With a debut heard around the world, CM Punk opened the show last Friday on Rampage. The long awaited return of the “Best in the World” did a little more than move a needle. The entire wrestling world is still talking about Rampage, as CM Punk’s debut was trending for hours and broke the Pro Wrestling Tees website. Fans love this guy, and his momentous presence in the industry was sorely missed.
One of the main goals of All Elite Wrestling is to grab disenfranchised fans, and bringing in CM Punk is a great way to do that. I actually missed a lot of his run at the top in WWE, so I took some time to watch some of his best work. I knew he was good, but I wanted to see for myself.
Hardcore wrestling fans will know most of these things, but I know there’s a lot of older wrestling fans coming back. Those people may not know “the Voice of the Voiceless.”
This is what CM Punk brings to AEW:
His promo work is Perfection
His resume is littered with great matches, but his best work is on the microphone. Every fan of Professional Wrestling should know what this is.
If you’re unaware, CM Punk is about to challenge John Cena for the WWE Championship. If he wins, Punk is “leaving the company.”
Spoiler alert: He wins.
This “Pipebomb” promo is so legendary that it gets an annual celebration on Twitter. It’s an all time great because of what it signifies. This promo blended real life fan complaints with Kayfabe story, and people still don’t know how much of this promo is kayfabe. For a long time, fans complained about superstars like John Cena and The Rock getting all of the screen time and championships over their favorites.
A lot of what Punk says in this promo still holds true today. Fans left wrestling because of repeatedly getting disappointed in WWE and the way they treated a lot of their talent. People were sick of seeing the same faces winning all of the time, and they stopped watching. These lapsed fans are a huge part of the success of AEW. CM Punk is indirectly a part of the creation of AEW.
This was also gold because he acknowledged Ring of Honor and New Japan Pro Wrestling. On their programming, WWE likes to ignore the fact that other companies exist. It’s never “New Japan,” but “the East” or just “Japan.” He also called Rock by his real name, Dwayne, which also doesn’t happen in WWE.
Don’t get me wrong, the pipebomb is some of Punk’s best work, but it’s not his only good promo. He is gold with a microphone. We all saw that debut on Rampage right?! He openly admitted to not writing anything down, so all of that was completely off of the cuff. He is very good at what he does.
And just wait until he turns heel…
His best matches
His amazing promo work is his bread and butter, but he is no slouch in the ring. The way he blends storytelling, physicality and heel mind games are fantastic. Some of the best matches of the last decade include CM Punk. Especially this classic…
WWE Championship: CM Punk vs. John Cena (Money in the Bank 2011)
In my mind, this match is the best match WWE has put on since the 90s.
This match had it all. Punk got “Big match John” at his best here, and their chemistry was always amazing. If I just considered the match itself, it would be phenomenal. What took this match to the next level were the stakes.
After the “pipebomb” promo, CM Punk was ‘suspended’ by Vince McMahon. John Cena begged Vince to reinstate Punk because Cena felt attacked. Everything Punk said about Cena got to him, and he needed to finish off Punk his way. Vince allowed it, but under one caveat: If Cena lost, he’d be fired.
So we have a man trying to win and leave WWE with the WWE Championship versus a guy trying to prevent it, and save his own job. Those are some crazy high stakes, and the quality match benefited from it greatly. The over 30 minute slugfest was so dramatic, and Money in the Bank being in Chicago amplified it.
WWE has yet to surpass this in 10 years.
Wrestlemania 29: CM Punk vs. The Undertaker
Just look at that perfect photo. If you know anything about the Undertaker, that’s the exact way he pins people after a Tombstone piledriver. This is what Punk does. He puts on good matches whilst being a cocky heel.
This match is Punk’s last big match before his infamous departure of WWE, and it was great. He wasn’t happy with how he was being treated in the company, but you’d never guess it by this match. It was a classic, and absolutely the best match of Wrestlemania 29. That is a common theme of CM Punk. Always putting on the match of the night in the middle of the card. He never got his Wrestlemania main event.
The story of the match was a little off color, but Punk pulled it off. Bill Moody, better known as Paul Bearer, had just passed away. He was important to the Undertaker, and Punk took advantage of that. Paul Bearer had previously used an Urn to “control” the Undertaker. The whole setup of the match was based on control of the Urn. Punk stole it and was doing weird things with it, causing the Deadman to be obviously unhappy. That was a symbol of his deceased friend.
Not exactly the same stakes as his Cena match, but the fantastic match saved the weird setup of the match. That’s usually how it went with CM Punk. He always made the best of whatever he was given.
Obviously, I am incredibly excited for CM Punk in AEW. The Program possibilities are endless.
Punk vs. Omega
Punk vs. MJF
Punk vs. Moxley
Punk vs. Hangman
We can sit here and list twenty different stars that are fresh and exciting. Going through his matches the past few days, I am intrigued to see how he performs in the ring. The AEW style is more frantic than how WWE is. A lot of his WWE matches ended up being a little similar in how they were setup, and they were on the slower side. I don’t see there being any issue because he is very good, but it’ll be fun to see the transition.
I think putting him with Darby Allin is a FANTASTIC idea. Darby isn’t huge, but he feels bigger by how he uses his body, and he sells beautifully. Adding Sting into the equation just adds another wrinkle.
Looking forward to All Out!