5 AEW stars who have defeated John Cena one-on-one

Only a few wrestlers have succeeded in defeating John Cena in one-on-one action. Some of them are now AEW stars.

Cena has been the top guy and the face of WWE for over a decade and a half. Although he is now a part-timer, going head-to-head with The Leader of the Cenation remains a dream for many WWE Superstars today.

A few AEW stars, nonetheless, have had the opportunity to go head-to-head with the 44-year-old in the past few years while they were in WWE. Not only did they face Cena in singles action, but they defeated him. Two of them even have multiple victories over the 16-time World Champion.

Here are five AEW stars who have defeated John Cena one-on-one.

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#5. AEW star Billy Gunn defeated John Cena

Billy Gunn and John Cena shared the ring only a few times nearly two decades ago. In 2003, Gunn was an experienced WWE Superstar while Cena was still taking his first steps in Vince McMahon's company. In July of that year, they faced each other for the first time on SmackDown in a United States Title tournament.

During that time, Cena was feuding with The Undertaker. While the then-Doctor of Thuganomics closed in on the victory, he was distracted by The Deadman, who rode his motorcycle to ringside. Billy Gunn would then take advantage and pin Cena.

A year later, the two wrestlers went head-to-head again at a live WWE show in Japan. This time, Cena got his revenge and defeated the WWE Hall of Famer. Gunn remains one of the few AEW guys who have a victory over Cena in their record books.

The former D-Generation X member left WWE four months after his second singles match against Cena. He then returned to the company in 2012 before leaving again in 2015. Following his induction into the WWE Hall of Fame in 2019, the 57-year-old joined AEW. He is now the leader of The Gunn Club, which includes both his sons, Colten and Austin.

#4. AEW star Chris Jericho defeated John Cena

John Cena and Chris Jericho have shared the ring over 40 times in the past few years. Nonetheless, they went head-to-head only 15 times. Surprisingly, Jericho scored just a single victory over the 16-time World Champion.

Jericho's only win over Cena in singles action came in July 2002 on SmackDown. The match was Cena's second bout ever since debuting on the Blue Brand. Despite giving a good fight, The Leader of the Cenation tapped out to the Walls of Jericho.

In the following years, The Ayatollah of Rock and Rolla failed to defeat Cena again. Jericho left WWE in 2005 and returned two years later. He left again in 2010 but went back a year later to spend another seven years. In 2018, the 50-year-old left WWE for the third time. A year later, he joined AEW.

Jericho has been one of the top stars in Tony Khan's company since his debut. He was the first-ever AEW World Champion. The former WWE Superstar also formed The Inner Circle stable and is currently the leader of the group.

#3. AEW star Paul Wight defeated John Cena

Like Chris Jericho, Paul Wight (F.K.A. The Big Show) competed against John Cena multiple times between 2001 and 2016. Wight lost five consecutive one-on-one matches against The Leader of the Cenation before scoring his first victory in February 2009 on SmackDown. A month later, they squared off again. Cena failed to defeat the 7-foot giant once more.

In May and June that same year, the 16-time World Champion defeated Wight two consecutive times. Nonetheless, the 49-year-old scored another victory over Cena on Monday Night RAW on June 22, 2009.

Three months later, Cena and Wight went head-to-head again on RAW during a gauntlet match. The Leader of the Cenation came out victorious. However, six months later, he lost to the former ECW Champion for the fourth time. It was the last time Wight defeated Cena. Following that match, Wight lost 26 consecutive singles matches against the 16-time World Champion.

Paul Wight left WWE earlier this year. He then joined AEW in February to become a color commentator and an in-ring competitor. The 7-foot giant has only competed in three matches so far in AEW and is still undefeated.

#2. AEW star Bryan Danielson defeated John Cena

John Cena and AEW star Bryan Danielson (F.K.A. Daniel Bryan) squared off only three times in the WWE ring. Their first bout came in 2003 before Danielson became a famous WWE Superstar.

The current AEW star, who wrestled under the name American Dragon, faced Cena on WWE Velocity in February 2003. The 16-time World Champion came out victorious. Nine years later, they squared off again on Monday Night RAW. Danielson again suffered defeat.

In their third and final singles match, Danielson finally scored a victory over Cena at the 2013 SummerSlam pay-per-view to capture the WWE Championship. For the next eight years, the two former world champions never squared off again one-on-one despite sharing the ring a few times in tag team matches and an elimination chamber match.

Danielson left WWE earlier this year following his defeat in a Universal Championship match against Roman Reigns on SmackDown. Last September, he made his AEW debut at All Out.

In his debut match, he faced AEW World Champion Kenny Omega on AEW Dynamite: Grand Slam. The bout ended in a draw. The 40-year-old has competed in eight other matches so far, in which he has won seven and lost one.

#1. AEW star CM Punk defeated John Cena

CM Punk is the second entry on this list to have defeated John Cena multiple times in singles action. The Best in the World went one-on-one with The Leader of the Cenation 25 times between 2009 and 2013.

Punk lost to Cena twice in a row in November and December 2009. They squared off again in June 2010 and January 2011, but both matches ended in no contest. A week after losing another bout to Cena in February 2011, Punk finally scored his first victory over the 16-time World Champion on Monday Night RAW.

In the following years, The Best in the World defeated Cena in four more matches. He also suffered eight losses to The Leader of the Cenation, while seven bouts ended in a draw.

Punk left WWE in 2014. He then announced his retirement from pro wrestling. Nonetheless, he returned to the ring earlier this year to join AEW. The 43-year-old made his in-ring debut at the All Out pay-per-view, defeating Darby Allin. He has competed in four more matches ever since and is still undefeated.