out Alberto Del Rio for beating up Rey Mysterio Jr. and calling himself a champion, even yelling at him "YOU ARE NOT A CHAMPION!"
- He did it again for a third time on the December 2, 2013 edition of RAW, this time to Randy Orton. He precedes it with a Big "SHUT UP!" before going right into his TRYSS, ripping Orton for essentially defecting from Evolution, and namely his mentors Ric Flair and Triple H, who saw huge potential in Orton. note He then finishes it off by brawling with Orton in a preview for their TLC Title Unification Match, putting him through a table.Randy Orton: C'mon, John, c'mon John, we have history, remember? I kicked your father in the head a few years ago. And since then, I've been making a hell of a career for myself, destroying the hopes and dreams of others and turning them into nightmares, which is exactly what I'm going to do to you at TLC. There's a reason they call me the Apex Predator, and despite all your accomplishments, all your achievements...the only reason you were put on God's green Earth is to lose the biggest match of your-
John Cena: Would you just shut up?! Honestly, these people are tired of you, you sound ridiculous — I turn dreams into nightmares! — where the hell did you get that one, a fortune cookie? The only dream you have ever turned into a nightmare is Triple H's, because ten years ago he chose you, to teach you how to be a success in the WWE. And what did you do about it? YOU NEVER LIVED UP TO YOUR POTENTIAL! EVER!
No no no no no, I don't fault him; he chose you because he saw what we all saw: you are the most gifted WWE Superstar ever. You make every single thing in this ring look easy. But with that you got cocky, and you got a bad attitude to boot, and then you got lazy. You were the YOUNGEST WWE Champion in history! This mannote gave you Hall-of-Fame mentors to learn from, and what did you do? Kicked back, relaxed, and let some scrappy kid in a t-shirt and a ball cap ruin his dream! I AM NOT YOU, Randy Orton! I am John Cena! I have never been asked to be called the face of ANYTHING! I'm just the first to show up, and the last to leave. And that's the way it is, Jack.
But you sit over there steaming mad, thinking you should be given opportunity because of your family legacy, thinking you should be given opportunity because of your talent. Why don't you think in one hand and crap in the other, see which one fills up first? - The next week, on the "Championship Ascension" ceremony at the Slammy Awards during the December 9th episode of Raw, he ripped into Orton for his laziness (again) and also for having no respect for the title he held or for the Hall of Famers who had assembled onstage for the ceremony:Cena: It's funny... I couldn't help but noticed you used the word "work." Little example for one second... [pulls Daniel Bryan to the center of the ring to a massive home state pop] Tell these people your name, please.
Daniel Bryan: My name is Daniel Bryan.
Cena: We'll get to know you a little more. Has your mother or father ever been a WWE Superstar or champion, at all?
Bryan: No, my father is a long-scaler actually.
Cena: So... since you've been here, you've had to work for everything you've got?
Bryan: YES. [Crowd goes into massive "YES" chant.]
Cena: You hear that? The reason they cheer for him is because he works and he earns it. A guy like you has been given every! single! thing in the WWE! I'm about to hit you in the face with some truth. Ever since you came to the WWE training center, you were untouchable, you were bullet-proof, you couldn't be fired. Nobody could touch Randy Orton because THEY liked you. And then you get to the WWE and what happens? You get sheltered behind the best performer in the business. Nothing's changed, Randy. All you do is hide behind Triple H. All you do is hide behind Stephanie McMahon. And you got the balls to stand in this ring and say you're better than anybody here?! You say you're bigger than all of this?
You have always blamed everyone else for your failures, you've pointed fingers and you've made excuses. You've had behavior problems in the ring, you've had behavior problems outside the ring, and the sad thing is, the TLC match this Sunday is the biggest in WWE history. That is why everybody is here tonight; this changes the very course of the WWE. But you want these championships because you're selfish, because you feel you deserve it, and maybe, just maybe, if you hold onto this, you can finally walk around with the rest of the superstars and say "Hey guys, look. I'm finally what I was supposed to be 10 years ago."
Every single time I have held either of these championships, my business card has remained the same: "You want some, come get some." And here's the real truth: Whether these guys in the ring like me or not, they respect me because they know it. Whether it's Triple H or it's Shawn Michaels in a WrestleMania match, whether it's Booker T... hell, nobody wanted to give Dolph Ziggler a chance, what did I do? I said "Let's fight." Everybody said it was a bad idea to give CM Punk a championship match when he was going to leave the WWE! All I saw was "The Best in the World." Hell, the only legitimate championship shot that Daniel Bryan's ever had was against ME! AND HE WON!
[To Daniel Bryan] So I'll say it right here in front of your home town. If I win this Sunday, I look forward to the rematch. A FAIR rematch. (Cena and Bryan shake hands)
You see, that's what being a champion is all about, a certain level of respect, and last week I wasn't going to take you out. I just wanted to make a statement. That when the chips are down, I can be just as brutal as you. So right now, I'm gonna make one more statement because I know exactly what this [the heavyweight championship belt] means. (holds out his hand to Orton) This Sunday will be physical. And it will be brutal. And I will be at my very best. I just hope you are too, because after this Sunday, the last thing anyone is going to want to deal with... is just another Randy Orton excuse. Good luck on Sunday. You're gonna need it. - He gives a rather epic one to Stephanie McMahon on June 6, 2014 over how she and The Authority had treated Daniel Bryan, telling her that every time he comes close to becoming a champion, she screws him over.
- Cena absolutely lambasted Miz and Maryse on the March 28, 2017 episode of SmackDown Live, reminding them that they're hypocrites, that Maryse does nothing but show up and hang around Miz, and that Miz himself constantly runs his mouth despite having no desire to fight anyone, much less fight Cena.With you two, it's not just a joke. You actually believe what you're saying is true, and it couldn't be further from the truth. [to Maryse] Like you. You actually believe that [Nikki] kept you from coming back to WWE, yet you're standing in a ring right now. How the hell could that even happen?! Here's the truth, and it's gonna sting a little bit; they didn't ask you back because they didn't want you back, because when you were here before, you didn't do jack. You don't believe me? Get on the WWE Network right now and search for "Best of Maryse." You find this [Makes a 0 with his hand].
[To Miz] And you? You got my life all planned out. This is just a 15-year plan for me to use the WWE as a vaulting board to Hollywood so I can go on to the red carpet and leave WWE in the dust. Man, are you high? I'm as brand loyal as Vince McMahon, and hell, I'm not even cool about it! Everybody here knows I'm loyal to the WWE. Hell, half of em hate me for it! They want me to go but they can't get rid of me!
Mike... I'm doing a movie. And then I'm coming back. A lot of superstars do this, guys. Triple H has done it, Randy Orton's done it, Sheamus has done it, Seth Rollins has done it, Dean Ambrose has done it, and oh wait... you've done it. It slipped my mind for a second because the only movies you're in are crappy bootlegs of movies I already made.
No, it's cool, because at least you're doing something. I'm still trying to figure out what [To Maryse] you're doing here. Did you know that right now, there is a women's revolution going on? And that means each and every week, women aren't just allowed, they are encouraged to step in this ring and prove that they are just as good, if not better, than men. I don't know if you guys saw this, but last week, Nicole picked up a dude who was 210 pounds and threw him around like he was a waste of space. [To Maryse] Every week, you show up, steal a paycheck, and you are a waste of space.
And you wanna knock Nicole for not having kids? How long y'all been married? How many kids you got? Let me just crunch the numbers real quick... none. What, you firing blanks there, sport? [Cup checks Miz.]
Where we come from, if you fail, if you get knocked down, you just get back up and move on. If you guys so much as stumble, you blame everybody else, it's never your fault, and there's always an excuse. And that type of attitude, you create this ego where you're unbeatable, unstoppable, untouchable, but Mike... that's not real, dude. And real is gonna punch you straight in the mouth this Sunday. - Roman Reigns tries to deliver one to him, and receives an epic one in return when Cena calls out what the world feels about Reigns. Cena's "failure" speech would later come into play when Samoa Joe brought this back again in the RAW after WrestleMania 34.Cena: This (pointing at contract), this is the reason I came to Monday Night Raw, to be in this ring, face to face with the man who says he runs the yard. With the Big Dog. With The Guy... Ever since Roman Reigns has set foot in the ring, he hasn't just been the blue chip prospect. He has been the blue chip prospect that has been protected against anyone and everyone that steps in his path.
—
Cena: They go back and forth with you, because when they look at you, they see what I see; a cheap-ass, corporately-created, John Cena bootleg. This chump right here, he ain't The Guy. Dude, you're just a guy. A guy trying so desperately to fill shoes that you never will.
—
Reigns: The reason why they boo you, is because they see right through you. You're a phony. You're a yes man who can learn how to do anything, or be anything. So if you wrap all that up, you're just a fake bitch.... He's a part-timing, fake-ass bitch. And I'll be damned if I don't bust my ass Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, every single week, so you can hang out on the Today Show. Then jump on this big 'ol bus, and hell, maybe I'll come to a WWE show if they paid me enough. But what are you really gonna do, John? What are you gonna do, huh? You're gonna jump off that bus with that big ass shovel. That big shovel, that's what you're gonna do, and you're gonna bury as much young talent as you can. Because that's what you do right? That's how you stay on top of the mountain. You'll do anything. You're just a backstabbing shark, but the thing is the reason why you don't like me, what irritates you about me? You can't bury me John. You can't touch me. Hell I think this is fitting. I'm the one guy in the WWE that John Cena can't see. So now tell me this, why would I lessen myself, my legacy, my bloodline, to be the next John Cena, when I can be the one and only Roman Reigns?
—
Cena: You done? You see, because Roman Reigns is a fool. Roman Reigns is a damn fool. There's an old saying, it's better to keep your mouth shut and let people think you're stupid than open it and prove 'em right. You, of all people, you waltz down here and use the same pathetic excuse that every other single person before you has done. You, with all your gifts, and all your opportunities, you have the gall to blame me. That's fine, that's fine, Big Dog. Congratulations, it took you five years to cut a halfway decent promo but now I'm about to shrink you down to size.
—
OK. So everybody back there thinks I've got this mythical golden shovel; that I've got these magical powers that I can control everything and keep everybody's fate. Dude, I can't tell if you're blind or stupid. Look and listen, they [He points at the crowd.] hold the keys, they always have, they always will. But, you gotta blame me. Fine, I've been hearing the same racket for 10 years, and I ain't tired of it yet. I'm strong enough, I've been called a lot worse by a lot tougher.
—
But you actually believe that I'm a shark, that I hold everybody down, that I swim to the top and and keep 'em underwater at any and all costs. I haven't main-evented WrestleMania in 5 years. I was the opening match at SummerSlam. I was honored and privileged to earn the United States title at this stage in my career, and use it as a beacon of opportunity to introduce new superstars to the WWE like Kevin Owens and AJ Styles, just to name a few.
—
You took the US title as a demotion, and you stand there and blame me. Fine, I blame you. I'm still here because you can't do your job!
—
When it comes to this yard, you probably haven't learned it yet, there is only one rule: Step up or step aside! And over the years, there's been a few to step up, but nobody to ever keep up! And then I finally hear about this one guy, The Guy, The Roman Reigns, THE one that can keep up... And now I look at ya, and I listen to ya... You should be ashamed I'm a part-timer, 'cause I can do this part-time better than you could ever do it full-time. - After failing to secure his WrestleMania 34 spot at Fastlane 2018, Cena goes back to his original plan of calling out The Undertaker at the March 12, 2018 edition of RAW by delivering a combined What the Hell, Hero?, Get A Hold Of Yourself Man, and You Are Better Than You Think You Are variation of this trope over The Undertaker's massive slump since WrestleMania 33, going so far as to test his manhood and taking a few jabs on his broken ego, bringing up Taker's then-recent workout videos with Michelle McCool on Instagram to prove his point. This is later followed by a Rousing Speech for The Undertaker, as Cena asks if the fans wanted to see the Deadman kick his ass and Tombstone him in front of 75,000 people at WrestleMania 34.Cena: So, allow me to address The Undertaker himself; get over your own ego! You see, the difference between you and me is when I fail, I get back up, I put a smile on my face, and I go to work to kick ass the next day. When you fail... When you fail, you hide your head in the sand, never to be seen from again, because you’re so ashamed and embarrassed of what people will say about you. Amazing that a symbol so strong is really so fragile. And stop hiding behind your lame excuses. You're not too old, you're not washed-up, you are not broken down, 'cuz if he was broken down, you wouldn't be posting workout videos on your wife's Instagram! The only person stopping this match from happening is you, you self-centered, conceited, egomaniac! So if it takes feeding your ego to make it happen, allow me to try my best. Do you want to see The Undertaker kick my ass at WrestleMania? (the crowd cheers) Do you want to see The Undertaker Tombstone me in front of 75,000 people at WrestleMania!? (the crowd cheers louder) They want to see it, and I'd like to see you try it. So, Undertaker? At WrestleMania this year, I'm either going as a fan; which would be awesome, 'cuz I hope you're going, too. It's gonna be a party. Or I'm going as your opponent, which will be history. The ball is in your court, Deadman. Time to see if you're still alive. If I was you, I know what I would do; I would want one... more... match.
