The Bummer of Punk sequence appears to be like again on the 2011 Summer time of Punk in WWE. Compensate for Half One right here.
Every part was going so effectively. The Cash within the Financial institution match between CM Punk and John Cena was one of the crucial acclaimed matches in firm historical past. It was the primary WWE match to obtain a five-star ranking from Dave Meltzer since Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker at Badd Blood 1997. Enterprise-wise, the pay-per-view bucked the pattern of underperforming B-tier reveals, doubling the variety of buys from Capital Punishment the month earlier than. However might they stick the touchdown? Might they preserve the momentum going? How did the WWE observe by means of with this red-hot story with a red-hot new star?
…how about some McMahon household drama?
One of many stipulations of the Cash within the Financial institution match was that if John Cena misplaced, Vince McMahon would fireplace him. Contemplating this was lower than a yr after John Cena was fired from WWE by the Nexus, but by no means missed a Uncooked, nobody purchased it. They shouldn’t have both as a result of Vince by no means received the possibility to fireplace Cena.
As a substitute, Triple “Paul Levesque” H returned to TV and introduced that the Board of Administrators determined the Punk state of affairs was the final straw. Vince McMahon was voted out of his seat as Chairman of the Board, with Hunter filling his seat.
WWE believed that placing Triple H in a phantom place of energy, whereas feigning that Vince McMahon was out of the image, would lead to enterprise success.
Might you think about that?
In the meantime, John Cena received the WWE Title once more.
Earlier than he was ousted, Vince McMahon’s resolution to the CM Punk drawback was to fake it didn’t occur. They’d do a one-night match to crown a brand new WWE Champion and transfer on from there. After Vince bumped the finals of the match he booked to the following week, Rey Mysterio would come out of it as champion after beating The Miz within the finals.
Triple H would announce shortly after that Mysterio would give Cena his rematch for the title that very same evening, a match Cena would win. Eight days after shedding the title at Cash within the Financial institution in a match the place his job was at stake, John Cena was the WWE Champion once more.
Hurricane Punk handed, and water discovered its stage once more within the WWE Universe.
By no means thoughts, Punk is again!
Eight days after leaving the WWE with their title, martyring himself to vary the established order, Punk returned as quickly as all the things returned to regular. Punk stated that he made the decision to come back again as a result of he wanted to be within the firm to guarantee that the adjustments he needed got here to fruition. Whereas many followers questioned the logic of Punk returning so quickly after Cash within the Financial institution, they actually would have accepted this end result over the unique thought.
From the August 1, 2011 version of the Wrestling Observer E-newsletter:
“(Punk’s) elevation wasn’t shut down as it will have been within the unique reserving idea, the place he was to return on the finish of the present, get overwhelmed up by HHH, left laying with a pedigree and Alberto Del Rio would come down, money in his briefcase, beat him to win the title, and Del Rio would go to SummerSlam and defend in opposition to Cena.”
Jesus Dave, too many commas. WWE needed to perform a number of objectives with their Uncooked primary occasion scene. They needed to have Punk because the anti-authority badass babyface. They needed Cena to stay within the combine on the high, as enterprise wasn’t sturdy sufficient to outlive him to be cycled down. There was additionally the case of Alberto Del Rio, who had been penciled in to win a World Title 4 completely different occasions by August 2011, but nonetheless by no means held the belt.
Their resolution was easy. SummerSlam would see John Cena vs. CM Punk II, this time with Triple H because the referee. Why would Triple H should be the visitor referee when the difficulty at Cash within the Financial institution wasn’t associated to the ref? As a result of intrigue! Triple H shortly made it clear that he didn’t like Punk however was making an attempt to offer the followers what they needed regardless of it. It was the identical dynamic of the early Vince McMahon/Steve Austin feud from 1998, the place the rowdy star wrestler noticed by means of the stodgy company B.S. and knew the workplace hated him being on high. It made sense, they simply needed to stick the touchdown.
WWE SUMMERSLAM
AUGUST 14, 2011
WWE CHAMPIONSHIP
GUEST REFEREE: TRIPLE H
CM PUNK DEF. JOHN CENA – ALBERTO DEL RIO CASHED IN MONEY IN THE BANK
It’s a disgrace that this match is usually remembered for the calamitous reserving choices that adopted it as a result of this match is unbelievable. The work is on the extent of the Cash within the Financial institution match, with a break up crowd in LA as an alternative of the firmly pro-Punk crowd in Chicago. They stored the visitor referee shenanigans to a minimal, with Triple H’s solely spot earlier than the end being stopping a double countout to throw each males again within the ring.
This was counter-wrestling at its finest, with spots evolving out of huge spots from the primary encounter. The work was smoother than it was within the Chicago match, with these two absolutely figuring out even probably the most minor of kinks from the primary one. Typically when an enormous spectacle match occurs, it’s lightning in a bottle. The makes an attempt to recapture it simply fall quick, whether or not it’s as a result of chemistry being off or weaker crowd dynamics. Punk and Cena proved right here that their chemistry was no fluke. These two have been made to wrestle one another, and so they simply so occurred to determine it out on the peak of their powers.
Sadly, there was the end. Punk pinned Cena after the second Go To Sleep of the match, however Cena’s foot was on the rope at one. Visitor referee Hunter blew the end, with the announcers making it clear on commentary. There’s a good through-line of the McMahon household costing Cena the title on two straight events, one which I don’t imagine noticed any follow-through. However although it was by design, it did take some air out of the Punk win. ****3/4
If solely that was the place this ended.
Punk took a literal victory lap across the ring earlier than begrudgingly letting Triple H increase his hand. Triple H left the ring, leaving Punk to rejoice on the second turnbuckle. However wait…who was that coming by means of the gang? Who’s that huge man within the ring?
That’s proper, people. Recent off of a shock look within the Royal Rumble, Kevin Nash arrived and dropped Punk with the Jackknife powerbomb. Alberto Del Rio then got here in with a referee and did what he couldn’t do at Cash within the Financial institution. Del Rio hit an enzuigiri on Punk and pinned him, profitable the WWE Title in 5 seconds.
The following evening on Uncooked, Triple H admitted to his blown name on the principle occasion. He additionally stated that he left tickets for Nash at will name, at Nash’s request. Triple H stated he didn’t know anything however informed Nash – through textual content – that he might come to Uncooked and clarify himself.
Nash’s model of occasions noticed him get a textual content simply earlier than the principle occasion, asking him to “stick the winner for me.” He then outright informed Triple H to get his story straight, implicating him because the thriller texter. What’s it with Kevin Nash and thriller angles? Between the White Hummer in WCW, 10/10/10 in TNA, and this, he might as effectively have Scooby-Doo and the Thriller Gang again him up.
Anyway, Punk determined to try to get his title again within the meantime. To do this, he must beat John Cena for the third time in as many tries.
RAW
AUGUST 22, 2011
#1 CONTENDER’S MATCH
JOHN CENA DEF. CM PUNK
This was nearly as good of a match as you’d get from these two on tv, at the very least within the regular WWE primary occasion slot. As Punk had a feud going, Cena wanted his spot. He received it right here when Kevin Nash distracted Punk, permitting Cena to hit the Angle Adjustment and win. Triple H had thrown Nash out of the constructing earlier on. Triple H left the constructing after John Laurinaitis informed him that Nash was in a automobile accident. They by no means stated what automobile hit him, so I’ll assume it was a White Hummer once more. Anyway, somebody was mendacity about that.
We’re 36 days faraway from Cash within the Financial institution 2011, a traditionally nice present with an ending that left the world questioning what would occur with CM Punk and the WWE Title. The main target of the corporate was squarely on him.
We went from that to “Punk’s Again!” in eight days. A lot ahead of I might have executed it, however high quality, it units up a large SummerSlam primary occasion that capitalizes on the thrill of the prior PPV. Cheap minds can disagree, nevertheless it’s an affordable resolution.
After SummerSlam, the main focus shouldn’t be on CM Punk. The main target shouldn’t be on John Cena. The main target shouldn’t be on new WWE Champion Alberto Del Rio. The query on everybody’s thoughts following the third largest pay-per-view of the yr was…who texted Kevin Nash?
It’s an atrocious level of emphasis, however to play satan’s advocate, Kevin Nash nonetheless had a little bit of a reputation in 2011. He was coming off of a TNA run that was enjoyable at factors, so it’s not like they dragged him fully out of mothballs. And whereas it’s an odd diversion for Punk, he can beat Nash at Evening of Champions and get again to the necessary stuff quickly afterward.
…Punk goes to beat Kevin Nash, proper?
