NEW CHAMPION! THIS IS NO JOKE

[monkeyking]

i truely couldn't believe my eyeS as i logged on the wwe.com

 

(passage taken from wwe.com)"It all started after Edge mocked new SmackDown announcer and Oklahoma native son, Jim Ross, during his farewell address to Raw fans. Batista had heard enough and intruded on the events to teach the Rated-R Superstar a lesson. The Animal punished his longtime nemesis and left him lying wounded in the ring.

 

It was then that the Straightedge Superstar charged down the entrance ramp clutching the Money in the Bank briefcase. As a referee called for the bell to start the match, CM Punk made quick work of his opponent, leveling an already dazed Edge with a Go To Sleep.

 

It was difficult not to revel in the irony. After all, it was the Ultimate Opportunist who himself twice cashed in the Money in the Bank contract over the years against severely weakened opponents to win two World Championships."

 

CM PUNK IS THE NEW WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION about bloody time!

Edited July 1, 2008 by monkeyking

[DavidB]

About bloody time?

 

He's not been in the company that long, and Wrestlemania was only a few months back.

 

I thought it was done very smartly actually, and was one of the main contributing factors to Raw having a very fresh feel to it last night.

 

A lot of people thought he'd be the first to fail to capture a title from MITB, so that made it all the more shocking - and managing to survive against JBL too.

 

I just hope they give him a decent chance. It'd be a shame to see their efforts go to waste - after all, they've now pushed the show in a new direction, what with Kofi and CM both being champions after only a week on the brand. Just see how it goes before falling back on the old reliable.

 

I know he's not been pushed as a credible top man, but give him some extended matches and put him over some decent talent, and I think he'd be good.

 

But hey, even if he's only a transitional champ, it's something I never thought would happen and I'm very pleased for the guy having met him on a couple of occasions.

[jakeblue]

I predict that come summerslam we'll be slap bang in the middle of a cena vs batista feud over the belt. They may throw punk a bone by letting him triple threat it but not much else i doubt.

[Abyss]

The internet has been rife with the Batista vs Cena match for days since an "inside source" revealed that Triple H pushed for Batista vs Cena at both WrestleMania 24 and now WrestleMania 25. Granted, the proposed Triple H vs Cena match wasn't scheduled for Night of Champions, but rather SummerSlam according to pre listing of arena matches before and after SummerSlam, so it may well be brought forward.

 

CM Punk has been groomed for a long time as a future champion due to his track record outside of the company, his terrific crowd response, his patience in ECW and the fact Jeff Hardy is not seen as someone who can be relied upon for stability as is evident from two Wellness Programme Failures.

 

Punk is seen as a future headliner due to the current ones being in the latter stages of their in ring careers. HBK is wrestling less and less, and when he does it is to usually elevate mid card wrestlers. Batista has gone on record saying that he wants to move behind the scenes in a few years as he isn't getting any younger. The Undertaker's body is hangin on by a thread, and Triple H is due to be a two time Father very soon and obvious successor to Vince in the very near future. Jericho is also someone becoming a bit of an elder statesman and not one seen as a long term plan.

 

Of the current stars you have Cena and Orton already established. Edge is close to the final product stage and will no doubt be tested to see if he is true main event status with Triple H moving brands. If he can fine tune his promos - he is good, but not at the level of Triple H, HBK and Cena - and prove that he can feud with anyone, then I have no doubts that he will be pased the torch so to speak.

 

Jeff Hardy is a talent who management are obviously worried about. It wouldn't shock me to hear if they bricked it every time Jeff did a drugs test. Next failure means being sacked. Matt Hardy is not someone anywhere near main event status, and if Jeff isn't trusted, then I couldn't see his brother being either.

 

So, this brings us back to CM Punk. As I watched RAW live last night I knew that something was going down half way through Jim Ross's farewell speech. And when Edge came down withough Vickie I was sensing an angle. When Batista beat the cr*p out of him, I was just waiting for Punk's music to blare. And so it did.

 

Punk has a very good rep in the company with many out of character blogs/interviews praising his professional and personal lifestyle. The Straight Edge image (No alcohol, drugs or smoking for anyone who doesn't know) is a gimmick he invented to go with his life choices and the WWE could use him at a time when Congress are out for blood so to speak. I truly hope that they give him a run, a decent run, with the belt as it will give the WWE's image a clean look for once. Punk has a brilliant fanbase, and he can work the stick quite well.

 

In the words of The King last night - PUNK WINS! PUNK WINS!

 

As regards Kofi Kingston, this is a guy who has earnt his spot on Raw so quickly as he has busted his rear end on ECW. He has shone and proved himself one for the future.

 

The IC Title has been a mess in the last year with it being passed around and around due to drug test failures. Jericho jobbed because he is being moved back up to main event level.

 

I think that the WWE, after a year or so of bad publicity and extreme bad luck, now has a chance to rebuild.

[Abyss]

If you check out the following link, you will see that Madison Square Garden have updated their card on AUgust 23rd to show World Champion CM Punk defending against Batista. Although things do change, could Punk have a reasonable run as Champion?

 

CM Punk World Title Match - 23rd August 2008

[Austin Powers]

I would think not, as I suspect they had Punk win the title so that there would be a main title on RAW.

[Abyss]

I would think not, as I suspect they had Punk win the title so that there would be a main title on RAW.

If that were so, then they wouldn't be listing him defending the Championship nearly two months in the future. If you check out this link you will see that the graphics the WWE have been running for the Great American Bash have Punk as one of five superstars (Triple H, Batista, HBK and John Cena being the other four) in it. This graphic went up prior to Raw.

 

Great American Bash graphics

 

The WWE had every chance to put on a Batista vs Edge rematch on Raw, but chose to have Punk cash in the MITB mass. The WWE had every chance to put the belt on JBL, someone who is very close to Vince McMahon, but had JBL job to Punk. The WWE needs another face headliner in the World Title hunt on Raw that is fresh. With both Batista and possibly Kane turning heel in the near future - Batista got a mixed reaction at Night of Champions - there is only Cena who is at full throttle. Rey Mysterio is heading into a programme with Santino to get sharp, and HBK is past the World Title scene with his body as broken down as the Undertakers.

 

If they had wanted a World Title on Raw then they could have had Edge job to a current main eventer in Batista at Night of Champions. So, if Edge was going to job the title - a certainty when Triple H went to Smackdown - why have do it to a non main eventer?

 

Can you see the logic in wasting a brilliant angle which the WWE are now using - Punk beating a semi conscious man - so that a title can come back to Raw? Not even Vince is that damn stupid. I am not sure how into the WWE, or wrestling in general, but one of CM Punk's biggest supporters has been Triple H. Triple H is the one reason that Jeff Hardy is still in a job as he was the one who wanted him elevated and was willing to job to him.

 

Only time will tell, but everyone in the wrestling media industry thought that both Eddie Guerrero (RIP) and Chris Benoit were short term champions. Both stayed in the picture for a long time with only their passing taking them away.

 

CM Punk is a perfect poster boy for the WWE in these times of steroids in wrestling scandals. He is a sraight edge wrestler by choice, not by gimmick. His life is mirrored by his gimmick, and not the other way around.

 

With a rumoured triple threat at the Bash of Punk vs JBL vs Cena, I can see good things for Punk and the WWE in general.

Edited July 3, 2008 by Abyss

[Jonesy]

In a possible indication aside from the future arena show listings, it seems CM Punk may well equal ratings. Although Raw's figures dropped from 3.5 to 3.2 this week, the sections of the show dominated by Punk have shown big spikes in Nielsen viewer ratings. Apart from the overrun of 3.81 - this is usual in the States as you have people tuning in to watch the next programme without realising that Raw is still on - Punk's match with Kane spiked at 3.59. This is the same ever since he has had the belt. I just hope that he keeps the belt this Sunday at the Bash.

[Jonesy]

Word backstage at Raw regarding CM Punk's run as Champion, it was Vince who made the decision from start to finish about Punk becoming Champion as the WWE is in the process of elevating younger talent for the future. Despite old school road agents not liking Punk's style - this is more than likely put down to Triple H not liking Punk and the agents not wanting to lose their jobs - Vince apparently sees Punk as the future in a similar way he did RVD before RVD's recreational habits caught up with him. With Punk's clean lifestyle, he is also seen as a poster boy for the improved Wellness Testing Regiment within the WWE.

 

As regards the storyline of Punk holding onto his title by the proverbial "skin of his teeth", this again is apparently Vince's call as he wants to get right what was screwed up with Rey Jr over on Smackdown. He apparently wants CM Punk to be the underdog who has the crowd behind him. If you watched the match versus Batista on Raw a few weeks back, you saw Punk's in ring skills picking off Batista before Big Dave hit the midair spinebuster.

 

Punk is being likened to a modern day Bret Hart in that not many people think he is a worthy champion, but we all know what happened with The Hitman.