Wrestlemania 28: The Rock, John Cena, and Value of Winning

Hello Fellow Bleachers,

My name is Trey Styles, I tend to write a new article whenever I find something truly worth writing about. My last article was on Christmas Day.  I'm not here to pad my stats or label dirt-sheet reports as breaking news. I'm not even here to mark out or cause controversy. I'm not here to trot out my knowledge of industry terms. I just want to speak to my readers.

But last night was WrestleMania and today hundreds, if not thousands, of people worldwide have taken to their computers and have churned out articles as if the Internet is one big assembly line.

A constant phrase that I've heard is, "The Rock's win was the wrong move for the business." That statement is about as valid, as telling someone they got the wrong gift for their birthday, or they should buy an Xbox 360 over a PS3. It's a simple opinion.

The WWE had a year to map out this finish—I'm sure they took a lot into consideration in deciding this match. In the end, the WWE decided that a loss would not actually hurt Cena, and it keeps The Rock as a special attraction. Most of us writers really don't know what the right move for the business is, we only know what we like. People lose actual sleep because The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles are going to be Aliens in the next movie. They say it's the wrong move for the business, I am simply saying let's see how things play out.

Another constant is The Rock is selfish; we as readers and writers owe it to ourselves to not drink the character Kool-Aid. The Rock fired and replaced his entire management team to make sure there was room for the WWE. When The Rock left the WWE, he left an entire generation of amazing talent behind—Brock Lesnar, Kurt Angle, Randy Orton and many others were more than capable of carrying the company into the coming years.

WWE Superstars don't just walk into an arena and decide to perform, there are contracts as well as other things involved because it is a business, a business where many of the athletes involved have a difficult time finding proper health insurance because of the nature of the industry. No one wanted Edge to be forced to retire, but that is what the business does to people.

I've also heard constantly that the Rock was blown up midway through the match. I feel that selling a beating is a distinct lost art in the WWE. That suspension of disbelief is necessary for the business to continue.

I think that John Cena played his character well throughout the match. He genuinely looked shocked and flustered at various points during the match. That was the right move for the business. 

Wins and losses don't matter in the long run; John Cena stated that he always wins. Now we get to see how he handles the loss he can't just rematch immediately. We get to see something more.  He can finally transcend, and his true fans can surface. He didn't turn his back on them, finding out if they will respond in kind that is the right move for the business.

John Cena vs. The Rock was not the next Rock vs. Hogan. It wasn't a match between two active full-time competitors. It wasn't passing of the torch like Hogan/Warrior. Cena has had the torch for about six years. He took it and ran with it. He has done an admirable job as the face of the company.

Cena needed this loss because he will be there tonight, and next week and every other week. Last night, Cena went against the hustle, loyalty and respect to mock his opponent and he lost. Cena fell, but Cena's fall is not the end, and he doesn't need to swear revenge or get a rematch next year. Cena needed to fall, not to send the fans home happy or add fuel to his haters; instead, to quote Batman Begins, "Why do we fall? So we can learn to pick ourselves up."

Rock and Cena gave us a match to talk about for weeks. That is the right move for the business, in my opinion.

The majority of fans got their money's worth from WrestleMania. That is the right move for the business, in my opinion.

Cena will pick himself up and move forward. And that is the right move for the business, in my opinion.