For over 20 years, John Cena travelled the world as one of WWE’s most accomplished superstars, including multiple visits to Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Ironically enough, he last time the 17-time World Champion was in Edmonton was August 22nd, 2011, where he defeated CM Punk in a #1 contenders matchup for the World Heavyweight Championship. Shortly after, Cena would go on to defeat Alberto Del Rio to earn his 10th title.
This weekend, however, saw a very different type of appearance from the Never Seen 17, as Cena made an appearance at the Edmonton Expo, taking part in both a meet-and-greet and a show-closing Q&A panel. For over an hour, the G.O.A.T answered a wide variety of fan questions, including his recent retirement from professional wrestling, his roles as both Peacemaker and in the recently-released Coyote vs. Acme, and more. Personally, being based in Alberta, I was all too eager to ask Cena about his recent teaching session at the Dungeon 2.0.
The Dungeon, of course, is run by current WWE Superstar, Nattie, and producer TJ Wilson. Both Nattie and Wilson, of course, are part of the legendary Hart Family, with their training facility representing an extension of the legendary Hart Dungeon in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The duo have continued to use their platform to empower the next generation of professional wrestlers, and I was thrilled to ask Cena not only about the advice he passed down to their students, but what Nattie and TJ truly mean to the wrestling business.
“TJ and Nattie are awesome,” began Cena. “They’re awesome folks. They move through space with kindness. TJ’s like a ‘kind curmudgeon’. He’s got a hidden sarcasm to him, but he wants to bring the best out of everybody. They wouldn’t be doing what they’re doing – keep in mind, there’s no fees at the Dungeon. It’s invite only. You don’t pay, and they make you better. That sort of business model resonates with me, where they’re losing money just to give some wisdom. I really admire that, because some of the early mentors of my life had the same sort of model. They just bet on folks they believed in. I think that speaks volumes about them as people, to be able to invest their own money with no return on investment rather than just the joy they get from watching people passionate about the business.”
Cena then moved on to discuss the advice he passed on to the Dungeon students.
“What did I teach? I’m retired, and I’m retired for a reason. I’m scuffed up. If I had any life left, I wouldn’t be teaching in a ring. I’d be trying to fall down in front of an audience, because that’s what I love the most. I tend to watch a lot, and then give active feedback. The thing that I see the most, and the thing I saw at the Dungeon, it’s a universal truth – the little things. People don’t stress the little things. The little things can make what we do beautiful.”
“I think CM Punk is doing some of his best work with the little things,” he continued. “I think Sami Zayn, Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes – Randy is the king of the little things. A performer like Shawn Michaels is the king of the little things. They make the most out of the smallest stuff, and it makes you come to the edge of your seat. It makes you stand up, and it makes you never sit down again. I was guilty of this myself: as a young performer, you just want to show what you can do. All these kids are trying to get better, just trying to show that they can do stunts, and that they’re athletes. You need to have the little things. The little things make the magic, and that’s what I saw was absent. That’s common in a lot of schools.”
