CM Punk Thrown To The Wolves—How His AEW Championship Reign Was Handled Very Badly & Ended Just As Tragically

So this is how they treat the very best in the world? This is how they treat one of the greatest to ever lace up a pair of wrestling boots…one of the top 5 draws in the business ever? Beaten in a three minute match with Jon Moxley? Really?

Perhaps nothing else that has happened in a professional wrestling ring has upset me more than the travesty that was that AEW Championship match last night.

Talk about handling an angle all wrong. This one was handled badly since CM Punk returned from his injury and the match that was supposed to happen at All Out was moved forward and put on live TV on Dynamite last night. It was since the announcement last week that I was wary about the whole deal.

In my mind I was like: They can’t take the belt off of CM Punk this soon, but in the back of my mind I was definitely worried; especially considering the way things have been going down in AEW as of late.

Not to take anything away from Jon Moxley. He has his own career and is quite obviously doing well, but AEW gained a whole lot of momentum when CM Punk joined in with the company last year…a whole lot of momentum indeed, and all of his fans and pro wrestling fans in general were just waiting for him to get that title, which he of course finally did.

To have it taken away so soon is a travesty worth mentioning and lamenting about dear readers. So here we go…

First off I’ll lay down my take on what probably happened behind the scenes. Here goes: First, I don’t think CM Punk was ready to have a match at All Out and they knew that he wouldn’t be able to deliver because of his injury, so the match was moved up. Because if a match like that happened at All Out, the complaints would have been even bigger than they have been since last night. For myself, the term ‘conniption fit’ would not suffice.

Regardless they had the match, what happened did, and now we’re here.

In all honesty they could have just waited. Cancel the match and have an interim champ until Punk was ready. This unless someone had a problem with the whole interim champ thing and wanted to be official champ. We don’t know. In an editorial like this you get a lot of conjecture, educated conjecture sure, but conjecture nonetheless. Draw your own conclusions, dear readers.

In the end, to treat CM Punk like this…have him defeated in such a way, it was all wrong. Taz on commentary was just as flabbergasted, and to have JR call Taz out on the live broadcast for making it seem like he was taking a shot at Moxley…JR even saying: “Punk got his ass kicked,” or something to that effect, was a wrong way to go as well.

The “Best in the World” ideology that Punk lives by is a state of mind…always was. It was the case for him back in ROH, TNA and WWE…a mindset that he has carried with him; a credo if you will.

He knows he’s not the greatest technical wrestler out there; he’s said as much in interviews. If you ask me, he’s up there for sure. Where he takes the cake is in terms of drawing, star quality and elevating the business. He did it in WWE when they needed a heel to face the hero John Cena, and he did it here when AEW needed to hit one out of the park, to use an old baseball term.

He was there for them and he essentially helped tip the popularity meter in AEW’s favor when WWE was faltering creatively big time under Vince McMahon over the last few years.

Now that WWE has changed direction and Triple H is at the helm, the favor has shifted once again, this time favoring WWE.

Maybe AEW should take a look at some recent decisions they have made…this one here a massive one.

A championship reign needs to be treated right and this one wasn’t. Hangman Adam Page’s reign wasn’t treated right either. And don’t get me started on Thunder Rosa’s reign and all the controversy attached to her sudden apparent injury. Looks like management doesn’t mind going the whole interim champ route now do they as we saw in that case?

Confusing times indeed, dear readers. But for us, CM Punk’s loyal fans, we can band together and have our voices heard. This after all, for the Voice of the Voiceless, CM Punk, is rather apropos in my book.

“Love your hate
Your faith lost
You are now one of us
Love your hate
Your faith lost
You are now one of us

Nothing from nowhere, I’m no one at all
Radiate, recognize one silent call
As we all form one dark flame

Incinerate…”

Miseria Cantare /AFI

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