By: Jay Nelson
The last time we saw CM Punk, he had just finished a classic trilogy with Drew McIntyre. First was his match at WWE SummerSlam with Seth “Freakin” Rollins as Special Guest Referee. He let his emotions get in the way and handed Drew the match. Ok. Punk beat himself. He has yet another obstacle to climb, and one that most of his critics would say is his biggest stumbling block.
Then came the Strap Match At WWE Bash In Berlin. Punk wins the match, gets his revenge, right?? Then JUST as he is about to move on, McIntyre shows back up and bludgeons him and reclaimed that precious bracelet that Punk always wore. Punk then come back and challenges McIntyre to Hell In A Cell at WWE Bad Blood 2024, twenty-seven years to the day of the first Hell In A Cell Match (Undertaker Vs Shawn Michaels). And in a back-and-forth affair (one that included a spot where McIntyre crashed and burned on an attempted Claymore finish that landed his lower back on the steel steps), Punk secured the win in the match and the series.
Punk came out on Raw and told the world he didn’t know if he would be back. That Hell In A Cell took so much out of him. That he didn’t know if he had anything else left in him….and then the future happened…
On the 11/22/2024 edition of WWE Friday Night Smackdown, in a confrontation in the ring between Solo Sikoa’s led Bloodline 2.0 and Roman Reigns’ led Original Bloodline, Sikoa demanded Reigns’ early surrender for their upcoming War Games Match At WWE Survivor Series: Vancouver on 11/30/2024. For weeks, The Usos and Sami Zayn tried to recruit Seth Rollins as the fifth man for the team, with Seth swearing he would not join due to his hatred for Reigns. Then Seth’s current rival, “Big” Bronson Reed (with Samoan roots himself) joined Sikoa’s lineup of hitmen. As the OTC himself was about to speak, the “Wiseman” Paul Heyman made his return….with CM Punk??
No way. No how. What?? Why?? Even after the short fight to close the show, even Reigns himself asked what Punk was even doing there. Now we all know Punk was/is a “Heyman guy” (like the Lesnars and Reigns’ of the world). As assumed, Punk was there as a favor to Heyman. It is anybody’s guess what is to happen in that cage at War Games, but with the addition of The Vice Of The Voiceless, this situation has taken a drastic turn, and that is putting it lightly.
Also, could this be Punk’s Road To The World Heavyweight Championship?? Me personally, I have him tabbed to win the 2025 Men’s Royal Rumble Match and go on to challenge Gunther for the title at WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas. And there may even be a future Reigns-Punk super fight. But for now, CM punk has most definitely taken the hard road, as he often does by jumping from one war to another.