Why John Cena Refuses to Work With This 2-Time WWE Champion

John Cena has an unfavorable reputation for “burying” WWE talent. Even though most of that perception was created by disgruntled fans, there may be some validity to that concept.

As the face of WWE, John Cena‘s opinion will inherently carry more weight than everyone else – it’s a privilege he’s earned. So if a WWE dancing partner isn’t up to his standards, in the name of a better WWE, John Cena has the power to discard opponents.

This is exactly what happened with Dolph Ziggler. On Wade Keller’s Pro Wrestling Podcast, former WWE writer Kevin Eck told a story of John Cena and Vince McMahon killing a feud with The Show Off:

“Cena will be very honest in his assessment of you. Dolph Ziggler‘s the first guy that comes to mind, when they had a singles program together, in the beginning, John was all for it.”

Oh, but things would drastically change:

“John wanted to work with Dolph, and they did the house show loop together and as the heel, the heel traditionally calls the matches and John were letting Dolph call the matches and er…he wasn’t impressed. “

Cena’s opinion of Ziggler reinforced Vince McMahon’s already negative disposition:

“And apparently, John gave his assessment to Vince of Dolph and I think that sort of played into Vince’s thoughts already about Dolph.”

Vince and Cena pulled the plug on Ziggler fearing that Ziggler’s poor performance would actually hurt Cena’s image:

“And once that program ended, it ended rather abruptly because Vince told us in a booking meeting one day, ‘God, I think we’re doing a disservice to John, this is bringing John down. And so Dolph was moved out of that program.”

Yikes. For Cena’s matches with Ziggler to never make it to television says a lot. Despite how many fans feel about Cena’s tyrannical reign at the top of WWE, he’s been nothing but a blessing for the company. Too much is made about his wins and losses and not enough attention is paid to the timing of those instances. In short, John Cena is a pro’s pro.

The same may not be said for Dolph Ziggler, though. It was revealed earlier this week that WWE is in the process of repackaging him – into what, no one knows.

Ziggler has not been on WWE cameras since July 4th. The extended hiatus is certainly not a good thing for a man who was one in a red hot Intercontinental feud with the Miz less than a year ago.

Dolph’s been a valuable asset to WWE, playing the part of a mid-card gatekeeper for up and coming stars. But for Ziggler, the yearning for something more significant is all too real. Shinsuke Nakamura accidentally let it slip that Ziggler is considering a move to Japan. He could be fantastic in across the Pacific, if not, at least highly paid.

If the end is indeed near for Ziggler, no one can deny that he’s had a nice run in WWE. He’s developed a solid cult following through the years and still owns one of the loudest moments in recent WWE history (MITB cash-in on Alberto Del Rio). WWE would be losing one of its purest wrestlers as well, but Ziggler’s exit could create breathing room for guys like Sami Zayn.

[H/T StillRealToUs.com]