John Cena Puts Over Cesaro in Chicago in a Post-“RAW” Dark Segment

A fan video has surfaced, in which WWE United States Champion John Cena puts over Cesaro in Chicago in a post-“RAW” dark segment that did not air on television. Cesaro faced Cena in the main event of the July 6 edition of “Monday Night Raw” for the US Title, just coming up short of winning for the second time in two weeks.

However, in a move that was likely a reaction to poor “RAW” ratings from WWE CEO Vince McMahon, Cena’s US Title Open Challenge was moved into the main event spot during the program. While this put the face of the company back in the main event limelight for “RAW,” it also put Cesaro there as well, who’s been on the cusp of breaking through the glass ceiling in WWE for some time.

Many behind-the-scenes in WWE believe that Cesaro can be a big superstar, while others, most notably rumored as McMahon “just do not see it.” Cesaro has been given numerous runs as a singles competitor, but with failed gimmicks and failed starts at a push. The most memorable to date came in 2014 following WrestleMania XXX, when Cesaro turned face against his then heel Real American tag team partner Jack Swagger, and won the inaugural André the Giant Memorial Battle Royal.

It was reported at that time that WWE was going to push Cesaro as a main event player, using Paul Heyman as his mouthpiece due to his lack of skills and confidence on the microphone. However, those plans were quickly squashed, as they turned him heel almost immediately and did nothing with him. Some would say his time spent with Heyman actually hurt Cesaro.

Nevertheless, Cesaro would find stride again in tag team competition as part of the #BTE/Brass Ring Club tag team with Tyson Kidd, capturing the WWE Tag Team Championship titles in the process. However, Kidd recently suffered a debilitating neck injury which required intense surgery which will keep him out of action for over a year, leaving Cesaro in a “what now?” situation.

On June 29, in what seemed to be a one-off match, Cesaro would be placed in the United States Championship Match with one of his friends, colleagues, and biggest supporters in Cena. The two men work-out together and are rumored to be great friends behind-the-curtain.

They put on a memorable match on June 29, but one that would be over shadowed by the performance they gave on July 6. In a “Match of the Year” candidate, Cesaro and Cena left everything they had in front of the rowdy Chicago crowd during “RAW.”

Following the show, Cena grabbed a microphone and began to thank the crowd, no matter how ruckus they are, for being exactly that. He then gave a huge vote of confidence to Cesaro, claiming that he doesn’t know when his next “opportunity” (seemingly to grab one of McMahon’s brass rings), but that he damn sure just made the most out of the last two he was given.

The Chicago crowd then bathed Cesaro with chants of his name, which McMahon used to say is when the company knows they have a hot commodity on their hands. You can watch the entire segment in the video below.

Editor’s Note:

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. Cesaro is a one-of-a-kind talent that can do things normal people can’t. If he can get a great mouthpiece, or learn to be confident and comfortable on the mic, he’ll be one of the biggest stars in the company for the long haul. Well done last night gents.