Slaying a bear of a man by hoisting the beast up into the air and dropping him like a log is just another day’s work for John Cena.
This superhuman effort has endeared the professional wrestler-turned-action-star to his legion of followers and made the WWE a bankable caravan of entertainment even for Filipino fight fans.
Cena pulled it off again, this time against the seven-foot Big Show, who snapped the rope of the ring and fell hard on his back, opening a tiny window of opportunity for the reality television host to deliver his signature Attitude Adjustment.
Savage cheers from a projected crowd of almost 20,000 rumbled inside MOA Arena when Cena, a 15-time world champion, finally three-counted the Big Show during the WWE Live Manila on Friday night.
The brawl-hungry audience was consistent from one fight to the next, unleashing the same level in decibels all night long until the final fight, when a bulging Kevin Owens successfully defended his WWE Universal Champion in the main event against the brawny Seth Rollins and longtime opponent Sami Zayn.
Zayn accidentally kicked Rollins near the end of the fracas that allowed Owens to focus on his bitter rival for the three-count with a pop-up powerbomb.
But more than Owens’ victory, it was the aerial gymnastics and the quick limbs of Zayn and Rollins that can be best remembered in this classic.
The svelte Charlotte also kept her Raw Women’s Championship at the expense of Sasha Banks while Roman Reigns, with his menacing long and wavy hairstyle, knocked down Chris Jericho with a spear off a rebound for him to claim the three-count.
The triple-threat treat featured New Day, which retained the WWE Tag Team Championship after defeating the tandem of Gallows and Anderson and The Shining Stars duo in the event, which had the Inquirer as media partner.
Neville joined the parade of winners with a red arrow on Curtis Axel, Braun Strowman strangled Goldust for the triumph and Cesaro’s sharp shooter downed Sheamus in the opening bout.
The WWE’s trip to Manila was part of the show’s three-city tour after the superstars came all the way from London. Their journey that covered two continents will end in Shanghai.
After the show, wrestling fanatics were eager to witness another classic, hoping it won’t take another seven years before the WWE comes home again.