Punk faced two of the biggest power hitters on the microphone and struck both of them out with nasty pitches. Bear with me on the baseball metaphor.
Coming off Punk’s pipebomb promo, the build to Money In The Bank in Chicago was reaching a head. The superstar would face John Cena in a heavily stipulated match. If Punk won, he’d leave the WWE with the WWE Championship and John Cena would be fired.
In a last-ditch effort to re-sign Punk, Vince McMahon took matters into his own hands, negotiating a new contract with him live on Monday Night Raw a few days before MITB. Vince was as brash and smug as ever until Punk reminded him who held the leverage.
Punk physically pushed his boss (a provision in the contract), demanded he bring back WWE ice bars (still need those!), and even dropped this dandy: “Vince, I’ll kick you in the nuts and you’ll smile at me and like it, and show me some respect!”
Shortly after, Cena joined the fray, and Punk lost it at his rival’s declaration that he had lost sight. Punk hit Cena with a harsh truth about his character and position within the wrestling business: The 10-time champ, who prided himself on being the underdog, was now the opposite. Cena was no longer like his hometown team, the underdog Boston Red Sox. Instead, he’d become the detestable New York Yankees. See? Baseball.
Cena took exception to the insult and punched Punk, causing him to retreat to the same place he cut his pipebomb promo weeks earlier. Sitting on the ramp, he revealed:
“I’m glad you just punched me in the face John… because it hit me like a bolt of lightning exactly why I no longer want to be here. It’s because I’m tired of this. I’m tired of you. I’m just tired.”
With that, Punk said that after Sunday night (Money In The Bank), the company will need to say goodbye to the WWE title, say goodbye to John Cena, and say goodbye to CM Punk.
BOOM. That is how you sell a story and a ca n’t-miss event in front of (as Punk referred to them) the George Steinbrenner and Derek Jeter of the WWE. More baseball! This Punk performance is often lost in the giant shadow of the pipebomb, but you could argue it’s just as effective. And epic.