The final time we appeared again at CM Punk’s 2011, he had simply misplaced a complicated and overbooked mess of a match to Triple H at Evening of Champions earlier than being rewarded with a WWE Title match at Hell In A Cell simply two weeks later. Jesus, placing that on paper makes it look a lot worse. Anyway, Punk would have a preview of that title match when he went one-on-one with Alberto Del Rio.
RAW
SEPTEMBER 26, 2011
CM PUNK DEF. ALBERTO DEL RIO
WWE Champion John Cena was on commentary, having had his match earlier within the evening interrupted by Del Rio, who had been on commentary. Huh, I’m wondering how this may finish.
Alberto Del Rio got here up in an attention-grabbing time and place in WWE historical past. Followers have been so determined for a brand new identify that Del Rio grew to become a man some followers rallied round to be within the combine, though I’m undecided he was ever that good. He had an amazing look, an amazing gimmick, and had a celebrity rollout. The corporate’s lack of ability to ever go along with him absolutely as a prime identify harm him, as he had his essential occasion push continuously pushed again. He was alleged to be World Champion at WrestleMania after profitable the 2011 Royal Rumble, however that was pushed again on account of Edge’s retirement. He was alleged to win the WWE Title in some unspecified time in the future, however the Punk deal pushed that again. Then, as soon as he lastly received the WWE Title at Summerslam, he dropped it a month later to John Cena.
After which he misplaced this match clear, regardless of having the setup for the non-finish proper there. Even worse, he didn’t even lose to one in all Punk’s finishers. Punk beat him with a kick to the top like he was prime Mirko Cro Cop. They will need to have been working brief on time or one thing as a result of that could be a nonsensical end. After the match, the Cell got here down. Cena and Punk beat up Ricardo Rodriguez – Del Rio’s private ring announcer – for no actual motive earlier than Del Rio laid each guys out with a chair. Del Rio loses the match however stands tall over everybody anyway to finish the present. God assist me, WHO IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK GOOD HERE?
That brings us to New Orleans, and Hell In A Cell 2011. A nasty present {that a} 14-year-old Go well with was in attendance for that 26-year-old Go well with has little or no recollection of.
WWE HELL IN A CELL
OCTOBER 2, 2011
WWE HEAVYWEIGHT TITLE TRIPLE THREAT HELL IN A CELL MATCH
ALBERTO DEL RIO DEF. JOHN CENA (C), CM PUNK
This was the primary, and up to now, final ever Triple Risk Hell in a Cell match. This was the peak of WWE’s “gimmick match of the month” period, one which noticed such PPV spectaculars as Excessive Guidelines – a present filled with no-DQ matches, Breaking Level – a present filled with submission matches, and Deadly 4-Approach – I’ll allow you to guess the hook of that one. Gimmick matches have been much less about being acceptable for the feud and extra about it being that point on the calendar. The video bundle recapped the latest historical past and hot-potatoing of the WWE Championship since Punk received it, leaving out each the Rey Mysterio and second Cena reign. Punk received it in Chicago, Del Rio received it at Summerslam, and Cena received it two weeks in the past at Evening of Champions, bringing this messy story to a head contained in the Cell right here.
The match had the standard tropey WWE triple risk spots, nevertheless it was higher than I anticipated it to be, though it had no have to be within the Cell. Del Rio bumped a hell of much more than I bear in mind him doing, even making an attempt to take the Hamrick bump from the ring to the cage. Punk took some gnarly bumps into the cage, getting scraped up throughout his again for some unintended blood. The commentary right here continues to be horrible, as Michael Cole, Jim Ross, and Booker T talked over one another all the time to verify they acquired their shit in.
All of them went backwards and forwards in segments earlier than the end got here. Del Rio put Punk by means of Chekov’s desk by the apron earlier than Cena put Del Rio within the STF. On the surface, Ricardo Rodriguez bumped the referee and took the important thing to interrupt it up and get Del Rio a pipe. Cena took Rodriguez to the surface, however Del Rio hit him with the pipe and threw him exterior earlier than locking him out of the cell. Punk and Del Rio wrestled a pair extra minutes as Cena tried to get again within the cage. Del Rio hit Punk with the pipe a pair occasions earlier than getting the pin. ***1/2
Seconds later, none of this mattered. The cell rose so Cena may attempt to get his warmth again, however earlier than he may, The Miz & R-Reality snuck out from below the ring to leap all people. Triple H had fired them each for his or her interference within the Evening of Champions essential occasion. The cage got here again down, and with the important thing having been thrown below the ring by Del Rio earlier, no one may get into the cage as Miz & R-Reality gave a home present stage beatdown to those guys. This wasn’t precisely Ole Anderson trapping Dusty Rhodes within the cage, they simply laid in some punches. However they have been fired, so now this tepid brawl is a serious offense. To his credit score, JR gave it some gusto and actually offered the angle as a despicable, cowardly act.
Ultimately, a stagehand acquired some bolt cutters and unlocked the door so the cops may arrest Miz and Reality. Figuring out the NOPD, they in all probability discovered a option to get six figures out of this deal. Figuring out the NOPD, they positively made certain to report a lot much less. Anyway, Miz and Reality surrendered because the announcers talked about how they have been getting off simple and wanting avenue justice. Triple H flew in and beat them each up as they have been in handcuffs, having to get pulled off of them by street brokers because the present light out.
The essential angle popping out of Cash within the Financial institution 2011 continues to be about Triple H because the boss, now combating these rascals R-Reality and The Miz. And never that you simply’re anticipated to care, however CM Punk acquired pinned for the third PPV in a row. I’m gonna take you guys backstage just a little bit right here. Plenty of these movies are coming from a YouTube playlist I discovered known as CM Punk: Pipe Bomb Central, which has lots of the Uncooked segments from the time, saving me a while on trying to find all of these things. Seeing these movies go from electrical segments that includes CM Punk and John Cena to Paul Levesque’s boring enterprise dealings is miserable.
Reality and Miz threatened to sue for wrongful termination, and in an insufferably lengthy section the place Hunter whined about folks not eager to shut up and do their jobs, the wrestlers gave a public vote of no confidence and walked out on Uncooked. This led to the beginning of the October 10th Uncooked, the place all of the wrestlers went on strike.
That’s proper people. Within the span of three months, CM Punk went from the insurgent trying to tear down the system within the identify of constructing one thing higher to scabbing out alongside John Cena and Sheamus to face up for poor ol’ Hunter. After twenty minutes, Vince McMahon got here again, shuffled the wrestlers to the again, and informed Hunter that Johnny Ace was taking his job.
Right here’s the factor about this: even when John Laurinaitis was a dynamic promo or on-screen presence, this could suck. However John Laurinaitis isn’t a dynamic promo. He’s not an excellent talker. He’s not a stable talker. He’s not even a middling talker. John Laurinaitis fucking sucks.
He conveys no emotion. He has nothing that pops or will get your consideration as an on-screen character. The mail room clerk at Titan Towers may’ve gotten this spot and achieved simply nearly as good of a job. He’s as unfit for an on-screen function as the present NXT Common Supervisor Ava, who I’ve gone on document as saying is likely one of the most ineffective professional wrestling acts I’ve ever seen in a big-time function. Laurinaitis is an entire stiff, and the truth that the unimaginable angles with Punk and Vince and Cena led to him getting an on-screen function makes each choice that led to it all of the extra infuriating.
Ace introduced again Miz & R-Reality. They beat up Punk, Hunter ran them off, and Ace booked a tag crew match between the 4 of them for Vengeance.
WWE VENGEANCE
OCTOBER 23, 2011
R-TRUTH & THE MIZ DEFEATED CM PUNK & TRIPLE H
This was precisely the form of tepid home present match that impressed the Superior Reality nostalgia run 13 years later, peaking with a tag crew title win at WrestleMania. This was a Triple H match. This was Triple H’s feud in opposition to Triple H’s opponents, whereas CM Punk was simply Hunter’s little buddy in his nook. Aside from Punk getting visibly aggravated on the Miz being late on a spot throughout his sizzling tag, completely nothing of curiosity or be aware occurred within the first quarter-hour of this 15:24 match. Hunter was combating Reality by the timekeeper’s space when Kevin Nash re-emerged to put him out. Punk acquired distracted by this within the ring, and Miz and Reality hit their end on him.
Three months in the past, CM Punk was the middle of the wrestling world, strolling out of WWE with their World Title. Three months later, he’s being pinned by The Miz on PPV in a tag crew match fourth from the highest as background noise to a Kevin Nash/Triple H feud. **
Nash laid out Hunter with the Jackknife, leaving Hunter laid out longer than he was laid out at WrestleMania 19 earlier than he rolled over to pin Booker T. We acquired 4 replays of the Jackknife Powerbomb as Hunter tried to garner sympathy from the group.
I acquired upset watching that match. Seeing an unimaginable performer like CM Punk, who had what ought to have been a megastar-making second in Chicago three months previous to this, hooked up to glory hogs like Hunter and Nash and absolute zeroes in Reality & Miz is miserable. They’d an A-level star of their palms, the Batman to Cena’s Superman. Somebody who, with the appropriate construct and feuds after Chicago, may have been a real counterpart to Cena and one other high-level enterprise mover. As a substitute of placing their full promotional help behind constructing that new star, they took that help and put it behind Triple H, forgoing the try and make a brand new star to placate egos and conceal behind the protection blanket of nostalgia.
But regardless of absolutely the bungling of his push post-Cash within the Financial institution, Punk grew to become all the things he was alleged to be regardless of it. That’s the stage of expertise he had, the place even high-level incompetence or deliberate sabotage couldn’t cease him from reaching his potential. A way, in some way, CM Punk nonetheless had a date with the WWE Championship forward of him.