"The one thing I know about John Cena is that he is all about John Cena" - 39-year-old on his relationship with the WWE veteran
No WWE Superstar was pushed as strongly as John Cena during his prime and there have been many instances of Cena being protective of his character. During a recent interview, Heath Slater opened up about his experiences working with the 16-time world champion.
Beyond the ring, Slater stated that he had nothing bad to say about John Cena as the Hollywood star was always good to him during their interactions.
While John Cena valued his friendships behind the scenes, he might not have always compromised much when it came to his on-screen image. The Franchise Player was, for a long time, viewed as an invincible talent who always overcame the odds.
Heath Slater explained that while he personally liked mutually beneficial exchanges with his wrestling rivals, Cena didn't hesitate to "step on other people's toes" if needed to safeguard his kayfabe reputation.
Here's what Slater had to say while speaking on Wrestling Shoot Interviews:
"Okay, Cena was always cool with me. He was. Like, I don't have a bad thing to say about John. But the one thing I know about John Cena is that he is all about John Cena. You know what I mean? Which any person would be if you were in this environment, but I've never been that 'Me, me, me,' guy; I've been more like, 'Hey, let's spread the love.' You know what I mean? Let's spread it out a little bit, man. I can help you; you can help me, this and that. But you can honestly say, like, with John, it's like, I'm doing this, this is what I've got to do, you know, 'I'm sorry if I step on your toes.'" [ 1:23 - 2:03]
"He'd be cool with me" - Heath Slater on John Cena being approachable backstage in WWE
John Cena might have set some boundaries regarding his character, but as a human being, there aren't many as helpful as The Cenation Leader.
Heath Slater recalled that Cena was always aware of his surroundings and often spoke to wrestlers who seemed to be facing some issues. Slater recalled that whenever he was in a dilemma, Cena would try and help with a reassuring conversation, which signified his friendly demeanor outside the ring.
However, once the cameras started rolling, John considered himself to be "Superman," and Slater admitted that nobody could change that notion.
The former WWE star added:
"But like I said, if I ever needed to talk to John, he'd talk to me, you know, If I ever had a problem and I'm scratching my head, and he can notice, he's always aware, like he knows the surroundings. He'd come up to me like, 'Heath, what's up, man? What's going on?' He'd be cool with me. So like, the 'man' John, talking bullsh** with him, he's cool, man. He really is. But when it comes to John Cena, the professional wrestler? Brother, in his mind, he is Superman, and no one is going to change that sh**, you know." [2:04 - 2:40]
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