John Cena Believes Cody Rhodes Shouldn't Focus On Role As 'QB1' Of WWE

Cody Rhodes has been christened "QB1" in his rise to the top of the WWE card and as the face of the company, but John Cena feels that the tag puts added pressure on him.

Rhodes has emulated Cena and has admitted to being addicted to the top spot in WWE, something he feels Cena always desired too. But Cena, in an interview with "Busted Open," said that he views WWE as a team effort, while acknowledging the irony given that he once called himself "The Face That Runs The Place." 

"I always look at it as a team effort. And I've also experienced replacement of the front person. It is not something to strive for. It is simply a by-product of good work. Whether I admire what Cody's done — which I do — or not, my advice to him would be to get your focus off of that moniker. Just do good work. Take the stress off your back," said Cena.

The 17-time world champion gave an example from his own career to highlight how it's important to constantly strive to do better, regardless of where he is on the card. He recalled how he main-evented back-to-back WrestleManias with The Rock, but his next WrestleMania main event was over a decade later, incidentally against Rhodes. He said that the absence from the top didn't frustrate him, saying how he didn't yearn to be the face of WWE.

"I wasn't frustrated at all. I operated with absolute joy and fulfillment with my craft because I didn't put any expectations on myself of like, 'I want to be the champion. I want to be the face of the company.' No, I just want to do good work," he added. "As far as Cody wanting to be this thing, you're carrying a weight you don't need. Just do great work and the people will show up."

Cena also pointed to another top WWE star, CM Punk, and how his dream of main-eventing WrestleMania, something he had strived for years, became a weakness, as he feels Punk was burdened by it.