John Cena started off tonight’s episode of WWE SmackDown with a bang, and the crowd greeted him with a massive response. Cena didn’t waste any time amping up the crowd even more, welcoming them to SmackDown while also revealing that he would be hosting this weekend’s Payback premium live event. Cena was cut off by Jimmy Uso, who came into the ring and called Cena’s return into question. Jimmy compared Cena to Roman Reigns and took a few more shots at Cena, but Cena hit right back with a lethal burn that caused Jimmy to attack him. Cena got the better of the exchange though, and stood tall in the ring.
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Cena walked to the ring and said, “Welcome to SmackDown! Coming to you live from a sold-out Hershey Pennsylvania. This right here. You guys have given me 20 years’ worth of moments of running down and sliding in this ring right here, and it never gets old. As a matter of fact, every single time it gets better. Which is why no matter what I’m scheduled to do every time I’m in this ring I’m going to make sure I say thank you. Thank you for all you have given and thank you for all you continue to give. I mean look around, you’ve given me a chance yet again to come home to my WWE family and it feels good.”
“You’ve given me a chance to be a part of SmackDown, but not for one night only, but for months. You’ve given me an opportunity for the first time in my two-decade career to go to India and have my first match there,” Cena said. “And I just found this out. You have given me the opportunity to host Payback tomorrow night!”
“So for all you have given me, I give you my word I’ll do my best to give back to you. So that starts right here, right now. And it starts with SmackDown. Tonight we are giving you an epic SmackDown,” Cena said. “You saw that video. You got questions, tonight we are giving you answers. Tonight, because of the energy and the electricity and the noise, we are giving you unforgettable moments, because tonight we are giving you a chance to see John Cena face…”
At that point Jimmy Uso’s music hit and he walked down to the ring with an attitude (and new music). The crowd started chanting “We want Jey”, and Jimmy said “What you doin here? Nah nah, don’t boo me. What you doin here John? These people came to see me. A top star, Jimmy Uso! They did not just come to see me Uce. They came to hear me reveal why, Jimmy, why. I will save my brother ten times over if I have to Uce. I don’t care if you disagree with what I’ve done. I did it because I love my brother.”
“Here’s the funny thing. The funny thing is I didn’t want Jey Uso to be corrupted like Roman Reigns. And I damn sure didn’t want Jey to be corrupted like John Cena,” Jimmy said. “Let’s talk to em. Look at you dog. This right there? You are this place Uce. This is you?” Jimmy pointed to Cena’s clothes, to which Cena responded, “I admit I have an identifiable fashion sense. Neve give up on it you know.”
“You a G.O.A.T., but you are standing in the ring with one of the best now Uce. Here’s the funny thing. You and Roman Reigns are exactly alike,” Jimmy said. “Ya’ll exactly alike. How is John Cena like Roman Reigns? The answer is simple. You take, take, take and take. The only difference is you do yours with a smile.”
Cena then walked up to Jimmy and said, “I’m gonna stop you for a second. You’ve had a lot on your mind. You’ve had a crazy run and you’ve made some rash decisions and you’re trying to make sense of it all. I’ve been wanting to say this to you for three years, because I’ve only been thinking of one thing. The wrong Uso quit. Take that.” At that point Jimmy took a second and then tried to hit Cena with a superkick, but Cena caught his foot. Then Cena lifted Jimmy up and hit the Attitude Adjustment, causing Jimmy to roll to the floor.
What did you think of the segment and of Cena hosting Payback? Let us know in the comments and as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Threads @mattaguilarcb!
