STEPHANIE McMahon’s shot last week at CM Punk’s UFC loss – telling the Chicago crowd to keep up their chants up for 2.15 seconds, a second longer than their hometown hero lasted in the octagon – might have sounded like another good reason Punk’s never coming back – but don’t believe it for a second.
If the history of professional wrestling has taught us anything, it’s that almost everyone comes back eventually. When there’s money to be made, hatchets are buried, grievances forgotten, and old grudges turned into fan-friendly narratives that end with Hall of Fame inductions.
Speaking to TMZ Sports recently about whether Punk will fight again for UFC, he said: “He and I have not figured that out yet, but we will. I don’t know.
“I’ve got to talk to him and see how this thing works out for him. UFC’s a dangerous place. It really is. It’s a tough place to come in for your first couple of fights.
“I give him all the credit and respect in the world for coming in and giving it a shot. It’s a tough place to do it, though. So we’ll see what happens.”
CM Punk about to put Ryback through the table Punk rocks McMahon and CoPunk’s 2.14 second loss to Mickey Gall at UFC 203 was no great surprise.
To make his mixed martial arts debut on a UFC pay-per- view was pure arrogance and showboating.
But how likely is it that the 38-year- old Punk will start again in MMA’s lower leagues and work his way up? What would he have to gain from that, other than smaller payoffs and more physical punishment?
If he fights again, it’ll be for UFC – one last decent purse for one last beating. But don’t count on it.
The timing’s perfect for both Punk and WWE.
After walking out on the company in January 2014 he’s done his best to distance himself from professional wrestling, and trolled fans who persist in asking him when he’s coming back.
He replied to recent rumours that he’d be at next year’s WrestleMania 33 with a sarcastic tweet in the style of Donald Trump:
Punk has been an outspoken critic of WWE bosses and some wrestlers
He’s also in the middle of a lawsuit with WWE doctor Chris Amman – which isn’t expected to settle until at least May 2018 – who is suing Punk and Colt Cabana for defamation of character after the former WWE champ accused Amman of negligence on the infamous whistle-blowing episode of Cabana’s “Art of Wrestling” podcast.
Punk also told how WWE fired him on his wedding day, and has since claimed Vince McMahon is bankrolling Amman’s lawsuit for petty revenge.
Yes, there’s been a lot of a bad blood. A lot of muck slung either way. A lot of bridges burned beyond all recognition. But this is pro wrestling. It’s not that it’s fickle business (no one truly forgets) but money is always priority number one.
Cm Punk was heavily critical of former WWE star Ryback Former WWE superstar jumps into the UFC at UFC 203, but how will he fare?WWE is screaming out for main eventers too. The brand split means there’s even more scope for headline feuds and championship runs than when Punk walked out.
By offering Punk a part-time schedule and making good on promises it made (and broke) several years ago, he could be back in 2017 – expect both parties to publically soften on each other soon.
Punk’s old nemesis Ryback (who Punk accused of being purposely dangerous in the ring) is gone too.
Instead, he’d have the pick of WWE’s current roster – AJ Styles, Kevin Owens, Seth Rollins, Finn Balor. Imagine the matches Punk could have. And what could be better?
A few more killer feuds, some big-money payoffs, and a chance to have that WrestleMania moment he was always bitter he missed out on.
If Hulk Hogan could return – after jumping ship to WCW and almost putting WWE out of business – so can Punk. If Alundra Blayze could return – after throwing the WWE Women’s Championship in the bin – so can Punk.
If Bret Hart could return – after the greatest screw- job in wrestling history – so can Punk. And if Ultimate Warrior could return – after falling out with WWE so badly, the company produced the 'Self-Destruction of the Ultimate Warrior' documentary about what a nutcase he was – so can Punk.
This is pro wrestling. Stranger things have happened.
Dean Ambrose defeated The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship on SmackDown Live this week. The title is wasted on Ambrose, who after a six-month run in the world championship picture, shouldn’t be anywhere near the IC belt.
The idea of the Intercontinental Championship as the “worker’s belt” is a bit of a myth amongst wrestling fans, mostly based on memories of the groundbreaking Randy Savage v Ricky Steamboat match at WrestleMania III, and the years between 1990 and 1993, when Mr Perfect, Bret Hart, and Shawn Michaels could wrestle the tights off anything happening in the main event.
Its one-time reputation as a stepping stone to the world championship was real, however. A good run with the IC belt meant bigger things down the line. Ultimately, that was its purpose – and it did the job successfully for many stars, including Savage, Hart, Michaels, Triple H, The Rock, Steve Austin, and Chris Jericho.
Dean Ambrose defeated The Miz for the Intercontinental Championship on SmackDown Live 10 game-changing WWE moves including Stone Cold and HHHFans can complain all day about how poorly treated the IC belt is (we might as well get over it – it’s been near worthless for at least 15 years) but a wrestler making that step back from the upper echelons to the Intercontinental Championship – or any other mid-card title, for that matter – is one of the great booking crimes that WWE commits time and again.
It doesn’t raise the profile of the title, as claimed, but instead hammers the message home that WWE doesn’t know what to do with either the wrestler or championship – and devalues both considerably in the process.
When WWE has such an incredible pool of mid-card talent waiting to make their way up the ladder, established main eventers like Ambrose should be in top-tier programmes – leaving those mid-card titles available to help create even more main eventers.
Raw has the same problem. Why does three-time world champ Roman Reigns want the US belt in the first place? Want sense does it make? Roman – much like Ambrose – should have had one goal and one goal only: the very top championship.
Ambrose should have bigger and better things to do WWE superstars AJ Styles and Roman Reigns get extremeNot a year goes by that a top flight superstar doesn’t announce they’re setting their sights on the Intercontinental Championship to return some “prestige” to it (a recurring public admission that WWE have booked it horribly over the years). But it’s a backwards way of doing things – and only ever amounts to more feeble-minded booking and monthly title switches.
There are exceptions with headliners holding mid-card belts. John Cena’s 2015 run with the US belt was a success, thanks to his weekly “open challenge” gimmick. Dolph Ziggler’s world championship reigns were fleeting, and typical of an era when mid-carders held world championships – his natural spot was always the IC title picture.
And The Miz, who despite being WWE Champion in 2010-11, had to effectively work his way back up from the bottom.
If WWE had the patience to keep the IC belt on The Miz – who really has returned a little prestige to the belt this year – until WrestleMania 33, he could have dropped it to a rising star (say, a Heath Slater or Samoa Joe) and ascended back into the world championship picture.
Meanwhile, stars like Ambrose should have bigger and better things to do. If WWE wants the title to mean anything, it needs to be a step forward, not back.
WWE superstars AJ Styles and Roman Reigns get extreme
