Cesaro Says John Cena Is "A Top Five Superstar Of All Time"

When Cesaro accepted John Cena's open challenge for the WWE United States Championship back in 2015, their match was rated among many as a match that set the bar high for both of their careers. While reflecting on his match with Cena, Cesaro mentioned that if it weren't for Cena, he wouldn't be the highly skilled wrestler that he is today.

"John Cena is one of the top-five Superstars of all time," Cesaro stated confidently in his interview on The Bump. "His work ethic is second to none. His in-ring ability, I think, is absolutely amazing. I think it's still underrated.

"He taught me so much coming into WWE. He was one of those guys where he was there full time for every event. He's an inspiration. He once told me, 'You're only as good as your last match.' I have a similar mindset, but that's how I approach every single match. I try to make it special."

With his powerlifting ability, Cesaro has put a number of Superstars in The Cesaro Swing. As they take a look back at a clip of him using that move during his time in CHIKARA, Cesaro admitted that there have only been two Superstars he's had a difficult time using that move on.

"The Great Khali was unsurprisingly one of the hardest ever," Cesaro replied. "I can't tell you of anyone who was surprisingly light – it's kind of hard with everybody. But, Great Khali was definitely hard. Big E [is also a hard one] because he's very dense, very heavy."

Shifting gears, Kayla Braxton asked Cesaro if he could go back in time and work for any company, which would he chose and why. Obviously, he replied with the WWE, however, he added more depth to his answer by saying that it doesn't matter where you work as a performer, what matters is the audience's reaction and emotional attachment you have in that said event.

"I would like to be right here right now because that's where I'm meant to be. How's that for an awesome answer," Cesaro chuckled.

"But going back to your question, it's a really hard one to answer because I love watching wrestling from all over the world and from different periods. They're always special for different reasons. What makes a match stand out and not lose its luster over the years is how the crowd reacts, and the emotional attachment you have to it."

Additionally, he added that he tries to incorporate every style he's learned throughout his 20-year career in the business.

"I always try to have an unpredictable wrestling style and a style that incorporates styles from all over the world," Cesaro notified. "I trained in Lucha Libre and Japan – not enough times. I try to incorporate some of the Japanese styles that I enjoy. To me, it's kind of a hybrid style. Styles make matches, right? So, I always try to find what's the best story and what's the best style for that match."

As we've seen recently, Cesaro's newest t-shirt is a simple black and white design that reads, "The Wrestling Purist." After the panel complimented his new t-shirt design, Cesaro admitted that through many trials and errors after him and Sheamus' split as The Bar, he's learned that it's not about how you convey yourself outside of the ring, but it's how you convey yourself inside of it.

"It means a lot to me because I think it represents me," Cesaro said. "I'm a purist. I love wrestling. I was lost after The Bar broke up. I tried a few different things. I tried new gear and it just didn't feel like me. I tried to be the cool and hip gut, but I'm not the cool guy, I'm a purist."

You can watch Cesaro's full interview here. If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit WWE's The Bump with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.