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EXCLUSIVE: Joe Hendry Reveals Why He Wants To Wrestle John Cena

Will we get Joe Hendry vs. John Cena?

Steven Muelhausen

TNAWrestling.com

John Cena debuted in WWE back in 2002 and began to become a household name in late 2003. Joe Hendry began his career in 2013 and didn't crack through the proverbial glass ceiling until 2024. But Hendry has skyrocketed to become a household name. His debut in WWE as part of their partnership with TNA back in June generated their most watched social media video on Twitter this year with over 18 million views.

The success this calendar year has led Hendry to headline TNA's biggest event on Saturday as he challenges Nic Nemeth for the World Heavyweight Championship at Bound For Glory (8 p.m. ET, TrillerTV PPV).

Recently, Hendry has been mentioning the possibility of facing Cena in a match. That time would have to be in 2025 as Cena will be retiring at the end of the year. The question which hasn't been brought up is why does Hendry want to step inside the ring with the 16-time WWE champion? Hendry describes the reasoning in a story he's never told.

"John Cena was the first wrestler I ever spoke to," Hendry told The Takedown. "So when I was 15 years old, my friend went to a meet and greet. I couldn't go, and he said, ‘John, here's my phone. Would you please talk to one of my best friends back home’? John talked to me on the phone for about 10 minutes and let me be a fan. So John's the first professional wrestler that I ever spoke to. In 2013, I had a tryout, and I thanked him in person for that interaction because it was a big part of inspiring me actually to go on to do this. So, for me personally, it would be a really full circle moment. That is the dream match that I'm going for.

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"I can't let John Cena retire without me trying to make that happen. If he's doing a run of matches, I owe it to myself. I owe it to my fan base, and I owe it to what I think is best for the professional wrestling business. I just think that that will be so good for everybody and it would be. It's the dream match for me. I think it's very difficult to argue against. John Cena is the greatest of all time. If you look at when he carried the business, the length of time that he carried the business. The thing is, this being this last year, how cool would it be if John Cena crossed over and appeared in a TNA wrestling ring or challenge for a TNA World Championship? We're in an era where absolutely anything can happen. TNA and NXT have an active working relationship, so it's not impossible. And as I always say, anything is possible when you believe." 

Before the world can discuss a Hendry vs. Cena TNA World Title match, the 36-year-old has a tall task in being able to wrest the belt from Nemeth. The native of Scotland knows what is at stake and what Nemeth brings to the table at Bound For Glory.

"You cannot overlook Nic Nemeth," Hendry said. "Nic Nemeth is one of the best ever to lace up a pair of boots. He's been a world champion everywhere that he's been, at the top of the business. He's one of the best ever to lace up a pair of boots. And this guy is the world champion right now. Again, this is somebody that I've been watching for many years. So if we go back to when he finally got his moment when he cashed in and became world champion, and how hot he was and how and how much he had the fans behind them. That was a real movement. Now, he's in a different role. He's the champion. He has to try and stop the movement. To try and stop the fans who are behind Joe Hendry. On paper, a lot of people will say, ‘Well. Nic Nemeth is better than Joe Hendry’. 

"But there's nothing I can do when I've got those fans behind me, and they are going to be out in force at Bound for Glory." 

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Steven Muelhausen
STEVEN MUELHAUSEN

: Steven Muehlhausen is a veteran combat sports writer for various outlets including Sporting News and Yahoo Sports. He can be reached at stevemuehlhausen@yahoo.com and followed on Twitter @SMuehlhausenJr.

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