4 Times John Cena Tapped Out To Submission Moves In WWE

While John Cena is known for preaching to never to give up, he tapped out to a handful of submissions on a few occasions.

By Avik Das

Published on Jul 20, 2024 | 05:45 AM IST | 146.7K

John Cena (PC- Getty Images)

John Cena is acknowledged for his sheer determination and never-give-up attitude. One of his catchphrases is "Never Give Up." During his run as the poster boy of WWE, John Cena was called "Super Cena." Despite the odds thrown at him, Super Cena would find a way to overcome the hurdles by never giving up.

Historically, this has not always been the case for the Leader of Cenation. Throughout his wrestling career, he gave up a few times, surrendering to lethal submission moves, especially in the early days of his WWE career. Here are the encounters where John Cena gave up and submitted to his opponents.

4) Kurt Angle Vs Big Show Vs John Cena (No Way Out 2004)

The No Way Out pay-per-view in 2004 saw a triple-threat battle between Big Show, John Cena, and Kurt Angle. The match offered the winner a ticket to WrestleMania 20 for the WWE Championship.

At the climax of the match, Big Show was out of the ring, and Cena was fighting Angle between the ropes. When the Olympic Hero caught the Doctor of Thuganomics in a vicious Ankle Lock, the latter was left with no choice but to tap out. After making his debut against Kurt Angle, John Cena faced the WWE Hall of Famer a couple of times.

3) Chris Benoit Vs John Cena (December 2, 2003)

Chris Benoit might have been erased from WWE history now, but he was a wizard of the squared circle. He possessed superior in-ring skills, and during his time in WWE, he was one of the finest performers, delivering incredible matches consistently.

John Cena squared off with Chris Benoit on an episode of SmackDown in December 2003. A young Cena surrendered to the Crippler Crossface submission move from the former World Heavyweight Champion.

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2) Chris Jericho Vs John Cena (July 18, 2002)

Chris Jericho was one of the earlier rivals of John Cena, at a time when Cena still hadn't adopted the Doctor of Thuganomics gimmick. They faced off in a singles match on a regular episode of SmackDown on July 18, 2002. A young babyface John Cena showed a lot of potential, but Jericho's low blow caused a disqualification.

Furious about the loss due to disqualification, Y2J assaulted Cena, putting him in the Walls of Jericho submission move. Even though the match was already over, John submitted repeatedly due to the excruciating pain. The referees and officials stepped up to stop a raging Jericho.

1) Kurt Angle vs John Cena (No Mercy 2003)

Kurt Angle indeed showed no mercy to John Cena at the No Mercy 2003 pay-per-view. Cena crossed paths with Angle in a singles match. He played the charismatic Doctor of Thuganomics persona around this time. On the other hand, Kurt Angle was an unstoppable wrestling machine in 2003, headlining WWE's major pay-per-views.

Lasting over eighteen minutes, the young Thuganomics demonstrated valiant efforts against the Olympic Gold Medalist. When the Angle Slam did not get the job done, Kurt made Cena tap out following the Ankle Lock submission. Kurt would go down in history as the only man to tap Cena out twice in his career using the Ankle Lock.

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