John Cena expresses gratitude to a top WWE Superstar for helping him thrive in his pro wrestling career

John Cena extended his utmost gratitude to Randy Orton ahead of the latter's comeback at WWE Survivor Series.

John Cena expresses gratitude to a top WWE Superstar for helping him thrive in his pro wrestling career

John Cena (via WWE)

It’s Thanksgiving Day, and no other day could be more appropriate than this occasion to show one’s thankfulness. WWE superstars have poured in on social media with their Thanksgiving posts. Having said that, John Cena celebrated the festivity in his unique way. The Franchise Player extended his gratitude to one of his greatest WWE rivals, Randy Orton, in his latest social media post.

The 46-year-old recently took to X and shared an old snippet from an OVW match between him and Orton. He also noted that it was their final OVW match. Before making it big on the main roster, the two men were part of WWE’s then-developmental territory, OVW. While The Viper joined the developmental in 2000, Cena followed him in the very next year under the ring name “The Prototype.”

YouTube video

Furthermore, he expressed his gratitude to The Apex Predator for helping him grow in his pro wrestling career. The match uploaded by John Cena took place on January 16, 2002. Cena and Orton would go on to make their main roster debut in the same year. The former went on to take up the trash-talking rapper persona. Viper, on the other hand, joined The Evolution.

FS Video
Cannot celebrate this day without being thankful for all the people who helped and grew along the way. Truly thankful for my time in OVW and @RandyOrton during those years. Take a look back at our final match in OVW! Happy Thanksgiving! @tiktok_us @WWE
John Cena on X

The two men battled each other in over 300 matches throughout their careers. Randy Orton is one of the greatest rivals of John Cena’s career. It is indeed true that the careers of these two legendary wrestlers have always been intertwined. Furthermore, the former will make his long-awaited return at Survivor Series. Cena, on the other hand, worked his most recent WWE Crown Jewel match.

John Cena designates Randy Orton as the Shawn Michaels of his generation

John Cena and Randy Orton are arguably the greatest rivals in one another’s wrestling careers. Over the years, the two superstars have wrestled each other numerous times. While recounting some of his past feuds and matches, the Cenation Leader had major praise for his former WWE rival.

Randy Orton and John Cena
Randy Orton and John Cena (via Bleacher Report)

Ahead of his match against Solo Sikoa, the Franchise Player provided his insight on a couple of his old matches. The 46-year-old also looked back on the spectacular Iron Man match with Randy Orton. Heaping praise on The Viper, he claimed that Randy Orton is the Shawn Michaels of his generation.

Randy is my generation's Shawn Michaels. He has understanding of nuance and how important it is. He has the best timing of anybody. Like, he's always there, he's never late. He shows emotion as a performer. He's incredible. He makes difficult look simple, always.
John Cena on WWE’s YouTube

He also added that the 43-year-old has an understanding of the nuances of a pro wrestling match. Randy Orton has the best timing of all people and emotes as well as a performer, stated Cena. In other news, WWE has made a huge announcement about Apex Predator’s highly anticipated return. He was revealed as the final member of the Cody Rhodes-led team in the WarGames match.

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