John Cenas forced run with The Nexus had fans asking the same question for yearswhy didnt he wear the shirt like the rest of the crew? Wade Barrett just dropped the answer, and its got nothing to do with loyalty or storytelling. It was all about the money.
Speaking on Inside The Ropes, Barrett pulled back the curtain on WWEs merch system and why Cena opted to keep wearing his own gear instead of fully committing to the group look. The numbers didnt lieCena wasnt about to take a pay cut. Barrett explained that standard WWE talent gets a small cut from each shirt sale, and that was no different for Nexus.
But Cena had his own deal, and it wasnt anywhere near that low. His merch sold like crazy, and WWE made sure to keep him happy.
That became a problem when Nexus shirts took off. Instead of profiting from his solo gear, Cena wouldve had to split a much smaller pool with the entire group.
Barrett said Cena wasnt interested in taking the financial hit.
The kicker? Barrett never heard this from Cena himselfbut it was the word going around the locker room at the time.
For fans who felt like Cena never really joined Nexus despite the storyline, Barrett just connected the dots. It wasnt about pride. It wasnt about character. It was about keeping the merch checks coming in.
Do you think Cena made the right call sticking with his own gear, or should he have gone all in with Nexus? Drop your take in the commentswe want to hear your side of the story.
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