John Cena loves the competition.
Since the birth of AEW in 2019, WWE has had a major competitor in the wrestling industry with AEW being on national television and providing a place for other top stars to find work. Many in WWE have left the company, whether through release or contract expiration and then found a home in AEW.
Cena spent the majority of his run as the face of WWE without a direct competitor as his ascension came after the death of WCW and his run ended before AEW emerged.
Speaking on Pardon My Take, Cena was asked if he watched AEW and what he thinks of the competition.
"I haven't watched AEW," he replied. "Do I think competition is good? I think competition is great. There is internal competition in WWE with performers wanting to be champion or performers wanting to be headliners. Whenever there is more buzz around the industry, it's good for the industry. It forces all of us to be at our best because if you're not, your segment is not good or your performance is not good, you may not have a future with the company and repeated bad segments from the group means the company isn't going to be good, which means the competition must succeed. Competition brings out the best in us. For all time, going out there as a performer, I wanted to to the best I could possibly do and set the tone for wanting to be the best show between Raw and SmackDown and certainly have eyes on the segments I was on. I was fueled by a sense of internal competition. Not knowing what it's like now to be in a market with a lot of different options, there are a lot of places to watch sports entertainment. That would only, for me, fuel me even more to be the best I can be."
Cena has been on a media tour to promote the premiere of "Peacemaker" on HBO Max.
During the tour, he talked to Rich Eisen, weighing in on the releases WWE made in 2021. You can find his full comments by clicking here.
You can also find Cena's comments about his future in WWE by clicking here.
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