JOHN CENA WINS INTERCONTINENTAL TITLE TO ACHIEVE GRAND SLAM STATUS

John Cena secured Grand Slam champion status after defeating "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio for the Intercontinental Championship at a WWE Raw episode at the end of last year. The victory marked Cena's final home state show and ended Mysterio's reign, which had begun at WrestleMania in April of that year. Under current WWE requirements, Cena became the 18th Grand Slam champion in the company's history.

The criteria for Grand Slam status have shifted over WWE's history. Between 1997 and 2015, 12 WWE Superstars achieved the status under original guidelines, which required wrestlers to win four championships across different tiers: a world title, a secondary Intercontinental title, a tertiary European or Hardcore title, and a tag team title. Shawn Michaels was the first to achieve Grand Slam status, beginning with his 1992 Intercontinental Championship and concluding with his 1997 European Championship. The Big Show was the final wrestler to achieve the Grand Slam under those original criteria, completing it with his 2012 Intercontinental title reign. The requirements changed significantly following the introduction of the Universal WWE title and the renaming of WWF Tag Team titles to SmackDown Tag Team titles.

Cena's achievement represents a milestone under the expanded modern criteria, reflecting how WWE's championship structure and qualifying standards have evolved since Grand Slam status was first introduced in 1997. The change in requirements means wrestlers now face different conditions to achieve the same honour that earlier generations pursued.