{"id":25488,"date":"2016-07-13T22:00:29","date_gmt":"2016-07-14T03:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/?p=25488"},"modified":"2016-07-14T00:53:51","modified_gmt":"2016-07-14T05:53:51","slug":"johncenaespysblog","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2016\/07\/13\/johncenaespysblog\/","title":{"rendered":"7\/13 John Cena at the ESPYs Live Blog &#8211; Complete Report"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"pwtor-543494434\" class=\"pwtor-before-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><hr \/><b>SPOTLIGHTED PODCAST ALERT (YOUR ARTICLE BEGINS A FEW INCHES DOWN)... <\/b>\r\n\r\n<iframe src=\"https:\/\/widget.spreaker.com\/player?show_id=3076978&theme=light&playlist=false&playlist-continuous=false&autoplay=false&live-autoplay=false&chapters-image=true&episode_image_position=right&hide-logo=false&hide-likes=false&hide-comments=false&hide-sharing=false&hide-download=true\" width=\"100%\" height=\"140px\" frameborder=\"0\"><\/iframe>\r\n<hr \/><\/div><p><strong>&#8220;John Cena hosts The ESPYs&#8221; Live Blog<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>July 13, 2016<br \/>\nAired on ABC<\/strong><br \/>\n<strong>Los Angeles, Calif.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&#8211; John Cena&#8217;s opening monologue of this year&#8217;s ESPYs sports awards show focused on why exactly he&#8217;s hosting the show. Cena joked about WWE being the &#8220;redheaded stepchild&#8221; of sports and entertainment. &#8220;I mean, it&#8217;s rigged,&#8221; he deadpanned.<\/p>\n<p>Cena joked that\u00a0you might recognize him from &#8220;Trainwreck,&#8221; like the 2016 Summer Olympics, or WWE. So,\u00a0Cena said ESPN booking him as host\u00a0is crazy &#8230; or genius? Cena presented an argument that sports is more like WWE than anyone in sports wants to admit.<\/p>\n<p>Cena noted the NBA story of Cleveland winning something. &#8220;That had to be scripted,&#8221; he said. He also said LeBron James went from a good guy to a bad guy and back to a good guy again. So, the NBA did what they do in WWE &#8211; make a new bad guy. A picture of Kevin Durant in a Golden St. Warriors uniform flashed on the screen to a pop.<\/p>\n<p>Then, the NFL had the Peyton Manning story riding off into the sunset after conquering his arch-nemesis Tom Brady. Plus, there&#8217;s Odell Beckham, who already looks like a WWE star. Cena said he is one parrot away from being Koko B. Ware, whose picture flashed on the screen.<\/p>\n<p>And, Cena said, there is Vince McMahon, who is a maniacal billionaire manipulating the system to his advantage. &#8220;That&#8217;s way too crazy for real sports,&#8221; Cena deadpanned before a photo of NFL commissioner Roger Goodell flashed on the screen.<\/p>\n<p>So, Cena said, maybe ESPN did get the best guy for the night when sport meets entertainment.<\/p>\n<p>Cena then went through some joke material, mainly about Cleveland. He said there were\u00a01.3 million people at the Cleveland Cavs victory celebration. &#8220;And somehow there is not one good QB,&#8221; he joked.\u00a0He also joked about Kevin Love sitting with the big kids LeBron James and Kyrie Irving. &#8220;I expected to see you off in the corner. Alone. Screaming &#8216;I&#8217;m open!'&#8221;<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-3085933893\" class=\"pwtor-content pwtor-entity-placement\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x250\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Cena pointed out Peyton Manning and Kobe Bryant in the crowd after retiring. He said both of their games were spectacular, and with virtually no passing, joking about Peyton having a terrible Super Bowl game in victory and Kobe never passing the ball in his final NBA game.<\/p>\n<p>Cena then joked about the Los Angeles Lakers&#8217;s new head coach, Luke Walton, also being their best player. Meanwhile, Phil Jackson is re-assembling the bad Bulls in New York.<\/p>\n<p>Cena joked about Tim Duncan retiring as only Tim Duncan can &#8211; in the middle of the night during the off-season. He wrapped up his monologue with some dirty jokes that drew quizzical looks from the athletes shown on-camera.<\/p>\n<p>Cena also pointed out Ric Flair in the crowd. He said the ESPYs is the one night of the year where Flair is actually sensibly dressed, joking about athletes dressing in crazy suits for the ESPYs.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Two segments later, Cena introduced a video on Sgt. Elizabeth Marks, who received the Pat Tillman Award for Service Award.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Two segments later, Cena did a comedy bit with comedian Hannibal Buress about what sports will look like in 20 years or so. The jokes included ads all over uniforms, the Washington Redskins&#8217;s new team name, Dipping Dots actually being the ice cream of the future, and Jordan Spieth changing his name.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Later, ESPN SportsCenter anchor Chris Berman introduced a pre-taped bit on Cena auditioning kids for his personal press conference accessory, just like real NBA athletes trying to distract from questions.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Later, Cena returned to the stage for a quick joke about Tom Brady&#8217;s &#8220;Deflategate&#8221; suspension being upheld.<\/p><div id=\"pwtor-537228253\" class=\"pwtor-content-1 pwtor-entity-placement\"><!-- Tag ID: pwtorchcom_test_300x600 -->\r\n<div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280 __300x600\" id=\"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_test_300x600\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>&#8211; Later, Cena returned to the stage to revisit the origins of the ESPYs, where Jimmy Valvano gave his memorable &#8220;Never Give Up&#8221; speech while battling cancer. Cena brought out U.S. VP Joe Biden, whose son was treated for cancer in Houston. Biden recognized TNT announcer Craig Sager, who has also been treated for cancer in Houston.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; To end the show, Cena introduced a musical tribute to Muhammad Ali. This closed the show.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, Cena had the\u00a0most screen time at the start of the show, then appeared periodically throughout, serving as a back drop for the athletes and stories ESPN wanted to tell through the broadcast.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Tonight was indescribable. <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/hashtag\/ThankYou?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#ThankYou<\/a> to all the <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ESPYS?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">@ESPYS<\/a> staff for their hard work and allowing me to be a part of such a special occasion.<\/p>\n<p>&mdash; John Cena (@JohnCena) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/JohnCena\/status\/753449007750361088?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">July 14, 2016<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>***<\/p>\n<p>Afterward, ESPN released a full list of winners and presenters&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>This year\u2019s presenters included:\u00a0Chris Berman (ESPN Sportscaster), Stephen Curry (Golden State Warriors), Skylar Diggins (Dallas Wings), Lisa Leslie (retired WNBA player), David Oyelowo (Queen of Katwe), Usher Raymond IV (Hands of Stone) Lindsey Vonn (American World Skier), Dwyane Wade (Chicago Bulls), and J.J. Watt (Houston Texans), among others.<\/p>\n<p>In addition, top athletes and celebrities who attended the show included:\u00a0Antonio Brown (Pittsburgh Steelers), Dez Bryant (Dallas Cowboys), Kobe Bryant (retired NBA player), Eric Hosmer (Kansas City Royals), Kerri Walsh Jennings (professional beach volleyball player), DeAndre Jordan (Los Angeles Clippers), Sydney Leroux (FC Kansas City), Kevin Love (Cleveland Cavaliers), Peyton Manning (retired NFL player), Von Miller (Denver Broncos), Danica Patrick (NASCAR driver), JR Smith (Cleveland Cavaliers), Abby Wambach (retired professional soccer player), and more.<\/p>\n<p><strong>COMPLETE LIST OF THE 2016 ESPYS WINNERS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Best Record-Breaking Performance: Stephen Curry<br \/>\nBest Breakthrough Athlete: Jake Arrieta<br \/>\nBest Play: Aaron Rodgers to Richard Rodgers<br \/>\nBest Team: Cleveland Cavaliers<br \/>\nBest Female Athlete: Breanna Stewart<br \/>\nBest Male Athlete: LeBron James<br \/>\nBest Championship Performance: LeBron James<br \/>\nBest Game: NBA Finals Game 7<br \/>\nBest NBA Player: LeBron James<br \/>\nBest MLB Player: Bryce Harper<br \/>\nBest Female Action Sports Athlete: Jamie Anderson<br \/>\nBest Male Action Sports Athlete: Ryan Dungey<br \/>\nBest Jockey: Mario Gutierrez<br \/>\nBest Bowler: Jason Belmonte<br \/>\nBest Female College Athlete: Breanna Stewart<br \/>\nBest Female Athlete with a Disability: Tatyana McFadden<br \/>\nBest Male Athlete with a Disability: Richard Browne<br \/>\nBest Upset: Holly Holm over Ronda Rousey<br \/>\nBest Coach: Tyronn Lue<br \/>\nBest International Athlete: Cristiano Ronaldo<br \/>\nBest Fighter: Conor McGregor<br \/>\nBest NFL Player: Cam Newton<br \/>\nBest NHL Player: Sidney Crosby<br \/>\nBest WNBA Player: Maya Moore<br \/>\nBest Male College Athlete: Buddy Hield<br \/>\nBest Driver: Kyle Busch<br \/>\nBest Male Golfer: Jordan Spieth<br \/>\nBest Female Golfer: Lydia Ko<br \/>\nBest Male Tennis Player: Novak Djokovic<br \/>\nBest Female Tennis Player: Serena Williams<br \/>\nBest MLS player: Sebastian Giovinco<\/p>\n<p><strong>SPECIAL AWARDS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Jimmy V Award for Perseverance: Craig Sager<br \/>\nArthur Ashe Award for Courage: Zaevion Dobson<br \/>\nPat Tillman Award for Service: Sergeant Elizabeth Marks<br \/>\nBest Moment: Cleveland wins first title in 52 years<br \/>\nBest Comeback Athlete: Eric Berry<br \/>\nIcon Award: Kobe Bryant, Peyton Manning, and Abby Wambach<\/p>\n<p><strong>About The ESPYS<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The ESPYS gather top celebrities from sports and entertainment to commemorate the past year in sports by recognizing major sports achievements, reliving unforgettable moments and saluting the leading performers and performances. The 2016 ESPYS will recognize both sport-specific achievements, such as \u201cBest MLB Player\u201d and \u201cBest WNBA Player,\u201d and best-in-sport winners, such as \u201cBest Team\u201d or \u201cBest Female Athlete\u201d that pit nominees from different sports against each other. The ESPYS support ESPN\u2019s ongoing commitment to The V Foundation for Cancer Research, launched by ESPN with the late Jim Valvano in 1993.<\/p>\n<div class=\"pwtor-end-article-groups pwtor-entity-placement\" id=\"pwtor-3894223562\"><div id=\"pwtor-1184431629\"><div align=\"center\" data-freestar-ad=\"__336x280\" id=\"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\">\r\n  <script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\">\r\n    freestar.config.enabled_slots.push({ placementName: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\", slotId: \"pwtorchcom_medrec_3\" });\r\n  <\/script>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\nTHANK YOU FOR VISITING<\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"mh-excerpt\"><p>&#8220;John Cena hosts The ESPYs&#8221; Live Blog July 13, 2016 Aired on ABC Los Angeles, Calif. &#8211; John Cena&#8217;s opening monologue of this year&#8217;s ESPYs sports awards show focused on why exactly he&#8217;s hosting the <a class=\"mh-excerpt-more\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/2016\/07\/13\/johncenaespysblog\/\" title=\"7\/13 John Cena at the ESPYs Live Blog &#8211; Complete Report\">[&#8230;]<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":21154,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","itunes_episode_number":"","itunes_title":"","itunes_season_number":"","itunes_episode_type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[18,495,20],"tags":[3387,3388,259,2788,116,2831,2790],"class_list":["post-25488","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-tvshowsandevents","category-wwe-on-espn","category-tv_wwetvreports","tag-abc","tag-abc-espys","tag-espn","tag-espys","tag-john-cena","tag-john-cena-espys","tag-wwe-espn"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-content\/uploads\/post\/2016\/05\/CenaESPYs.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25488","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=25488"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25488\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25594,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/25488\/revisions\/25594"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/21154"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=25488"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=25488"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pwtorch.com\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=25488"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}