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John Cena is known for being one of the indomitable forces in WWE. Over the years, he has managed to win multiple titles. He currently holds the record for the highest number of world championships alongside Ric Flair with 16 world title reigns.
His winning record became a target for the fans, as whenever he was challenging for the title, he seemed to come away with the win. However, that has not always been the case. There have been occasions where John Cena has failed to win the title despite looking like the favorite.
Several of these times, it has helped his opponent to achieve greatness and put them over. Beating John Cena is an accomplishment very few can boast of. While he has lost quite a few times, let's take a look at five times that John Cena lost when challenging for the title.
John Cena vs. Edge - WWE SummerSlam 2006
In 2006, Edge cashed in the first-ever Money in the Bank briefcase on John Cena, after Cena had emerged from an Elimination Chamber match. He defeated five other stars to retain the title, but Edge made his way out and cashed in the briefcase. He then proceeded to hit John Cena with two spears, before pinning him to win the title.
Unfortunately for Edge, Cena won the title back three weeks later at the Royal Rumble event. Cena was the victim of the second-ever Money in the Bank cash-in again and found himself with a title shot at RAW in a Triple Threat match. There, he was unable to win the match, but the rematch came at SummerSlam where he faced Edge for the title.
Cena's match against Edge at SummerSlam was the very first time that John Cena didn't win in a singles match for the championship. Edge beat him to retain the title for a while longer, but lost it at Unforgiven when they faced each other in a TLC match.
#4 John Cena vs. The Miz - WWE WrestleMania 27
When John Cena faced The Miz, it was one time that the WWE Universe was whole-heartedly behind him and wanted him to win. After The Miz won the WWE Championship by cashing in his Money In The Bank briefcase, he turned into an insufferable heel. He defeated Randy Orton to win the title in a moment that's gone down in history.
Heading into WrestleMania, The Miz was one of the most hated superstars on the WWE roster. John Cena, for once, had the majority of the WWE Universe firmly in his corner.
The Miz won thanks to interference from The Rock. The Brahma Bull set up their much-hyped "Once in a lifetime" match against Cena for the following year's WrestleMania. Cena could have won the title and taken it off the ever-infuriating Miz, but it was not to be.
#3 John Cena vs. Randy Orton - WWE TLC 2013
John Cena and Randy Orton have faced each other so many times, that not including at least one Orton match would be sacrilege.
The match was set up in the background of Daniel Bryan's slow rise to extreme popularity. Cena defeated The Rock at WrestleMania to win the world championship. He held onto it before giving Daniel Bryan a shot at SummerSlam.
Daniel Bryan shocked the world by defeating Cena. Unfortunately, the guest referee, Triple H, turned on Bryan, took him out, and then allowed Randy Orton to cash in the Money in the Bank contract.
WWE then decided to merge the WWE Championship with the World Heavyweight Championship. John Cena was selected as the opponent after he managed to win the World Heavyweight title. He faced Randy Orton, challenging him for the unified WWE World Heavyweight Championship, only to fall short and lose.
Randy Orton won it, and together with The Authority faction, proceeded to rule over WWE — until Daniel Bryan put a stop to it.
#2 John Cena vs. Seth Rollins — WWE SummerSlam 2015
By 2015, John Cena had achieved something no one expected. He made the WWE United States Championship relevant again. Cena's reign with the United States title was one of the best things he did throughout his career.
At SummerSlam 2015, however, he came face to face with Seth Rollins. Both men put their titles on the line. Whoever walked out was going to walk out as a double champion.
If Cena won the match, he would be a 16-time WWE Champion. Unfortunately, thanks to interference from Jon Stewart, Cena was unable to win the title at that time.
Stewart was apparently a Ric Flair fan and felt it was wrong that anyone should tie The Nature Boy's massive achievement. John Cena was in incredible form as he put Rollins over in the match, making him seem an even bigger threat.
This came at a time when Rollins was yet to be established as a proper top name. A win over Cena, and their feud, helped build him up in the eyes of the audience. Since then, Rollins has remained a top name for WWE.
#1 John Cena vs. AJ Styles vs. Dean Ambrose - WWE No Mercy 2016
For a long time, John Cena gave the impression that he had no interest in meeting or beating Ric Flair's record. However, when this match came around, Cena admitted that he wanted to get a step closer to becoming the 16-time World Champion.
It wasn't going to happen.
AJ Styles defeated Dean Ambrose at Backlash and Cena at SummerSlam. Neither man was willing to let it go, and they ended up facing each other in a Triple Threat match at No Mercy 2016. John Cena was not able to win the 16th title on that occasion. AJ Styles won the match by pinning him.
Unfortunately, for him, he had made Styles submit in that match. Only he had done it at the same time as Ambrose. Due to the double submission, the match had to be restarted and the finish was disregarded.
Eventually, Cena did manage to win the WWE Championship for a 16th time, at the 2017 Royal Rumble event by defeating AJ Styles.
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