Back in 2011, John Cena was the face that runs the place. But while the kids were throwing
up the ‘you can’t see me’ hand sign, the discerning wrestling fan was going ‘what
do you mean, he’s literally everywhere, you can’t move for Cena’. They wanted
someone to represent them. Someone who’s t-shirts didn’t look like unicorn vomit.
Someone who wasn’t being forced down their throats.
Hardcore fans felt like their voices weren’t being heard, because even the overwhelming
chants of Cena Sucks fell on deaf ears at WWE. Enter the voice of the voiceless to drop
pipe bombs, rouse the rabble and give fans hope, CM Punk: the spirit animal of many angry
WWE fans.
The result - an epic feud between two polar opposites. The hero vs. the anti-hero. This
was wrestling’s Batman vs. Superman and so much better than the movie.
This is Fast Feuds: Punk vs. Cena
In 2006, WWE laid some accidental groundwork by casting CM Punk as an extra for Cena’s
WrestleMania 22 entrance. Punk was a tommy gun toting mobster riding in Cena’s gang.
Fast forward to June 2011 and CM Punk had dropped the Dillinger act, become a name in
his own right and was winding down a storyline with The New Nexus. While WWE Champion Cena
was battling with R-Truth and all the little Jimmy’s.
It would be Raw guest host Stone Cold Steve Austin who would stomp his authority on proceedings
pitting Punk against Cena.
And with a little help from Truth, Punk pinned Cena, but he would have to overcome Rey Mysterio
at the one off pay per view Capitol Punishment and Alberto del Rio in a number one contendership
battle all within a week to actually earn his shot at the WWE Championship.
Why anyone would WANT that spinner belt, let alone go through all that to get it is beyond
me.
Meanwhile Cena set Truth free from the feud in a match that really put the Punishment
in Capitol Punishment… because it was hard to watch. But that did mean Cena’s cheque
was cleared for Money in the Bank in July.
A couple weeks before the show CM Punk would drop the first bombshell of the feud. Not
only was Money in the Bank where he would go after the title, it was the night his contract
expired. Oooohhh...Drama.
This sent the fans spinning like, well you can guess (Spinner belt), Punk was their guy,
the one they wanted to lead the company into the future, but then again, him walking out
with the belt would be the ultimate middle finger to a company that never listened to
its fans.
So that left Punk with one question: should I stay or should I go?
The clash was set and it would all be decided at Money in the Bank, but the build was also
an embarrassment of riches: it had punk vs McMahon, Vince vs Cena, WWE vs its fans, Johnny
Ace vs the concept of charisma.
Would CM Punk finally prove he was better than John Cena. Could a tattoo-ed, straight-edge,
counter-culture, non-conformist, who made a name for himself on the indies and was the
star Vince never wanted beat the muscled-up, clean cut, ah-shucks, pg, chosen one and company
man, John Cena?
If Punk won, what would WWE do without a champion? If Cena won, what would America do without
a Chicago.
As if this wasn’t enough, the feud would be launched into the stratosphere when CM
Punk broke the 4th wall and cut the pipe bomb heard around the world and all of YouTube.
Hey Colt Cabana!
Heading into the match, CM Punk was so confident he was a better wrestler than John Cena, he
couldn’t see himself losing. Vince McMahon also seemed to agree and tried to call the
whole thing off. But Good Boy Cena wouldn’t allow it.
So after a confrontation, McMahon kept the match, but threatened to fire Cena if he lost.
At Money in the Bank, CM Punk and Cena battled it out. Punk was surprised that he couldn’t
just drop Cena as effortlessly as he dropped pipebombs.
McMahon, not one to take chances, tried to screw Punk with the help of John Laurinaitis,
but SuperJohn wouldn’t allow it. In the end, Punk would put Cena to sleep and leave
the WWE with the championship.
McMahon was furious. The Chicago crowd was in full voice. Fans were ecstatic. So was
Dave Meltzer. He actually gave a John Cena match five stars and it didn’t even happen
in the Tokyo Dome.
On the next Raw, McMahon was all set to fire John Cena, but Triple H took over for Vince.
Trips tried to act conflicted, but we’ve seen him try to act before. Cough...The Chaperone...Cough.
By the end of the night, Cena was champ again.
Fans clamored to see Punk show up at all the places he promised like ROH and the indies.
Though he did make one appearance at a Comic Con, his hiatus was short-lived.
Next thing you knew, Punk popped back up after just two weeks: another opportunity wasted.
Cena and Punk would battle at SummerSlam. Both men brought their own titles, but neither
would walk out with one. Because though Punk won the match it was Alberto del Rio who would
invest his Money In The Bank Briefcase wisely and walk out as WWE Champion. Such good shit,
right?
Because, while Del Rio may have cashed in, WWE didn’t. If WWE had just allowed Punk
to miss SummerSlam and focused on a long-term build to WrestleMania, this could have been
one of the best feuds in the history of WWE. Instead of a long term epic, we got a short
term success.
But you can’t take away that the hot build to Money in the Bank, the infamous pipe-bomb
promo, one of the best matches in WWE history, and the fact that CM Punk actually took down
Cena and McMahon for the fans! Make this one of the most meta and magnetic feuds in recent
WWE. _____
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