Just three months into his farewell tour this year, John Cena captured his 17th world title when he defeated Cody Rhodes at WrestleMania 41, officially surpassing Ric Flair's long-standing record of 16 world championships. Cena originally tied Flair in 2017 when he finally scored a victory over AJ Styles, but for years fans questioned if WWE would allow the 48-year-old to become the sole holder of the milestone. However, Cena himself was unsure about beating Flair's record, as he outlined his respect for "The Nature Boy" during in an interview on "Insight,"and hopes to one day congratulate the performer that wins 18 world titles.
"I have been apprehensive for quite some time for that because I love Ric. Super mentor to me. Always been a great guy to me and I love him. I meant what I said in the press conference at Rumble ...I want to win 17 so I can shake the hand of the performer that wins 18. So what it meant to me personally was like, hey youngins, one of them is going to be you or you better get working because I don't want to be in the ground when 18 happens. I want to shake somebody's hand and something that's impossible is now possible. So that's what it means to me of hopefully by my actions, this is possible, and holy hell this guy wants to shake my hand when I pass it and I can't wait to do that."
Cena's Undisputed WWE Championship reign would last 105 days before he wasdethroned by Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam this past August. Cena never received an opportunity to win back the gold, and instead set his sights on the Intercontinental Title, where he would defeat Dominik Mysterio and officially become a Grand Slam Champion.
If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Insight" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
