52-year-old star wanted to defeat John Cena without top WWE heel's interference
Former WWE Champion and Hall of Famer Rob Van Dam wished he defeated John Cena clean in their One Night Stand 2006 match.
At One Night Stand 2006, RVD defeated John Cena in a WWE title match. This win became an iconic moment in the history of pro wrestling. This was RVD's only world title win in WWE, and it is still celebrated by his ardent fans all these years later.
Rob Van Dam recently spoke about the big match on his 1 Of A Kind podcast. The WWE Hall of Famer revealed that he wished that he didn't win the top title via Edge's interference. Here's what he said:
"I remember wishing at the time that Edge wouldn't have come in and helped for the finish. Maybe that was just an ego thing. I might have just thought, 'I should have beat him square.' Like I didn't [need] any help because 'I'm at my best. I'm the whole F'n show. I'm back baby!' That's what it felt like, like I was back. It's amazing how your mind and body and spirit are all connected when you really feel good about something. Boom!" [From 02:09 to 02:44]
Check out the video below:
Edge attacked John Cena during the final moments of the contest
The rabid ECW fans in the Hammerstein Ballroom were ready to riot if Cena retained his WWE title over Rob Van Dam. As the match was nearing its conclusion, Edge, of all people, came out of nowhere wearing a motorcycle helmet and hit a thunderous Spear on Cena. The interference was met with a loud chorus of cheers with the crowd thanking The Rated-R Superstar for attacking Cena.
Rob Van Dam capitalized on the interference and hit a Five-Star Frog Splash on Cena. A three-count by Paul Heyman ended things for Cena, and RVD became the WWE Champion for the first and only time in his career.
Would you have preferred to see RVD defeat John Cena in a clean manner? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.
If you use RVD's quotes from this article, please credit 1 Of A Kind and give a H/T to Sportskeeda for the transcription.