5 of John Cena's Toughest WWE Opponents

#2. WWE’s Rated R Superstar Edge vs. WWE’s PG Champion

As WWE continued to build up John Cena as the ultimate “good guy”, the company needed a perfect “bad guy” to counter him. In 2006, that guy was Edge. Edge won the Money in the Bank briefcase, became WWE Champion by pinning a bloodied Cena following his own title defense inside the Elimination Chamber, and a rivalry was born.

Perhaps no one, outside of the #1 WWE Superstar on this list, has met Cena in as many title matches as Edge. The two would feud throughout 2006 and headline five different pay-per-views. They would go on to exchange the title on four separate occasions. Like Punk, Edge was able to bring out a side of Cena rarely seen. In this case, it was the darker side of Cena rarely seen during the PG era. Cena famously gave Edge an “Attitude Adjustment” from the top of a ladder in a TLC match.

The two would face off countless times between television matches and pay-per-views, however, the pairing never felt stale. The encounters were violent, dark and often pushed each superstar right to the, pardon the expression, edge.

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#1. Cena’s longest running WWE advisory: Randy Orton

John Cena and Randy Orton came into the WWE together in 2002. They were part of a legendary foursome that included Batista and Brock Lesnar known as the OVW 4. The two would not lock horns in WWE until 2007. Orton battled the then WWE Champion Cena on three separate occasions. Cena retained the title throughout, though he eventually relinquished it due to injury. Orton would end 2007 as WWE Champion.

The rivalry was renewed in 2008 when Cena returned and won the Royal Rumble. He would eventually face Orton, along with Triple H, at WrestleMania in a triple threat match but was unable to take the title from Orton. The title would soon change hands with Triple H and the Orton-Cena feud was on hold again.

The Orton vs. Cena rivalry would heat up two more times, in 2009 and 2013-14. They would exchange the title on three different occasions in 2009.

The stakes were even higher when the two met in 2013. This time Cena held the World Heavyweight Championship while Orton was WWE Champion. Orton would defeat Cena with outside interference to successfully unify the titles.

Randy Orton came in with John Cena and met him in the ring more than any other WWE Superstar. The rivalry was Cena’s toughest and one of the greatest in WWE history.