Well now, it’s been one hell of a week The WWE held all-day Creative meetings on Thursday and Friday, Sting may have actually signed a contract with the world’s number one wrestling promotion, Jimmy Snuka may be in big, big trouble and most importantly, Summer Rae is going to be on the new season of Total Divas!
If I could be serious for a moment, the biggest and most shocking bit of news that has been floating around the internet is that CM Punk has officially quit WWE, and there are no clear signs of the Straight-Edge superstar returning anytime soon.
However, there has been signs of Punk being openly frustrated with the WWE product and the direction that the company has been going in for a few years now. Punk is famous for being rebellious. Whether it’s dropping Pipe Bombs, disrespecting authority figures or punching fans in the face – when this guy is in the news, wrestling fans tend to take the time and read about what the hell is going on with the longest reigning WWE champion this generation has ever seen.
I’m no expert, Punk’s WWE contract expires this July and if he really quit the company, he would be breaching his contract and would owe a lot of money. Although Punk is well-off financially and has saved enough in order to retire, it just doesn’t make a whole lot of sense for him to quit and lose the cash. He’s a smart guy and loves wrestling too much. Don’t you think he could endure another five-six months of shitty booking, have one or two great matches, let his contract run out and ride off into the sunset?
There are many speculative reasons as to why Punk has left the company and so far, there have been no definitive answers. There have been theories, but no cold hard concrete answers. Is Punk sick of the WWE’s creative direction? Is he tired of part-timers coming in and being rewarded with guaranteed success? Is he so damn sick of being so damn sick? Or, perhaps, Punk and Vince McMahon are holding in a big secret and this is just an elaborate work? Let’s take a look at this compelling news and try to get to the bottom of this mystery.
PART-TIMERS STEALING THE SPOTLIGHT
In multiple interviews, Punk has expressed his annoyance when it comes to part-timers coming back to the WWE. In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani, Punk was asked to give his thoughts on Batista returning to the WWE. He said that he had a big gripe with The Rock coming back just to headline WrestleMania and that the Batista situation is different since he signed a two-year contract and is going to be a full-time guy. Punk also stated that he doesn’t like part-time superstars (lifers) coming back for one or two matches because there is the possibility of those part-timers taking a full-timers spot – after those current crop of WWE superstars have spent years of hard work and dedication to get where they are today.
Punk seemed cool about Batista in the interview, but I’m sure, at that point in time, he had no idea that the Animal was booked to win the Royal Rumble and headline WrestleMania over “more deserving superstars” such as Daniel Bryan. Right? Do you think top superstars know the outcomes of matches they aren’t a part of? I’m interested to know because I figure guys like Cena and Punk get the scoop on everything that is going on in the WWE world.
Also, last week at a Q&A session that took place at the Wizard World Portland Comic Con event, Punk said that he doesn’t think Sting should come to WWE because he doesn’t have anything left in the tank and that he would take another spot away from WWE’s younger superstars who are trying to make it to the main event level.
Part-time superstars who come back to the WWE and take younger wrestlers’ spot is just one of the many things that grinds CM Punk’s gears.
CREATIVE’S LACK OF DIRECTION
From what I’ve read and and learned from watching the CM Punk: Best in the World DVD, Punk is a guy who is in love with the professional wrestling business and wants the industry to be competitive, entertaining and successful for a very long time. He’s pitched plenty of ideas to WWE’s Creative Team and will tell WWE officials exactly what he thinks if they have a storyline idea that he doesn’t like.
In his documentary and in interviews, Punk has vocalized his thoughts on The Miz headlining WrestleMania 27 against John Cena instead of him. Punk stated that Cena was the best good guy and that he was the best bad guy and it didn’t make sense for Miz to headline the event.
Recently, at the Wizard World Comic Con event, Punk said that he has been frustrated with WWE’s direction for quite a while and feels that the writers aren’t in touch with what the fans want. This is clearly evident from the reaction Batista received from the Pittsburgh crowd during and after last Sunday’s Royal Rumble PPV event. Punk also gave his opinion that last year was his year to main event Mania and now things have changed. He said that this is Daniel Bryan’s year and he wishes that he could see Daniel Bryan main event the biggest show of the year.
Word on the street is that Punk walked out on Vince McMahon and said that he was going home last Monday night on Raw after a backstage dispute. ESPN Cleveland reported Casey Kulas said that he heard from sources backstage that Punk was involved in a heated argument because WWE wanted Punk to work a promo telling fans that he was taking time off due to a concussion, even though the Second City Saint hadn’t suffered one. Punk refused, said that he wasn’t going to tell the fans that bullshit and got on a plane back to Chicago.
CM PUNK QUTTING IS HALF WORK HALF TRUTH
While it’s clear that Punk is frustrated with what’s going on in WWE, perhaps he just needs some time off to rest and recover from lingering injuries. At the Comic Con event, Punk said that his health has been bad for months, especially September through November of last year. At that time, he was getting weekly MRI’s and blood work done, but doctors couldn’t figure out what was wrong. He is starting to feel better, but still isn’t close to being 100%. Punk was given two months off after his match with the Undertaker at WrestleMania 29 and said that that was nowhere near enough time to recover.
Punk is currently 35 years old and has performed in three of the best matches of 2013:
- Monday Night Raw 2/25/2013 – CM Punk vs. John Cena
- WrestleMania 29 – CM Punk vs. The Undertaker
- SummerSlam 2013 – CM Punk vs. Brock Lesnar
Each match received a 4.5 match star rating from Dave Meltzer, which is no easy task. The Best in the World also performed in a perfect, five star rated match when he brilliantly wrestled John Cena at Money in the Bank 2011 in his hometown of Chicago. The last five star rated WWE match before MITB 2011 was at the WWF In Your House 18: Badd Blood PPV which pitted Shawn Michaels against The Undertaker in the very first Hell in a Cell match.
Punk is incredibly consistent in the ring and on the microphone and is a invaluable asset to WWE. Sure, he can be whiny every now and then when he doesn’t get his way, but I truly believe that Punk wants what is best for the WWE and its Universe and right now, things seem to be too chaotic and unsettling for him. He is taking a rightful and vengeful stand.
I’m sure we will all find out more about the CM Punk situation in the next few days. To me, Punk is very tired, restless, irritable, unhappy and wants to get away from the world for a while. Phil Brooks has given his heart and soul to the WWE for nearly a decade. His main goal is to headline WrestleMania and last year, he was the longest reigning WWE champion since the 80’sstill took a backseat to The Rock and John Cena. I mean come on, he went into Mania as the WWE champion and still wasn’t involved in the main event. What else does this guy have to do besides being incredibly over and having fantastic matches each and every night?
From what we’ve learned, CM Punk is a goal-oriented individual that has accomplished every goal in his professional wrestling career, except for one – headline WrestleMania. Perhaps knowing that he wasn’t going to be in the main event of Mania 31 made his choice to leave the company that much simpler?
What are your thoughts on the CM Punk situation? Do you believe that Punk is gone for good or is this just a work in order for him to take some well-deserved time off? Do you think Punk owes the WWE Universe an explanation? Also, remember, CM Punk is still scheduled to compete at the Elimination Chamber PPV. Sound off in the comments section below.
