A Look Back: The John Cena/Edge Rivalry (Part I: 2006)

On the August 18, 2023 episode of SmackDown, WWE Hall of Famer Edge was celebrated in his hometown of Toronto, as the evening marked the observed 25th anniversary of the beginning of his WWE career. I've seen a lot from Edge in his career, but I cannot help but basically obsess over what I consider his greatest rivalry: the one with John Cena. I had been planning to write about this for a long time, and during that time, the plan was to split this up into two parts, because I am very detailed and can pretty much describe this bit-by-bit. Plus, the stories differed in each half of this amazing feud.

So here is Part 1 of Edge's rivalry with John Cena, the events in 2006.

New Year's Revolution and the Royal Rumble

Edge was coming off quite a 2005; his stock was rising at the highest level possible. He had been in main event level matches since the tail end of 2004, and it was capped off by winning the first ever Money in the Bank Ladder Match at WrestleMania 21. Edge spent the remainder of 2005 in various high level feuds, but entering 2006, he was feuding with then-Intercontinental Champion Ric Flair, leading to a contest at New Year's Revolution. Edge ended up disqualified, but as we remember so well, it would not be the last we would see of Edge that evening.

The main event saw John Cena survive his first Elimination Chamber match against Carlito, Chris Masters, Kane, Kurt Angle, and Shawn Michaels, the last three names being Hall of Famers. He would end up dealing with a fourth Hall of Famer right after his victory, as Edge came in with his Money in the Bank briefcase, delivered two Spears, and walked out of Albany as WWE Champion for the very first time. I remember reading that result and being so amazed and shocked, and also elated that Edge got his first big one. Of course the rematch would take place at the Royal Rumble three weeks later, and there really wasn't much of a build. Plus, it was obvious that Cena would get the title back, and that's exactly what happened.

Edge kicked off the post-Rumble Raw vowing that he would not be remembered as a "transitional champion." We know what that phrase means: usually "one-hit wonders" who hold a title until a bigger name comes in. Edge received two rematches against Cena, getting DQ'ed in one match, and then losing a second with Mick Foley as the official.

Backlash

Edge and Cena had separate feuds entering WrestleMania 22; his latest loss to Cena resulted in Edge feuding with Mick Foley, also resorting to their iconic Hardcore Match. As for Cena, he would have his hands full with the King of Kings himself, Triple H, but after WrestleMania, Cena would not only have The Game still at his heels, but Edge as well, as he defeated Foley and was looking to become champion again. The build for this Triple Threat was very interesting. We would see three straight weeks of handicap matches involving all three combatants, followed by the trio actually banding together against The Spirit Squad on the go-home Raw.

Backlash was quite...interesting as a whole. We would see Edge attempt to goad Triple H and Cena into basically killing each other before Edge pounces, but both combatants saw through the ruse. This was a crazy main event that saw Cena victorious, but it was Triple H who was left standing, laying waste to Cena, Edge, and a few referees.

SummerSlam

Cena thought that he was done with Edge, until the infamous One Night Stand event, which saw Cena defend the title against Rob Van Dam (as part of the challenger's MITB cash-in). The match saw Cena speared by someone in a motorcycle helmet, and lo and behold, it was Edge, much to the extreme (no pun intended) delight of the crowd in attendance. RVD went on to capture the WWE Championship, while Edge unsuccessfully challenged for the title at Vengeance. After Cena defeated Sabu in an Extreme Lumberjack Match, RVD decided to give Cena his rematch.

This is where things get crazy. Saturday Night's Main Event (which returned on March 18 of that year) was set to feature a Triple Threat main event for the WWE Championship: RVD defending against Edge and Cena. Problem: RVD got busted for DWI. So instead of the Triple Threat occurring on July 15 on SNME, it was moved up to the July 3 Raw, and it saw Edge win the title for the second time (a rare moment where a World Title changes hands on free TV). RVD dropped the ECW World Championship a day later to serve his suspension, and regarding SNME, the main event was one-on-one between Edge and Cena, with the challenger winning via disqualification.

The rematch was set for SummerSlam, with the stipulation that if Edge got DQ'ed or counted out, he'd lose the title. The build featured one of the most infamous moments in this rivalry: Edge heading to Cena's home in West Newbury, Massachusetts, and actually slapping Cena's father in the face. SummerSlam took place in Boston that year, and I thought that Cena would get it that night, but I would learn that Edge was successful, using brass knuckles for the victory.

Unforgiven

Fully believing that he was done with Cena for good, Edge had Lita toss away the spinner championship belt, which was Cena's signature, and he replaced it with his own version with the "Rated R Superstar" logo. Cena struck back, however, leading to another infamous moment: Cena tossing Edge into the Long Island Sound. So Cena and Edge would got at it on pay-per-view one more time, this time at Unforgiven. However, there was a stipulation: if Cena lost, he'd be done. I'm not just talking about being in the WWE Championship picture. If Cena lost, he would be off Raw and back on SmackDown. In addition, Edge stacked the deck against Cena even further. Not only was Unforgiven in Edge's hometown of Toronto, but the bout would be contested as a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match: Edge's specialty.

I've only watched that match twice because Unforgiven 2006 leaves a bit of a bad taste in my mouth. Of course, Edge got the big hometown reaction, while Cena may as well have been donning a Boston Bruins jersey. Again, I've only watched this twice, but I do remember this being one hell of a main event. When this was made though, I kinda figured Cena would win, because they had Edge win in Cena's city, plus I knew then that the plan was to have Cena be the ultimate guy. Sure enough, that's what happened. Cena defeated Edge on the road, in Edge's specialty, to regain the WWE Championship.

Part I Aftermath

Digressing a bit--I now think that the whole "Cena has to go to SmackDown" stipulation was the earliest sign of WWE eventually ending brand exclusive PPVs (until 2016), as we would later see all of the brands involved in brand exclusive PPVs for months until Backlash 2007, when all of the PPVs became (at that time) tri-branded. Edge received his rematch against Cena in a Steel Cage Match on October 2 of that year, with Cena winning. So the feud was over, but they would cross paths again just 2.5 years later. That, though, is another story.

The 2006 half of the Cena/Edge feud was quite interesting. And to think, it all started with a WWE Championship change. That, alone, is innovative. This half of the rivalry saw Cena and Edge swap that title so many times, and featured a lot of crazy moments, mainly because it took place during the heart of WWE's Ruthless Aggression Era. As amazing as the first half was, the second half of this feud really turned things up, but again, that's another story.

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