Over the course of the last several months CM Punk seemed to be a little lost in repetition, feuding with Rey Mysterio, again. Not any more. CM Punk has become the hottest thing in wrestling for a long time. And all it took was him threatening to leave and being allowed to be himself. It is fairly widely known in the wrestling industry that Punk has a high opinion of himself, but as Kid Rock says 'it's not bragging motherfucker if you back it up'.
One of the finest moments of TV I have seen in years is the now infamous episode of Raw where Punk closed the show by speaking his mind, calling Triple H a doofus and waving to Colt Cabana. It is mostly shocking because it was so unexpected. We have been treated to a steady diet of safe, secure content on WWE TV for years. Hearing someone call themselves a wrestler and speaking the names of former employees, even going so far as to talk about John Laurinitis, was unheard of a few weeks ago. Now it seems as though there actually is 'faith' in Punk, at least in the short term. Having just watched Raw, I felt compelled to ask, is John Cena now a heel? I don't think he is, it is just that Punk has appealed to that whole audience that doesn't like Cena. The men in the crowd love that Punk now sits in a similar position that Stone Cold was in after King Of The Ring 1996. Made a big bold statement, and now needs the brass to have the balls to go through with it. If they do, we could be in the midst of a revolution, a whole new era, if not, it could just be the Nexus all over again. The wrestling fan could be about to hit a high, or we could be short changed in favour of girls and the under 12's.
When you have a talent of the verbal ability Punk has, you let them talk, when you have a talent who can wrestle like that, you let them wrestle. Or you do if you want to make money. Now the question is...does Vince have the balls he showed in '96? Will he let an actual self made star be the flagship? Austin was wild, DX seemingly uncontrollable, Punk has the same edge. Can the Straight Edge Superstar become the biggest star in this generation of wrestling? The chemistry Punk and Cena have seems pretty natural to me, Austin had Vince, The Rock had Triple H, Hogan had Savage and Undertaker has Kane. All Punk has ever needed is someone with a little faith in his ability, Paul Heyman style, and a nemesis with as much ability (in very different ways) to contend with. I look forward to the outcome of this feud, and hope it can be the catalyst for change in wrestling that we have needed for a couple of years now.
Best In The World? At this precise moment, the Cult Of Personality is making a very strong case for it...
