Buff Bagwell: John Cena is nothing special

Any of a number of wrestlers could have a high level of success if they were given the extended push that WWE has given John Cena. This from Buff Bagwell, recently outed as a high-dollar escort, who dished on a number of controversial topics in an interview with The Shoot podcast.

“I don’t think he’s a Rock, I don’t think he is a Sting, I don’t think he is a Goldberg, I don’t think he is a Stone Cold,” said Bagwell, who never could break through the mid-card in WCW and has struggled to make a dent on the indy scene in recent years.

But hey, he’s still Buff, and thus still the Stuff. And despite the obvious jealousy over Cena’s success vis-à-vis his own lack thereof, he has an interesting point to make.

“You give me the same push, I think I would be just as big as John Cena,” said Cena, making the point that it’s Cena’s look and mic skills, and not in-ring ability, that have been the foundation of his long run at the top of WWE.

The same was the case for Hulk Hogan a generation earlier. Neither was in the same area code as Ric Flair in the ring or the mic, but they looked good in the uniform, as the old saying goes.

Cena, said Bagwell, is not “that cornerstone guy. He’s not that super mega superstar that The Rock has become. He’s not that super mega superstar Stone Cold had become. He’s just WWE’s number one guy, and with a little bit of help, a lot of guys could be that guy. He’s just got the look, he’s got the ability, and he was at the right place at the right time to be their poster child.”

– Column by Chris Graham