Before he became the face of WWE, John Cena used to step inside the ring in his ‘Dr. of Thuganimics’ gimmick and won over the crowd. WWE Universe loved his in-ring persona a lot and soon enough, his rapper gimmick was a hit among the fans.

Cena’s rapper character was inspired by hip-hop music. But, it wasn’t the only thing that made his character relatable and real. An unsettled business from Cena’s past also gave life to that character.

John Cena reveals that Dr. of Thuganomics was a payback

Lately, the 16 times WWE world champion John Cena appeared on the show ‘Whiskey Ginger with Andrew Santino’. During the interview, the host asked Cena about his Dr. of Thuganomics character. He asked if the character was just an outcome of his love for hip-hop music. 

To this, the ‘Cenation Leader’ replied that the character definitely referred to his love for hip-hop music, but he wasn’t actually just portraying that character. That character was a facet of his personality. He also mentioned that there is a very thin wall between WWE fans and superstars’ in-ring characters. And, the moment a wrestler makes any mistake, fans take no time to capture it.

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John Cena further explained that his Dr. of Thuganomics character was a punishment for the kids who used to bully him when he was just thirteen. It wasn’t just the way he dressed and presented himself in the ring. The main reason why fans related to his character was because it was a facet of his real personality, not just role-play.

While talking to the host, John Cena said, “It was kind of like my comeuppance to those kids who used to kick my a** when I was 13. Like Hey see I can do this and people can relate to it. So it felt really good.[…] It was who I was. It was a facet of me just like a stand-up personality.”

A glimpse of Cena’s original wrestling gimmick

‘Dr. of Thuganomics’ was Cena’s first proper wrestling persona on the main roster. He used to appear in the ring wearing jerseys of the local crowd’s sports team and a backward hat with a silver lock chain around his neck. He even used to trash-talk his opponents in raps.

It was a heel character and sometimes, Cena used to hit his opponents with the lock chain behind the referee’s back. He has also performed several ‘rap battles’ as a part of that gimmick.

Wrestling Legend Once Revealed Why WWE Gave John Cena the Long Rope Despite Dividing Opinion

This character and persona actually saved Cena’s WWE career and fans always found his antics quite relatable. And that’s the reason,  even after so many years, ‘Dr. of Thuganomics’ has not faded from their mind.

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