All language subtitles for WWE Rivals - Season 1 - EP-07 - John Cena VS. Edge

- That's a great question,
the why for Edge and John Cena.

[soft dramatic music]

For me, it was just this,
"Why am I doing this?

"Because I'm good.

And I'm gonna prove
to you guys how good I am."

- John Cena was like
the modern-day Hulk Hogan.

- You want some?

Come get some.

- Nice job.

[dramatic music]

- Hogan had Roddy Piper,

who was one of the most
glorious bad guys.

And Edge was a guy

willing to go to any length
to get people to hate him.

- We got put against each
other at the right time

for both of our characters.

He needed that villain.

[loud slap]
all: Oh!

- And I was fully committed
to being that villain.

When it comes to do-or-die
situations, I thrive!

- To me, that's what
John Cena needed.

He needed that
landmark opponent

to put him on the map.

- How do you think

I got that money in the Bank
in the first place?

[crowd cheering]

- There is sex,

there is violence,
there's excitement.

[crowd cheering]
- Edge is about to tap!

Oh, my God!

- What's not to love
about this rivalry?

- The champ is here!

- This rivalry has just
escalated into a war!

- When two legends collide...
[crowd cheering]

Their rivalry stays pinned
in our minds forever.

[dramatic music]

This is where we break down
the legendary stories

behind the greatest rivalries
of all time.

I'm Freddie Prinze Jr.,
and this is "WWE Rivals."

- It's early 2000s--
2005, 2006,

and we're talking John Cena

and someone's
favorite wrestler, Edge.

At this point
in both men's careers,

these two guys needed
each other to make each other.

They both were
in a position to be the man

but you have to have
that perfect foil.

- John was definitely
the babyface.

Adam was definitely the heel.

- [chuckling]
Certainly.

- These two guys defined
those two roles,

you know, to a T
and then produced.

[dramatic orchestral music]

- We were both
of a similar mindset

to make each other.

When you get two guys
with the same mentality

and the same mindset,
you can get magic out there.

- You can go all the way back
to Edge's debut.

Edge came in
with a group of talent,

brought them into Connecticut
for a week,

took a look
at who may have potential.

Edge was one of those talent
that we looked at and said,

"He's got it."
Not sure what it was.

And brought him in originally
as Edge,

kind of a dark, loner,
brooding kind of character.

- I loved how he turned that

into what he did
with Edge & Christian.

- Edge & Christian,
seven-time tag team champions.

- Especially leaning into
their sense of humor.

- For the next five seconds,
we will very generously pose

for all of you with the benefit
of flash photography.

- He didn't take
himself too serious,

but he was serious
when he needed to be,

and that sort of fun creativity
to stay till the ending.

- No amount of money
in the world

worth putting your bodies
through this.

- I think Adam had built
a reputation up to this point

for being involved
in highly dangerous matches,

going through multiple tables,

falling off ladders,
spearing Jeff Hardy.

Like, almost all of his
highlight reel moments

involved some sort
of human body car crash.

- Oh!
- No!

Edge pushed Matt
right through the table!

Edge & Christian have won it!

- As a tag team,
without a doubt,

Edge & Christian were one
of the greatest tag teams

in the history
of the industry.

But I think that Edge was
still looking to break through

and be that singles superstar.

[soft dramatic music]

- First time I met John,

he was still doing the
different-colored tights

for every hometown, you know,
team kind of thing.

So if we're in Minnesota,
he's wearing purple and yellow.

- John Cena
wearing the Vikings colors.

That's--
- Well, we're in Minnesota.

- I didn't really think much
past that initially.

- You didn't
see the humor in John Cena,

you didn't see the quick wit,

you didn't see how
smart he really was.

You saw a big jock.

♪ ♪

- John Cena burst on the scene
and immediately had energy.

- Ruthless aggression!

[crowd cheering]

- That worked
for a little bit,

but not very long,

and the Doctor of Thuganomics
was born.

- I know you listening,
so I'm about to drop

a heavyweight dose
of thuganomics on ya.

- While it may have been a
hokey version of who he was,

it really was based
in his personality.

- You can't see me.

[crowd cheering]

I've been lucky
enough to, like,

take one thing at a time.

Get yourself as presentable
as you can,

learn to perform,

be comfortable in talking,

It all comes with failure.

I just wanted to be
the best me I could.

[rapping] ♪ The new champ's
untouchable like Eliot Ness ♪

- After about a year,
there was something about John

that you saw in his eye

that made John stand out
from everyone else.

- The character kind
of kept evolving

from being this sort
of funny guy

to a more serious
and relatable hero,

a guy who did everything
the right way--

hustle, loyalty, and respect.

These are three virtues
no one can have a problem with.

♪ ♪

- Cena by that point,

you could tell, like,
he was finding a groove.

I felt like
I was treading water.

[crowd booing]

Took me a while to really
kind of sort through...

[inhales deeply]

where I was at and how
to get where I wanted to go.

I've been here for a long time,
paid a lot of dues,

and I'm about due.

I'm a ten-time
tag team champion,

U.S. champion,
King of the Ring,

five-time
intercontinental champion.

Then it became
this frustrated, angry,

paranoid, delusional character.

I have waited my entire career
for a championship match.

And the fact that I
haven't had one is a crime.

Everything about the World
Heavyweight Championship--

that's all that mattered
to this character.

[crowd booing]

- "WrestleMania 21,"
Los Angeles, California.

Big time.

And it was a big-time night
for two future hall-of-famers.

[John Cena's "My Time Is Now"]

♪ ♪

- JBL versus John Cena,
WWE championship on the line.

- I got to work with John

when he got his first,
you know, run

into, say, 30-minute matches,
you know,

which is a big difference.

You know, anybody can
do an eight-minute match.

A 30-minute match
is the deep water.

That's where a lot of guys
never make that transition.

Vince McMahon came
up to me one time.

He goes, "How is John?"

I said, "He's your guy."

And Vince was very pleased.

He said, "Really?"
I said, "Yeah."

You can tell right away.

Once a guy got
in the deep water like that,

he not only swam, he thrived.

And you could tell
from that point forward

he had a feel that was
just God-given to wrestling.

[crowd cheering]

- Where did
Cena get this from?

Oh!
- Here he comes!

- He got him!
- FU!

- He got him!
- FU!

The cover!
Hook of the leg!

all: One, two, three!

- John Cena is the champion!

[John Cena's "My Time Is Now"]

Oh, man!

♪ ♪

- Winning the first
WWE Championship

at "WrestleMania 21,"

I still couldn't believe
how crazy it was.

There was just a few folks
that thought I was all right,

and I promised myself
I would respect that

and give it
the best shot I had.

Still, at that point,
that was way far away

from me hitting stride.

- I think Cena needed Edge.
- Mm.

- He's the guy.

But he needs that foil,
you know?

And I think Edge
was the perfect guy.

- An 11-time tag champion,
a WWE record.

- But he's obsessed
with becoming

the
World Heavyweight Champion!

And he sees this ladder match
as his opportunity to do that.

- "WrestleMania 21," it's
pretty pivotal, looking back.

You know, it was a real
changing of the guard.

I mean, it started before then,

but it was solidified
at "WrestleMania 21."

- Only one way to win.

That's to climb the ladder,
retrieve the briefcase,

and you have won yourself
a world title match

for any time up to one year.

[dramatic music]

Benoit with an injured arm!

[crowd booing]
Edge, the opportunistic Edge--

don't tell me Edge
is gonna win this thing!

- He's teetering,
but he's got it!

[bell rings]

Oh, my God!
Edge has done it!

- Edge has won the match!

- You have Edge winning the
"Money in the Bank" briefcase,

which gave him
a championship opportunity

whenever he wanted.

It gave him and his character

a whole different sort
of motivation.

And when he was walking around
with Lita and that briefcase,

he was a dangerous man.

- Oh, look at this pair,
Edge and Lita.

- She's a home-wrecker,

and you can take that
to the bank.

And apparently,
that's exactly what

Mr. Money in the Bank
has done.

- We started
to blur the lines

of reality and storyline.

I was involved
with Edge personally,

and they decided to bring it
in front of the cameras.

- These two got a hell
of a lot of explaining to do.

- To me, Lita made
the Rated R Superstar.

- No man that I've ever been
with could have satisfied me...

[scattered jeering]

Except one...

the next
World Heavyweight Champion.

[crowd booing]

- Lita completed Edge.

Now everybody in the audience

had a reason to hate Edge.

Edge and Lita were
just fantastic.

- I mean, not only is that
contract money in the bank,

but I am money in the bank.

- Edge had the "Money in
the Bank" briefcase for so long

that it became
the boy who cried wolf.

You just figured, eh, they're
not gonna go anywhere with it.

He made you wait
and wait and wait and wait.

[soft suspenseful music]

♪ ♪

- John Cena,
with everything he's got!

- If we're gonna
cash this thing in,

Edge can't do this
in a straight-up match.

It's got to be
in an instance where

your champion is down and out.

- He got him!
- Oh, you're kidding me!

- He got him!
He got him!

- Here is your winner,
John Cena!

- Nobody goes anywhere!
This night is not over!

Raise the cage.
[crowd exclaiming]

- John Cena, prone, bloodied,
beaten, battered,

but victorious,

is sitting there in the ring
after his match.

And...

- You think you know me.
[crowd cheering]

- Here comes Edge's music,

and a rivalry is born.

- Edge is cashing in
and cashing it in big-time!

[dramatic music]

[Alter Bridge's "Metalingus"
playing]

- Are you kidding me?

Edge is cashing in
and cashing it in big-time,

when John Cena
is at his weakest.

- Because of the way
it was done,

because I'm exhausted

and just barely
won the Elimination Chamber,

it also doesn't seem fair.

- He can cash
in his championship match

any time, any place.

And what better time and place

than after
the Elimination Chamber?

- And that's what made the
money in the bank so powerful.

Even though it's
a legitimate match,

the person holding
the briefcase

can really be opportunistic

about when they would choose
to have that match.

All that foundation
was laid that night.

- Turn around.
It's over.

- No, don't turn around.

- Edge is just waiting
on him.

He hit the spear!
He hit the spear!

Edge hit the spear!
all: One, two, three!

He got him!
[bell rings]

- Edge
is the new WWE champion.

- Cena has his match.

Edge gets to cash in
and be evil

in this moment on
a weakened and tired John Cena

who just went
through the ringer.

And now Edge beats him,
and we're off to the races.

- It's one of the most
unforgettable moments

that I ever witnessed,

because here's this
worker's worker in Edge,

who's had the tag success,

who's also had a couple
start-stops as a single.

And to be able
to be the one in that moment,

the play
and the player doing it,

anyone who doubted it
couldn't doubt it anymore,

couldn't doubt Edge anymore.

- Cashing in
the money in the bank

felt like a vindication, like,
"I knew I could get here."

All of those days of dreaming,

it all, you know,
kind of flashes by.

And then you come kind of
rocketing into this present,

and you're staring
at this thing.

And then I just
started headbutting it.

That was my first inclination.

- Edge has
shocked the world.

- Well, I'll
tell you what he's done.

He's stolen the damn title!

- That "Money in the Bank"
was gonna be a catalyst

for, like, a new direction
for his career entirely.

And when we've talked about it,
you know, he said that

you could just feel
the lightning in the bottle.

And this was the moment
for him to solidify

that he was gonna
be a top player

and he wasn't gonna
let anybody's decision-making

or anybody else deny him that.

He made himself undeniable.

- I understand that

some people are
calling me a cheap champion.

[crowd booing]

Whether you like it or not,
I stand before you

your new WWE champion.

[crowd booing]

- Edge really saw,

once he cashed in
and he was the champion,

that we're gonna
have a run together,

you know, and really do this.

And we both felt ready.

We're like, "We can do this.
We're gonna carry it.

It's time."

[crowd cheering]

- For the
19th consecutive year,

the road to "Wrestlemania"
begins at the "Royal Rumble."

- The following contest
is scheduled for one fall,

and it is for
the WWE championship!

- There was
no one more deserving

of being elevated
into the position

of being a "WrestleMania"
main eventer more than Edge,

with one exception:

John Cena.

[crowd cheering]
- And now the STFU!

- Look out!
He's gonna tap!

- He did, he did, he did!
[bell ringing]

John Cena has done it!

John Cena has
regained the championship!

- And that had
to burn Edge's ass.

- I think Adam and Edge
were both thinking

the same thing at this point.

We were both pissed off.

- The champ is John Cena,

and the champ is here!

- I feel bad that
Adam felt that way.

But it's also good because
it pushed him to do more.

[dramatic music]

- I wanted to change the plans
'cause we got something here.

Like, the people are
into this.

I knew we were gonna have no
choice but to come back to it.

And I'm personally gonna
give them no choice.

♪ ♪

- It is now time for John Cena
to defend the WWE championship

in front of perhaps
the most hostile crowd

that any superstar
has ever shown.

- ECW, the famed Philadelphia
wrestling organization,

had been reborn under WWE,

so because the fan base
was so into hardcore wrestling,

the ECW fan base,

they hated no one more
than John Cena.

- It was a level of commitment
to sit through those boos

and maintain
that babyface persona

every day forever.

His level of commitment
to that character

was bulletproof.
- Yep.

- And no one in
that arena sat down.

Whether you cheered him
or booed him,

everybody in the arena
was standing up

when John Cena walked out.

- John Cena has a
match against Rob Van Dam,

an absolute darling
to the ECW fans.

So they already
hate John Cena.

- Weighing in at 240 pounds,

from West Newbury,
Massachusetts,

WWE champion

John Cena!

- Any time you get such emotion
out of an audience...

- You said it was gonna
be a hostile environment.

I didn't know it
would be this bad.

- I could have had a
25-minute contest

with my T-shirt,

and that
would have been amazing.

- Taz, have you
ever seen anything like this?

- He doesn't belong here.

- The ECW crowd
found John Cena

to be the embodiment
of everything WWE.

John Cena was not extreme.

♪ ♪

- I'll tell you what.
This audience--

- Hold on, hold on!

Cover, cradle suplex,
one-count only.

[crowd booing]

Oh, watch--
oh, my God!

- Oh, my God!

- What the--
- What the hell is that?

- Oh,
what the hell is that?

What the hell was that?
Oh!

♪ ♪

It's Edge!
- Edge.

- Then all of a sudden,

after a few months
of not seeing

these guys involved
with each other,

Edge shows up out of nowhere,
spears John Cena.

- Van Dam up top!
- Go!

- Five-star frog splash!

What the--Heyman?
What the--

all: One, two...
- Cover! What the hell?

all: Three!
[crowd cheering]

- Rob Van Dam wins the title.
Mayhem!

- Rob Van Dam
is the champion!

- Now you know we are back
to John Cena and Edge.

- Are you ready?

Hold onto your seats, because
we are live tonight on "Raw!"

- It's gonna be Cena,
Van Dam,

and Edge for the WWE title.

- This is huge, JR.

- What I was excited about was

I knew I would have
substance with Adam.

Here I know I bring a certain
something to the table,

he brings a certain
something to the table.

If we can parlay this

into more than just
a one-night involvement,

I think it would be good
for the both of us.

- Can John Cena do it?

If he does--yes!

- Got him!
- Cena did it!

- Oh, no!
- My God!

- Edge was ready

to be the top star in WWE.

He was young, smart.

He was capable.

all: Two, three!
both: What?

- Edge! Edge!
Edge has just--

Edge is the WWE champion!

- Now you know

we're gonna have
the beloved John Cena

chasing the dastardly Edge
for the World Championship.

- Cena had the match won,

but Edge used
the WWE championship

to snatch the title!

- Edge was certainly
a great heel,

and very few guys want
to really be a heel.

- Let's not
forget one other person--

you.
[all chuckle]

You went to Vince
and said, basically,

"I don't want them to be able

"to walk up
to the merchandise stand

and buy a JBL shirt because
I don't want their support."

- You know,
if some kid is a hardcore fan

and he's sitting
on the front row

and he had a JBL shirt on,

then somebody in that audience
is gonna look around

and go, well,
"He's got one fan.

He must not be too bad a guy."

I didn't want anybody
to think I was a decent guy.

I didn't sign autographs
walking into arenas.

Edge was the same way.

- Hey, hey, hey.

I don't want you
chanting "Edge."

I don't need you chump stains.

- There's great longevity
in that

because with that commitment,

then I'm gonna pay
to see you get beat

again and again and again.

And you become
a mainstay of the show.

- Screw you!

Screw you!

Screw you!

- What's great about Adam

is he was a bad guy.

He played his part masterfully.

- Welcome to West Newbury,
Massachusetts,

the home of the former
WWE champion, John Cena.

You see, me
and my lovely lady, Lita,

we came up here to see
what makes John Cena tick,

and we know exactly where
we have to go to do it.

- Always,

when you're trying to heat up
the intensity of a rivalry,

you bring in the family, right?

Like, that's the easiest way
to get you where it counts.

[soft dramatic music]

- What are you doing here?
- Mr. Cena!

John Cena's father.
- Right.

I was contacted by WWE

to say that they were gonna
be coming through West Newbury.

They knock at the door,
they introduced themselves.

And I said, "Okay,
what are we gonna do now?"

Get out of my house!
Both of you, now!

I don't remember
inviting either one of you!

I'm calling the police!
Leave now!

Now, I said!

Hey, you can't go up there!
Stop!

- We were trying
to be more organic with it,

but he was really performing.

He really got a kick out
of performing that day.

So I mean, it was--it was--

[laughs]
It was hilarious.

- You know what?
Did you have a nice visit?

One, you had a real good visit?

You had a good time, right?

Two, take the lady, leave.

- One of the greatest moments
of WWE TV ever.

[chuckles]
Love you, Dad.

But, whew, man,
I learned a lot from you.

What to do and what not to do.

- You know what?
I've had enough of both of you.

I'm calling the police.
I'm tired of both of you!

- Hold on, hold on.
- Whoa, whoa, whoa, okay.

- Hold on a second.
Hold on.

- So he walks away,
turns around.

It was so quick.

Bye.

[loud slap]
Oh!

[grunts]

[Edge sighs]
[Mr. Cena groaning]

- It can only be about
the championship for so long.

You have to add in layers.

So how do you add in
those layers?

Well, you go
and slap somebody's dad.

That's a layer.

It's very fitting.

One Cena goes down today.

The other goes down
in six days at "SummerSlam."

[crowd booing]

You see,
I told John's dad

that I was gonna beat him
to within an inch of his life

at "SummerSlam"!

[crowd booing]

[tense music]

And there's not a
damn thing that him, John,

any of you people

or anybody in Boston
can do about it.

- I want to see Edge
get beat up

because if he did that
to my dad,

I would go out there
and I would fight him,

because my dad would
have done the same thing

for me back in the day.

[bell rings]

- The following contest
is scheduled for one fall,

and it is
for the WWE championship!

[crowd cheering]

If the champion Edge
gets disqualified,

he will lose
the WWE championship.

[tense music]

- Because it was
John's homecoming,

every fan that was there

expected John Cena
to take the title.

Boston, Massachusetts.
Why not?

He's the hometown man.

When I was there,

people would talk to me
and they'd go,

"What do you think
your son's chances are?"

I said, "I don't know."

I said,
"I'm hoping it's John Cena,

"but you can't rule out
that devious snake, Edge.

He's always got an ace."

♪ ♪

- Cena, I think,
is trying as hard as he can

to keep his cool.

- WWE title on the line.

- Whoa, look out, look out!

- And now Cena forcing Edge
back into the corner.

- We had the chemistry.

The characters were
so diametrically opposed.

When you get to that point
with a rivalry,

and you can keep going back to
it and keep going back to it,

and the audience
is into it, too,

that's a huge compliment.

[crowd cheering]

- The WWE champion Edge
in control.

Cena, literally, in
his hometown here in Boston.

- The atmosphere
here is electric.

This place is buzzing.

[crowd cheering]

- I don't ever give up.

It's gonna be tough
to beat me,

because you can hit me
with your best shot,

but it's gonna take a lot

to keep my shoulders down
for three seconds.

[crowd booing]

- Edge and Lita,

arguably the most
powerful couple in the WWE.

- When I think of, like,
the Rated R Superstar,

it's not just Edge,
it's Edge and Lita.

We had amazing chemistry,
so Edge-Cena works.

But it works that much better
because Lita's out there, too.

- Edge, a step off
and knocked Lita--

another roll-up, a roll-up!

Yes!

No!

- We had shown that, like,

I have no boundaries
on how evil I would be

on how much
I would step into the match.

- Edge is pleading with Lita.
Lita doesn't know what to do.

- Edge is about to tap!

Oh, my God!

[cheering and booing]

[dramatic music]

- Lita helped not only
by being a great performer,

but she was instrumental.

It's like stacking the odds.

- The referee's
got to break the--

wait, what's Lita--

King,
those are brass knuckles.

- She put brass knuckles
on the hand of Edge!

- There was no looking
for cheers on the side of Edge.

He was willing to go
as far as it took.

- I think
you can't understate, too,

Lita's role in all of this

and how Adam would use Lita

in particular situations

and how well
she played the role.

- Look at Lita.
She's starting to get nervous.

She's starting to pace.

- It is not easy to stand
in the middle of the ring

and have, you know,
bottles slung at you

and people calling you every
single name under the sun,

especially as a female.

And rather than
shying away from that,

she leaned into it.

So, like,
there was these moments

that she was such
an integral part of.

- It's just two guys fighting
without Lita.

- Yeah.

- Referee--
- Ref, check him! Check Edge!

- Oh, God almighty.
- Look out, John!

- Well, there--
FU!

The FU!

And Lita's in!
Oh, my God.

My God, look at this!
- What?

- You gotta
be kidding me!

- Lita,
FU, double-stacked.

- Edge was so cool
in what he does.

Cena turns around,
and it's like, bam!

♪ ♪

- The brass knucks
in the back of the head!

Damn it, King!
Cena's knocked out!

Cena's knocked out
by the damn brass knucks!

all: One, two, three!
- Come on, ref!

[crowd cheering]
- Son of a--

[rock music playing]

♪ ♪

- Here is your winner,

and still the WWE champion,

Edge!

- Everybody, including myself,
was like, "Wow.

What an ending.
What a finish."

That's the way it goes down
with a true villain.

[soft dramatic music]

- We both grew.

I think we both grew
as performers together

and understood
what we both needed

to do to get
to the next level,

which was awesome because
we're doing it together

and we're learning it
together.

Since I've erased John Cena
from my life forever,

I think we should remove the
last remnants of John Cena.

all: Cena! Cena!
Cena! Cena! Cena!

- With a beautiful
burial at sea.

- Did he say burial at sea?

Whoa, whoa, wait a minute.
What?

- Oh, my God!

- Oh, there it goes.

Goodbye!
Sayonara!

- Through it all, he
kept doing nefarious things.

Edge crashing my house,

throwing the championship
into the Long Island Sound.

All of those things add to why
I want to root for this person.

I think that's why we worked so
well and for so long together.

[bell rings]
- Oh, look!

It's John Cena.
- Wait a minute.

Wait a minute.
- John Cena--

John Cena coming
to get a piece of Edge!

Where did Cena come from?

- Oh!
Oh, my gosh.

Edge's head smashed
through that glass!

- I love going out
of the confines of the arena.

I love it.

- Edge trying to
fight back right by the dock,

right next to the arena.

- Time to swim, kid!

- What?
- No!

- Oh, my God!

[crowd cheering]
Oh, my God, King!

- Get help!

- The Long Island Sound
is, like,

the most polluted body of water
in the United States.

And that didn't fully dawn
on me until, like,

the scuba divers were
pulling me out

and they're fully covered
and I'm in tights.

And that week, I was not
feeling that great after that.

But we're outside
of the arena.

And now we're doing
stuff that I know kids,

people are gonna
be talking about.

"He just threw him
in the Long Island Sound."

Like, those are things, to me,
that wrestling can do

that other industries don't
have at their fingertips.

- I just need one
thing from you.

And that's one more match.

- You had Edge and Cena,
who had very common goals,

and that goal was
to be the best.

That goal was to
be the main event

and be the reason that people
were tuning in to television

and the reason that people were
enjoying pay-per-views.

- Look out, the--

oh, God!

[bell ringing]

- It's gonna be "Unforgiven"

in my hometown,
Toronto, Canada!

- Oh, my gosh.

- His body
just breaking in half.

- And I've decided what
match it's gonna be,

a match you've never had,
a match I've never lost.

It's gonna be tables,
ladders, and chairs!

- We welcome you,
ladies and gentlemen,

live to Toronto, Canada,

for the ninth annual
extravaganza

known as "Unforgiven."

- "Unforgiven 2006,"
the story between Edge

and John Cena has heated up.

It's gotten nuclear
at this point.

Edge has proven he can get
that title and he can hold it.

- You think you know me.

[Alter Bridge's "Metalingus"
playing]

[heavy metal music playing]

[cheers and boos]

- ♪ On this day
I see clearly ♪

- They were a hell of a crowd.

They were fully invested
in this thing, man,

and it felt so good.

Come out, your hometown,
main event,

you're the WWE champion,

you're going up against
this generation's hero,

and you want
to live up to that.

- I love getting
in environments

where we are trying
to tell a story as a company,

and you know they ain't
gonna take any of it.

[John Cena's "My Time is Now"
playing]

[crowd booing]

- Well, like him or not, these
fans are on their feet here.

[hip-hop music playing]

♪ ♪

[crowd booing]

- Man, they hated me.

It was great.

I'm yelling at Edge,
"Take this in, all of it."

I'm the Yankees in Fenway,
I'm the Lakers at the Garden.

Let's do that.
And that's okay.

Let's give it to them.

all: Edge! Edge! Edge! Edge!
Edge! Edge! Edge!

- So these men have been
going at it for a while now.

But this is a physical contest.

That pressure has
to be times ten.

- Tables, ladders, and chairs
are about to come into play.

There's gonna be a lot
of pain dealt now.

- No pinfalls,
no submissions,

no disqualifications,
no countout in a TLC match.

Only one way to win:

climb the ladder,
retrieve the title belt,

which is hanging
high above the ring.

- A TLC match--
tables, ladders, and chairs.

Anything goes at "Unforgiven."

- Oh!

- It's also an opportunity
for John Cena

to prove to fans
that he's not just

the happy-go-lucky champion.

He's also capable
of getting down and dirty

with the dirtiest man
in the biz at the time, Edge.

- We've seen a lot of
different strategies utilized

in these matches by Edge.

- There's a lot of things that
make a TLC match pivotal.

And because I'm one of the
inventors of the TLC match,

there's pressure
that comes with that.

Like, you got to be
good at this thing

if you helped create it.

- You knew that Edge was
not gonna wait long

in introducing the hardware
that this match is all about.

- Chair, legal.

- So there's a different layer
of storytelling involved.

- Oh!
- Oh, God!

- And with that
is a challenge.

John had never been in one.

John's afraid of heights.

- Remember
the WWE championship

is hanging
high above the ring.

- So I have a fear of heights.

But I only did what
I knew I could do.

- Cena!
- Oh, man!

- I look at it as an artist.
I do.

It's this thing
that has energy.

Please just let me paint.
Just let me paint a little bit.

You know, and I'm out there
and I'm feeling the noise...

both: Cena!

- And I didn't want Adam
to not paint.

- This whole environment
is about taking chances.

- I wanted him to be able
to paint whatever he wanted.

- Oh, my God!

- You got two guys in there,
a lot of intensity,

trying to bring something
to that audience.

And in doing that, sometimes,
you know,

there's things
that can happen, right?

So let's have me
trapped on the ladder.

- Wait a minute,
wait a minute.

- Oh, my God!

- Cena has Edge
between the ladder!

- Well, that extra distance

because of the ladder
and John's meaty wrists

just landed right there.

And I remember
thinking to myself,

"This feels interesting.
Huh."

And then believing
I was in my bed

and there was
an alarm going off

and thinking I was late
for my Air Canada flight

when it was actually me
making the buzzer sound.

Like, this weird,
"[imitates buzzer]"

And then coming to

and seeing the Air Canada
Center logo above me.

John had no idea.
He ran at me...

- Oh, God!
- Good grief!

- Creamed me in the face
with the ladder.

I got a hand up.

I don't remember
doing any of it.

It's strange being choked out.

I wouldn't advise it.
[chuckles]

- Man, Cena showing
a mean streak here.

- I never knew that Adam
was in any sort of jeopardy

and that he passed out.

[cheering and booing]

- This, to me, has always been
the most wild part

about wrestling as an art form

because these things happen
and the show must go on.

I don't know how
you all pull this off.

I take two weeks off if I
step on a LEGO in my house

that my kids left on the floor.

- That's a serious injury.
- [laughs]

- That's serious business.
- Appreciate that.

Only a mother would
give me that love.

- [chuckles]
- Thank you.

But to me, that's always been

one of the craziest things
about this rivalry.

There is no take two.

- Oh, whoa!
[crowd cheering]

- You talk about
a brutal match.

I've never seen two guys
go at it like they did.

- John Cena realizes

this is a tables, ladders,
and chairs match.

- Wait, wait, wait.
Wait a minute, King.

- John Cena behind the scenes
is afraid of heights,

but John Cena inside the ring
is afraid of nothing.

- He's jumping from
near the top of the ladder!

- That's the mark
of a great performer.

- This crowd
is on their feet!

Edge--my God!

- When he's out there,

he's not John Cena,
human being.

He's John Cena, superhero.

- Look at
the strength of Cena!

- It's tough because
you worry, you know?

And so it's a weird thing
when you're in my position...

- Look at Lita!
- Lita!

- To be in those
high-stakes matches

because the real person

that just cares
about the people in the ring

is just, like,
just below the surface.

[crowd cheering]

- I don't worry
about this moment.

As superstars, we are as
plugged in as the audience is.

- Somehow, John Cena
is willing himself!

- I learned that
from the late Eddie Guerrero.

Give them your effing best
every night.

And if you do just good enough,
you'll bring back a friend.

- What the hell is
John Cena thinking about?

- We just
had fun out there together.

You know,
we trusted each other

and we both knew that we
wanted the match and the story

to be great.

- Cena climbing to the top.

- We threw everything
we had at each other,

and me surviving those attacks
is me never giving up.

That's my thing.

- But wait a minute.

There's the WWE champion,
Edge.

- Edge, with his strength
and perseverance,

leads me to believe that,
like,

I'm gonna have to do something
crazy to stop this guy.

And then when
you see what crazy is,

you're like,
"I don't want to do this."

- These guys
are about to go toe-to-toe

at the top of this ladder.

- John wasn't real big
on doing it,

but I had faith in him.

This was the end of the story.

We gotta blow the doors off
here.

- Oh, my!
Oh, my God!

Oh, my God!

John, don't do this, John!
- Don't do this!

Come on!
[loud thud]

- Oh, God!
- No!

[crowd cheering]

- A 16-foot ladder.

This is death-defying,
career-ending!

Oh, my God!
John, don't do this, John!

Good God Almighty!

Oh, God Almighty!
[crowd cheering]

Edge has just been FU'd
through not one

but two tables
from a 16-foot ladder!

- An Attitude Adjustment
through two tables--

his idea again,

brilliant and insane.

That audience
helped make that moment

of, like,
"I don't want to do this,

but I can't stop this guy."

[soft dramatic music]

- I just remember
hearing the audience.

[crowd cheering]

And it was this weird sensory
overload moment like that.

I was feeling all of it.

And landing there--
"[sighs] We did it.

We did it."

- John Cena!

- John Cena has won!

He's won!

- The sense of relief
that you have

when you pull
off something like that

and pull off what I felt

was a fitting end
to that part of the story.

- John Cena coming
into as hostile an environment

as anybody--
I can ever recall, King,

and leaving with
the most coveted prize

in sports entertainment.

- John Cena earned the
WWE championship here tonight.

[tender music]

- There's his father,

a man that was
physically assaulted by Edge

in Cena's own home.

- Here he is, all sweaty,
all gashed up,

he has the belt,

and he just kind of grabbed me
and gave me a big hug

and said, "I can't tell you
how much I love you."

I said, "I love you too, kid.

You did one hell of a job."

And we just kind
of stood there.

♪ ♪

- That's a way for me
to tell my dad I love him.

♪ ♪

- I have a child,
now a grown man,

who just got beat up
and bloodied,

come out and embrace a father
and say, "Pops, I love you."

Wow.

That--
that just got me right there.

♪ ♪

It was the end of
a great rivalry.

[crowd cheering]
all: Edge! Edge! Edge! Edge!

Edge! Edge! Edge! Edge!
Edge! Edge! Edge! Edge!

- Walking out
after that match...

[cheers and applause]

[soft dramatic music]

This is Toronto's way
of saying, "You did it."

[crowd cheering]

- I'm so glad he enjoyed it
because I'd like to think

that's maybe kind of where
I helped him a little bit,

you enjoying this here and now.

It doesn't turn me bad,
it doesn't turn him good.

So many performers ignore
the biggest superstar we got,

and that's the people
who come in and go crazy.

And I'm so, so glad
he felt that.

You can't rob yourself
of that.

♪ ♪

[soft dramatic music fades]

♪ ♪

- We knew that he
was gonna be the guy,

but nobody dreamed he'd be
a 16-time world champion,

a movie star,
and all this different stuff.

But to see that
and to also see Edge

and to see these guys go out

and carry that company
for that time,

it was just
absolutely incredible.

And I saw these guys' journey.

And now they're
the ones in the sun.

It's a pride beyond belief.

- You know, all of us,
I'm sure,

can look back on our careers

and remember an opponent
that was super special,

and you felt that magic.

And you think, like,

"How great would it be
to feel that one more time?"

I can tell you this
with 100% confidence

that Adam would love
to do that again with John.

- John Cena would never have
achieved the heights

that he achieved in WWE

without the rivalry
with Edge and Lita.

[fireworks exploding]

It cemented John Cena as
the top attraction in WWE.

♪ ♪

And the same goes for Edge.

[crowd cheering]

♪ ♪

They complemented each other.

They were the classic case

of a rivalry taking a top star
and a top star

and making them both
the top stars.

[energetic orchestral music]

- When you have that kind
of chemistry and dynamic,

I mean, we call each other Shoe

'cause it's like
putting on an old shoe.

- We fit as comfortable
as an old, broken-in shoe.

And no matter how many days

you have those shoes
in your mudroom,

when you need to put them on,

they feel perfect and broken in
and beautiful.

- I don't think Cena and Edge
get to where they got

without each other.

That kind of says, okay,

those guys are each other's,
you know, greatest rivals.

♪ ♪

You put him and I
in the ring today...

♪ ♪

I know what it's gonna be.

It's gonna be [bleep] great.
[chuckles]