A WWE promo by R-Truth on the May 23 WWE SmackDown reportedly garnered considerable backstage praise within World Wrestling Entertainment, Fightful Select reported. This segment involved R-Truth addressing his upcoming Undisputed WWE World Title match against John Cena at Saturday Night’s Main Event with an uncharacteristically serious demeanor.
The Fightful Select report specified that R-Truth’s (Ron Killings) performance “got a great reaction from those Fightful Select spoke with backstage.” During the address that concluded WWE SmackDown’s second hour, R-Truth likened John Cena to Gollum from The Lord of the Rings. Ahead of their Tampa championship encounter, R-Truth remarked of Cena, “The man I’m facing tomorrow night is not the John Cena I know,” and added, “He stares at that championship and calls it his precious.”
R-Truth acknowledged his past admiration for Cena but stressed his resolve for their title match. “I don’t know if I can bring John Cena back, but I’m going to try,” he stated, concluding with a defiant promise: “If Cena wins, we riot.” This promo noticeably shifted the long-standing comedic “childhood hero” dynamic between R-Truth and John Cena to a more earnest confrontation, a change Fightful Select noted earned R-Truth significant locker room respect.
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