Throughout 2011 and 2012, CM Punk was the most popular, engaging, and entertaining superstar on the entire WWE roster for quite some time. Despite others being pushed into main event matches over him, he carried the company through a record-breaking WWE Title run, and many great matches. He accomplished a lot in WWE, but one accomplishment that escaped him was main eventing a Wrestlemania, and that is a decision WWE should live to regret.
CM Punk Was The De Facto Face Of WWE
During what was christened as ‘The Summer of Punk’ in 2011 saw the rise to stardom for Punk, whose charisma, anti-authority attitude, and consistent all-round quality gained him so much popularity that he even became WWE’s number one merchandise seller, ahead of John Cena at a time when Cena was pushed as the ultimate number one star in the eyes of WWE. Instead of capitalizing on this momentum, WWE opted to overbook their programming with a convoluted plot, pushing part-timers such as Kevin Nash and Triple H, and taking the WWE Title away from Punk.
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However, Punk being Punk, he found a way back to the title before the end of the year to embark on a reign lasting 434 days. This reign itself received a lot of disrespect from WWE. Despite holding the title for over a year, the only times when Punk headlined a PPV were when Cena was absent from the show, or if Cena was involved in the match. Elsewhere throughout the year, PPVs were main evented by John Cena taking on the likes of Kane, John Laurinaitis, and the Big Show, to name just a few, despite CM Punk embarking on a brand new run as a heel.
At Wrestlemania 28, whilst Punk was champion, the show was main evented by Cena taking on The Rock in a ‘Once in a Lifetime’ match instead of Punk’s championship match against Chris Jericho. Given the billing, it is perhaps understandable as to why they were in the main event spot. The real issue came at the following Wrestlemania.
The Wrestlemania 29 Main Event Was A Flop Without Punk
At Royal Rumble 2013, The Rock returned to face Punk for the WWE Championship. Fans knew the inevitability of the outcome as soon as Cena won the Rumble earlier in the night, and instead of seeing two storied rivals in Cena and Punk going at it, WWE opted for the bigger names instead of the best names. In the lead up to Wrestlemania, Punk was afforded the chance to fight for a spot in the match, but would ultimately lose to Cena, ending all chances and hopes of a triple threat, which would have undoubtedly been a better choice.
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The match that Cena and Rock had was a huge step down from the year before, with a match filled with less story than the previous year, packed full of finishing moves and near-falls, and an injury to The Rock which stunted some of the pacing. If Punk were included, it would have felt fresh, different, and elevated the quality. It would have even made the match bigger, with yet another huge name added to two of the biggest names of all time. It would have also made all the sense in the world from a storyline perspective given the history between all three men.
Punk Was Unhappy Due To Not Main Eventing Wrestlemania
This snubbing of Punk led to a lot of discontent. Although Punk stole the show at that Wrestlemania, having a fantastic match with The Undertaker, and despite the WWE sometimes billing shows to have more than one main event, Punk wasn’t buying that way of thinking. To Punk, and to many others, there is only one main event, especially when it comes to that prestigious spot at Wrestlemania.
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Wrestlemania 29 marked the last opportunity WWE would have to give that main event spot to Punk, as he wouldn’t make it all the way to Wrestlemania 30, leaving WWE in 2014 following months of struggle, unhappiness, and injury. If WWE had given Punk the spot in the main event, there may have been a chance that everything that followed wouldn’t have occurred. Punk may have been appeased, he might have impressed Vince McMahon, and gotten pushed properly.
The ‘Twice in a Lifetime’ benefitted no one, as the fans weren’t buying Cena as the underdog seeking redemption, due to the huge predictability of the match. Adding Punk to the mix would’ve added infinitely more intrigue to what ended up being a boring main event. Punk remains to be one of the biggest names to have not main evented a Wrestlemania, and with much of his angst towards WWE stemming from poor booking and prevention of the highest opportunities, despite fully deserving it, it is by far one of WWE’s biggest ever mistakes and lapses of judgement.
