5 positives from John Cena's WWE run in 2017

WWE's 'New Era' is well and truly here, and a big indication of that is the rather limited role played by the icon of the PG Era, John Cena. The 16-time world champion has only made sporadic appearances on RAW and Smackdown in 2017, and has suffered more defeats than usual - something many fans will argue is long overdue.

That being said, the year has not been without its memorable and positive moments for the beloved leader of the Cenation. Here are 5 reasons in particular why John Cena should be proud of his 2017 WWE run.

#5 Finally taking a back seat

For years wrestling fans have been calling out to Vince McMahon in near unison for John Cena to turn heel. We desperately long to see another side of his character, ideally a darker one that finally gives in to the chorus of boos and sneers he receives in every arena he visits.

What many people fail to notice is that while technically wrestling as a face for the past 15+ plus years, Cena has been one of the most effective heels the industry has ever seen. If the idea of being a villain is to unite the crowd against you and force them to cheer for your opponent, then Cena deserves to be mentioned with some of the industry's most iconic villains like Flair, Triple H and Roddy Piper.

That being said, 2017 has been different with respect to how much Cena has stood in the way of younger, fresher talent. True, he might have begun 2017 be defeating AJ Styles for the WWE Championship, but since then he has largely taken a back seat in order to help other guys get over.

His loss to Nakamura on Smackdown was a good example of this, as was his defeat to Roman Reigns at No Mercy. Even his role in the Survivor Series main event was largely minimal, instead of allowing others to take centre stage. It's perhaps a shame that Triple H didn't do the same thing.

Who knows what the future will hold for Cena, but if 2017 is anything to go by, expect to see him eat more pinfalls than usual.

#4 His Feud with the Miz at Wrestlemania 33

For those who still think that John Cena has a stranglehold over Professional Wrestling, they might want to turn their attention to how little he has actually contributed to the last few Wrestlemania shows. Sure, there was a time when the entire event would be built around him, whether he was fighting for a championship or not. However, in recent years he has definitely been playing second fiddle.

A few years ago at Wrestlemania 31 Cena successfully challenged Rusev for the United States Championship in the mid-card of the show. He then went on to deliver a cameo appearance a year later, coming out to assist the Rock against an attack from the Wyatt family.

This year saw him yet again filling up the mid-card in an inter-gender tag team match, teaming up with real life partner Nikki Bella against The Miz and Maryse. And while it was never meant to be a signature part of the card, the four actually put on one of the most entertaining feuds of the year.

True, a lot of the humour and emotional energy came from the Miz, but Cena certainly played his part. At times their in-ring promo segments began to blur the lines between kayfabe and reality, with the 16-time champ laying down some harsh truths to Miz and his wife.

The match itself was, unfortunately, not befitting of the feud, but that doesn't take away from how well these two worked off each other in the run-up to it.

#3 Showing respect to Shinsuke Nakamura

One thing you can say about the former 'Doctor of Thuganomics' is how seriously he takes the business. Whenever a big name from the non-WWE world of Pro Wrestling makes their debut in WWE, Cena responds accordingly, acknowledging how big of a deal it is for many fans in attendance.

His rivalry with Kevin Owens throughout 2015 is a good example of this. The way he spoke with the former NXT Champion in the ring indicated that Cena wasn't about to simply bury him for no reason - KO had his fans and John respected that.

This is because, despite many people's hatred of Cena, they love to see him across the ring from their beloved indie stars. Coming up against the face that runs the place is a sign that you've finally made it in the industry and your hard work and talent are paying off at the highest of levels.

Earlier this year, we got to see another dream match, this time between Cena and Shinsuke Nakamura. With a chance to face Jinder Mahal at Summerslam on the line, Cena put over Shinsuke in a big way, actually bothering to tell a genuine and coherent in-ring story, something Dolph Ziggler had failed to do when he faced the King of Strong Style after his debut on Smackdown.

And at the match's conclusion, John paid the ultimate respect to the Japanese icon, refusing to get angry with Shinsuke after a botched suplex which could have easily broken the guy's neck. After Shinsuke apologised, Cena shook his opponent by the hand, mouthing the words 'don't be sorry'.

#2 His overall promo work

While not every feud Cena has been involved in throughout 2017 has hit the mark, this year has been yet another example of how the 16-time champ has some of the best microphone skills of anybody in the industry today.

From his earliest days as a wannabe Eminem, tying his opponents up in verbal knots, Cena has stood out above most others as a truly great talker. At times he has almost put the entire locker room to shame with how well he can deliver a line, something we don't normally see out of post-Attitude Era superstars.

2017 has been a highly entertaining year as far as Cena promos are concerned. This may be because the man is approaching the autumn years of his wrestling career, which gives him slightly more freedom with what to say. Cena's essential gimmick this year has been the old-timer who looks down with disdain on the younger generation whom he believes still needs to go throughout him before they can truly reach the top.

Whether it was his verbal sparring matches with Styles, his savage destruction of the Miz or his dismantling of Roman Reigns, Cena has been extra sharp this year, often breaching the limits of acceptability and threatening to bring down the fourth wall in the process.

His time in the ring might be limited, but we should still be cherishing his verbal abilities while we still have them, because sooner or later, wrestling's loss will be Hollywood's gain.

#1 Tieing Ric Flair's Championship record

It might be difficult for us to predict how John Cena will be viewed in the future. For many, he represents a toothless period of professional wrestling that has seen a sharp decline in fan interest and a rise in confusing, nonsensical storyline booking. For others, however, he deserves his place upon the Mount Rushmore of the WWE alongside greats like Hogan and Austin.

While the story behind the numbers can certainly be interpreted differently by contrasting groups of people, there's no denying that it takes somebody very special to sit atop the list of most championships won in a single career.

When it comes to Pro Wrestling, both John Cena and Ric Flair stand out as the two most successful champions the sport has ever seen. After months of trying, the leader of the Cenation finally achieved his dream of equaling Flair's record of 16 World Championships when he defeated AJ Styles at the Royal Rumble earlier this year for the WWE Title.

Love him or hate him, this is an accomplishment that nobody will be able to take away from Cena, and only a fool would bet against him picking up championship number 17 at some point in the not too distant future.

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