John Cena On The Rise Of Becky Lynch, Similarities Of Her Success To His Own Career

John Cena recently spoke with Uproxx‘s With Spandex while promoting his continued role as brand ambassador for Hefty Ultra Strong trash bags. During the conversation, Becky Lynch‘s surge in popularity came up, and Cena cited the WWE Universe being vocal in helping her rise to the top:

“I think Daniel Bryan a few years ago in the main event of WrestleMania was a great example of that. And I think the women that are supposedly within the main event of WrestleMania this year were pushing forward toward that historic, monumental occasion. I’m one of those people who think that it should’ve happened a whole lot earlier, but I’m very proud that our audience is at a point where they’re screaming at the top of their lungs, ‘Hey, this is what we want to see.’ I was so extremely happy for Becky Lynch to be able to find this personality that she carved out of thin air and almost out of desperation and become so successful with it.”

Cena said he sees the similarities between Lynch’s rise and his own, saying he and ‘The Man’ both took chances on themselves that paid off:

“I was about to be fired. I was in a Becky Lynch-type scenario where I was forgotten and I was about to be let go and I took a chance on myself. I took a chance on redefining my character and it worked and I’ve never stopped. And I wasn’t the corporate headquarters first, second, third, fourth, fifth or sixth choice, but the audience began to make noise. And I connected with the audience and the rest is history. And that’s what’s wonderful about WWE. It truly is an enterprise system for any performer to connect with the audience. And once they connect with the audience, it doesn’t matter if they’re male or female. It doesn’t matter where you’re from. What you look like. You become a centerpiece of our entertainment and I think that’s the most fascinating thing about what we do. It truly is go out there and connect and then see what happens.”

Read More: Bully Ray Explains The Beauty Of Ronda Rousey & Becky Lynch’s Feud