Adam Copeland remembers his rivalry with John Cena and its importance to their careers

Before AEW All Out in Toronto, Adam Copeland spoke with The Score about the recent tribute from John Cena to him and how their rivalry in the 2000s marked a before and after in their WWE careers.

Copeland commented on Cena's gesture of imitating some of his moves at Clash in Paris, during his match against Logan Paul: "I saw a clip a couple of days ago where he did all the spear preparation and everything... It was very fun."

The Canadian recalled how his story with Cena clicked immediately, even comparing it to the slower chemistry he developed with Eddie Guerrero: "John and I clicked from day one. I think it was because our characters were polar opposites. He needed a villain, and I needed a hero. We both knew what the mission was."

The match that changed everything

For Copeland, that stage was key in the rise of both: "I feel that our rivalry was what definitively stamped that he was the big star, and it solidified me as a main event guy. I will always look back fondly on what we did and the fun we had."

Among the most memorable moments of that rivalry is the TLC Match in Toronto in 2006, where Cena defeated Copeland in his own home to regain the WWE Championship. The match, held at Unforgiven, is considered one of the best extreme rules matches of the time and forever sealed the intensity of their rivalry.