Skip to main content

Winning Streaks and CM Punk

Hey Scott,

In response to your Post on Winning streaks, isn't that essentially what the WWE has done right with CM Punk? He has essentially had the WWE Title Since MITB 2011, winning it as a huge babyface. And then when people started to not care about CM Punk as a babyface, they turned him heel to milk another 6 months out of his title reign, leading us to the current storyline we have now.

Also, do you think it hurts Punk and the WWE in any way with the worst kept secret in wrestling, that he will drop the title to The Rock at the Rumble? It kind of Makes the Ryback "chase" moot since we all know he has no chance in hell of winning the Strap anytime soon.


In fact, I love that they're keeping track of the length of the title reign, because that's a REAL THING that people can get invested in.  Just like Undertaker's streak, it's not something that's part of the fake storyline world of WWE.  Punk really has held that belt for over a year now and that gives his title matches real stakes.

In fact, if they're looking for a hook for Wrestlemania, I'd like to steal an idea from my compadre Justin Shapiro and suggest that they ditch the Rock title change altogether and run with Punks' 500 day title reign v. Undertaker's 20-0 streak.  Because then fantasy booking geeks would run WILD trying to figure out how they book themselves out of that corner.  And why not give Rock the World title instead of the WWE title and let him face Cena for THAT instead?  And then what if Ziggler cashed in on the winner?  How's THAT for a rub?  

Comments

  1. Take all of my monies right MEOW!

    ReplyDelete
  2. https://twitter.com/CMPunk/status/248940097699995649

    ReplyDelete
  3. And the best part about Punk/Taker is that it can finally pay off the respect thing Punk has been going on about.

    ReplyDelete
  4. People didn't sick of Punk as a babyface.

    ReplyDelete
  5. What's so hard about booking yourself out of that corner? Just give Taker a DQ win. Streak stays alive, and Punk gets to talk about staying champ and being the first person in 20 years to avoid being pinned, submitted, or casketed by Undertaker.

    ReplyDelete
  6. That is such a cop out.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Could someone please translate that into English for me?

    ReplyDelete
  8. And perfectly in character for the current Punk.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Or sick on him, which I get the feeling he's had happen to him on some level before.

    ReplyDelete
  10. I'm not talking about character motivations. Booking a match with those stakes on the biggest show of the year and doing a DQ finish is borderline retarded(sorry Ryan), WWE would get crushed for it.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Well, a DQ in a WM Main/Semi-Main...yeah, you're probably right.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Oh, you marky mark you.


    It would be a bold and, dare I say, sassy move on WWE's part. I'm sure that Punk is good enough to put the heat for that on his character instead of the WWE. And then you have the rematch for Extreme Rules (which needs a hard sell much more than Wrestlemania) where there MUST be a winner. And then you can put Punk over without killing The Streak.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I'd be willing to bet they'd make it no-DQ like all of Taker's matches have been at the last few Manias so they can have him sell weapon shots and lay down for long periods. Then that makes the booking a little harder, but they'd have to commit to one or the other. Regardless of anything, that match would be awesome: because moving around a lot really isn't Taker's jam anymore, Punk would probably have him in lots of cool submissions and do lots of old school heat-baiting heel tactics while Taker is down. And it would just be glorious. Even if Taker did leave with the win, I don't see any way they could book that one where Punk doesn't look like a trillion bucks just for going toe to toe with Taker.

    ReplyDelete
  14. I bought WM 26 because it was going to be it was going to be my favorite wrestler's last match ever. And then I marked and rooted my ass off for him to somehow win. If they would have ran a DQ finish to get around the stakes they built and do a rematch at Extreme Rules, they wouldn't have got another 50 bucks out of me. For any future PPVs either for a stunt like that.

    ReplyDelete
  15. And even if Punk lost, all Taker has to do is give him that signature bow like he did for HBK. Instantly pays off the respect storyline.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Given what we've heard about Rock's movie schedule tightening up are people still sure he's going to win the title at the Rumble? He'd have to work the elimination chamber PPV and he'd also have to show up more often on Raw. They couldn't just have him win the title and completely disappear until Mania could they?

    ReplyDelete
  17. "They started to get sick of Punk as a baby face" I fail to see any crowd reaction that backs this up, seriously-where is that coming from?

    ReplyDelete
  18. They could do anything, the question is WOULD they

    ReplyDelete
  19. People didn't get sick of Punk as a face. They've been tired of Cena as a face for much longer.

    ReplyDelete
  20. As a face he is John Cena with tattoos. He is a 1000x more interesting as a heel. This is true throughout his WWE run.

    ReplyDelete
  21. daaaaaaaaamn that's some sick fantasy booking

    ReplyDelete
  22. Especially the Ziggler part.

    ReplyDelete
  23. If they do Punk Vs Undertaker, they HAVE to end it with the complete and total destruction of the Undertaker, the final time we see Undertaker EVER, and Punk winning flawless victory with the narrative being that Undertaker is a washed up hasbeen who COULD NOT BEAT PUNK, LET ALONE HAVING A SNOWBALL'S CHANCE IN HELL TO BEAT HIM.

    Even factor in the HHH matches where Undertaker basically may have won, but was basically beaten to an inch of his life and barely got the victory. Punk as such, COMPLETELY MASSACRES THE UNDERTAKER, in a one-way match that effectively enshrines Punk as THE BEST, by doing what no one NO ONE has managed to do ever: utterly and completely destroy the Undertaker and retire him FOR GOOD. And for Punk to do so in 100% dominating fashion and have it be the final match of the night to allow Punk to have his big Wrestlemania moment, especially since the heel turn was a god awful mistake to begin with.



    That way, Cena/Rock is treated as an afterthought and irrelevant to Punk continuing his reign AND slaying the Undertaker and being the main event at long last. And you can then set up a storyline where killing Undertaker FINALLY gives everyone a reason to cheer Punk, except for Cena, who is RIGHTFULLY treated as a bitch boy whenever he tries treat Punk OWNING the Undertaker as a fluke, complete with Lawler bitchslapping Cena over it in terms of Lawler laying his hands on Cena, to put Cena in his place when he tries to rain on Punk's parade because even a cynic like Lawler respects Punk for ending the career of the Undertaker.

    ReplyDelete
  24. I'd rather have Ziggler cripple Cena, costing him a chance to fight Rock at Wrestlemania so Ziggler gets the match AND WINS IT, then gloating to Cena that he'll never EVER get a rematch against Rock and use that victory and Cena's tears of failure launch Ziggler as a top level villain

    ReplyDelete
  25. Ya know, if they actually went that route--with Punk walking into Mania having been champ for for almost a year and a half--I think they'd have Punk end the streak.



    I mean Taker's broken down and he'd get to go out with one more classic. Turns Punk into a megastar. And makes whoever beats Punk into a star--so it'd have to be used on someone's first ever title win. Win. Win. Win

    ReplyDelete
  26. Not really. Cena is still a hypocritical cunt and they ruined Punk by turning him into a chickenshit coward because fans still cheered Punk over the piece of shit Cena.

    ReplyDelete
  27. 10/10

    Would get Baked again.

    ReplyDelete
  28. I agree that if they do that match Punk has to win and look good doing it. But come on, complete and total destruction? That wouldn't even be an entertaining match. And you can't have Taker go out getting destroyed, it has to be a competitive match, where we get all the Undertaker classics.

    ReplyDelete
  29. This is probably the best yet. I've been having a terrible day but this made up for it?

    ReplyDelete
  30. I dare you write a post about how you would have Cena overcome the odds and become champion.

    ReplyDelete
  31. I kinda like it. Actually I like it a lot.

    cultstatus remember Undertaker beat Giant Gonzalez by dq, so a dq win wouldn't tarnish the streak at all. As long as they put on a killer match the fans will have gotten their money's worth.

    ReplyDelete
  32. It could even be a count out win for Undertaker. Say they are brawling on the outside, Taker hits a tombstone on Punk on the floor. The Ref's count is up to 9. If Taker gets back in the ring before 10 he keeps the streak alive. If he tries to get Punk in the ring he MIGHT win the title, but risks a very likely double countout which would make it 20-0-1, which is fugly. C'mon that'd be a hot finish, right!


    And it's different than WM26, b/c if Shawn lost by countout or dq his career would still be over, b/c he still loses.

    ReplyDelete
  33. If it isn't a pinfall or submission, it's bullshit. It's true for every match but especially for a main event at WM with stakes that high.

    ReplyDelete
  34. WM26 had no DQ, no Countout rules.

    ReplyDelete
  35. And you would boo the shit out of CM Punk for such a cheap escape, right?

    ReplyDelete
  36. That word! It's cuts through the room like electricity.

    ReplyDelete
  37. Believe it or not, news sites say that the Observer is reporting that WWE is in talks about doing Punk/Taker at Wrestlemania.

    http://www.ewrestlingnews.com/news/11487/backstage-update-royal-rumble-wrestlemania-29-plans

    ReplyDelete
  38. No I would boo the shit out of the WWE for not having the balls to the pull the trigger one way or the other. It's the same reason why you don't do a DQ for Andre/Hogan or Hogan/Warrior.

    ReplyDelete
  39. I think ending Punk's reign to the Undertaker is an even worst idea than the Rock beating him. What is the benefit and why make the end of his reign so predictable.. of course that goes out the window if they intend on Punk ending the streak but that is just never going to happen. I want them to run Rock/Cena/Brock triple threat title match personally (Cena hasn't beat Rock, Rock hasn't beat Brock, Brock hasn't beaten Cena).. and perhaps Punk taking on Taker in an individual match where him losing doesn't devastate him but gives him a high profile match still. Unfortunately HHH's plans to get his win back over Brock throws all this fantasy booking out the window.. Sigh.

    ReplyDelete
  40. Another thought if they wanted to 50/50 the booking, and not end The Streak while still giving Punk a huge rub and a milestone: spend some time building up the Anaconda Vise again, have Taker win at Mania with a Hell's Gate out of nowhere, and then build to a submission match at Extreme Rules and have Punk win the title back by being the first person to ever make Undertaker submit.

    ReplyDelete
  41. They would have to retcon the Undertaker never submitting before. But I suppose that has never stopped them before.

    ReplyDelete
  42. See you had me until that last paragraph. Then I realized I just got Baked again.

    ReplyDelete
  43. At this point, I'd say that it would take more balls to book a Wrestlemania main event DQ finish. But it should be done for the greater good.

    ReplyDelete
  44. The booking committee would probably make them feud over who has the most tattoos.

    ReplyDelete
  45. After reading Brandon Stroud's analysis of the tail end of his face run, I see where you're coming from. Maybe the best way to phrase it is, the more heavily scripted Punk got, the worse that face run became. But from MITB to Mania, that was all win, he was able to make it work.

    ReplyDelete
  46. Undertaker already submitted. And they already did a finish of Undertaker submitting to the Vice at that shitty PPV a couple of years back, in fact, albeit in screwy fashion.

    ReplyDelete
  47. Yeah, they've been talking about it for the past couple of weeks now in the newsletters and radio shows. I could probably do a daily recap of this stuff since I listen to the Bryan/Dave show every day on the way to work anyway, rather than having to pull from the C&P sites.

    ReplyDelete
  48. Just wondering, do you actually mean what you are saying with these or is this a big character you've created on this blog? I've been wondering that for a while. Now the Punk vs Taker match with Punk winning isn't a bad idea but to have him utirely destroy Undertaker?. And have it be shown the Undertaker is washed up has been now who has no chance at winning? I mean, what does that do for Punk, he beat a washed up Undertaker who had no reason being in the ring, it doesn't exactly make Punks win look good. A solid back and forth match where they both beat the hell out of each other with Punk somehow barely getting a victory sounds so much better and would do a lot for Punk.

    Also, why the John Cena hate man? At first I thought it was just directed at the Cena character but it seems to me you really hate the actual man. Why? That video package from RAW talking about how Cena has granted 300 wishes in the Make a Wish foundation was really heartwarming. The women talking about Cena visiting her child and the kid kept talking about weeks later up unil he passed away. Cena seems like he really gives a damn about these kids which is fantastic. While I complain about the Cena character, I gotta say the real Cena seems like a great man and I can't see hating him.

    ReplyDelete
  49. I like your triple threat idea even though triple threat matches are often not the best match types. I think Punk gets a huge rub for even being in that match with the Undertaker. It's been legends HHH and HBK facing the Undertaker that last few years. Punk being put in that match raises him up to their level. Even better if he gets the win back at Extreme rules.

    ReplyDelete
  50. Interesting how fluid the Mania card seems to be at the moment. Last year at this time, we pretty much knew we were getting HHH/Taker and obviously Rock/Cena, with Jericho/Punk a pretty good guess by a lot of smarks since the return videos started happening about this time.

    ReplyDelete
  51. Artist_Formerly_Known_as_KtuluNovember 22, 2012 at 1:07 AM

    My prediction: Punk retains via DQ, and Rock lays him out. Ziggler cashes in and becomes champion.

    ReplyDelete
  52. THREADJACK~!


    An anagram for "I'm a Paul Heyman Guy!" is "A Hug, Yummy Anal Pie!"

    ReplyDelete
  53. You sir, just sold a t-shirt to Pat Patterson

    ReplyDelete
  54. I wasn't watching much then, apparently. Although when has he submitted before that? The Angle tapout doesn't count, because that was after the match.

    ReplyDelete
  55. It does count, because it ended the match. He submit at exactly the same time he pinned him, resulting in the draw. If he didn't submit, he would have won the title.

    ReplyDelete
  56. I didn't really buy that at the time, it just seemed like a screwy half-assed way to make it seem like Taker didn't submit. Plus, this is grasping a little bit, but that was BikerTaker so it's less impressive, it was pretty well established that BikerTaker doesn't have the infallibility of the Deadman. Even if they don't push it as "first time Taker submits" (which they so would, because they'll just pretend it never happened before) it'd still be impressive just for Punk to be the one to make him quit, no questions asked, no bullshit, clean in the ring.

    ReplyDelete
  57. Punk's held a title for over a year and could be at 500 days going into a title defense at Wrestlemania, while the World Championship is being held by the Big Show. I agree, it makes more sense to put that title in the Rock/Cena match since it'll make the title seem important for a couple of weeks, and it leaves Punk's title reign in tact.

    Of course they'll probably do the opposite and have Punk lose at the Rumble and win the World Championship at No Way Out so he can lose it at Wrestlemania.

    ReplyDelete
  58. I'd like to buy from your dealer, must be some good shit.

    ReplyDelete
  59. If they did that, the crowd's reaction would be just like a Japanese crowd's reaction when they book a DQ in a major match, but probably much less polite about it.

    ReplyDelete
  60. There's no reason to bog cena v rock 2 with any title, it just takes it away from someone more deserving (aka ziggler who could do a great double turn with orton).

    Anyhoo im loving the taker vs punk match up and its definitely a way to take undertakers WM matches to the next level. The match would be nothing short of incredible if HHH can get a near 5 star match out of taker at WM, i can only imagine what a no DQ 30 minute main event can do with punk at the helm.

    ReplyDelete
  61. As a face, he was *booked* to be John Cena with Tattoos
    Fixed that for you

    ReplyDelete
  62. It was win till He started palling around with HHH and Cena-that walkout angle with Punk siding with the company he walked out on KILLED his rebel character dead

    ReplyDelete
  63. because the booking of his character sucked from everything after his feud with HHH-that character he had following Money in the Bank was MONEY-then they pissed it away and made him, as you said, Cena with tattoos

    ReplyDelete
  64. not just a screwy fasion, they were in Montreal, and that means it was time for Montreal Screwjob part 995843.4

    ReplyDelete
  65. Didn't the taker/angle pin/tapout ending happen twice? once on smackdown once at NWO 06? if so? and if you count that as a tapout (because technically taker DID give up) then that makes Angle pretty badass.

    ReplyDelete
  66. I think Cena probably is a good guy, but I don't think I would get along with him personally. Honestly I'm in the minority that thinks Punk seems like a way more fun guy to hang out with then Cena-and yes that's being fully aware Punk can be a dick

    ReplyDelete
  67. Punk has complete control over his character. So when he was cutting those shitty, pandering face promos, that was 100% him. Just face it, he is a terrible as a babyface.

    ReplyDelete
  68. ...Then why was he awesome as a face until after the HHH loss...you really going to tell me he wasn't told to town the character down-how else do you explain his sudden nudering-and do you have a single piece of evidence that Punk has 100% control, because I don't buy that, not for a second. He has more control then 99% of the roster, but 100% is a bullshit number, he's still told what he has too get over

    ReplyDelete
  69. If you think promos about insider stuff that only a small percentage of the audience got is great tv than god bless you. And making fun of Stephanie was cutting edge way back in 2000 when Jericho did it. How was it supposed to sell me on a HHH/Punk match?


    And Punk has said numerous times(and on his DVD) that he doesn't follow scripts for his promos. That is 100% him out there. So you can't blame some dipshit writer for his lame promos.

    ReplyDelete
  70. Yep. I hated the copout of Rock beating HHH at Backlash 2000 instead of WM, and that wasn't even a DQ

    ReplyDelete
  71. The Streak wasn't a thing yet and it was Giant Gonzalez in a nothing midcard match.

    ReplyDelete
  72. Agreed about the streak. But I'd hardly call that a nothing midcard match--Taker vs Gonzalez was a huge deal in 1993 WWF

    ReplyDelete
  73. it's unpopular but I agree with you so much on this. Mania sells itself, if they can have a main event that ends in a dq or countout, but the match was so good that it gets a hell of a lot of people to buy the rematch at Extreme Rules--that's art.

    ReplyDelete
  74. Yes, it's perfect. If we assume Punk retaining against The Rock, we can have Punk claiming to have beaten everyone during his historic reign. Undertaker can either interject to shut Punk up, or Punk can spend a few shows calling Taker out. Either way, same result: Title vs. Streak, respect-based kinda thing. And count me amongst those who would be all for the Streak ending against Punk. The Streak has been worth preserving for years because it had inherent value toward the next Wrestlemania. It's not like he works any other dates and draws money. Now that Taker's Wrestlemanias are numbered, the value is in 'cashing in' the Streak to truly elevate someone and give something back. Undertaker retiring undefeated at Wrestlemania helps no one (other than his fictional character, which would be retired anyway). Undertaker has had a great run, but where is the greater value: in the guy who works one date a year or the guy who has/can carry the company?

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment