Roundtable: Future & Legacy of CM Punk

Should CM Punk continue his MMA career?

Devonte Grant: No.

David Gibb: If he wants to continue, I don’t see why I should discourage him. However, he needs to assess whether he wants to go back to being an indie draw because that’s the direction his career will need to go for him to get fights.

Chad Gelfand: I don’t think so. He’s too old, not athletic enough and just plain not good at the sport as harsh as that sounds.

Adam B. Yuro: I think he should stop now. He tried it out and had his fun, but MMA isn’t the right place for him.

John Corrigan: Hell no. He lived his dream, but for the sake of his health and public image, it’s time to explore other opportunities.

Steven Jackson: CM Punk should hang up his MMA boots and retire. Punk was not a legitimate college or university wrestler or athlete, which puts him at a disadvantage in the octagon. Plus, at 39, he is no spring chicken and could get severely injured. It’s time to call it a day.

Jack Goodwillie: I am every bit the MMA fan as I am a wrestling fan, sports fan and fight fan in general. Having said that, it’s likely we see Punk headline a Bellator card in the near future. It doesn’t mean he should. Pro wrestling is all about hiding weaknesses and highlighting strengths. It’s a craft for tough guys, smart guys, smart tough guys and athletes. But you don’t have to be a “++” athlete to be effective at it. When it comes to MMA, however, great athleticism can take you a long way. Punk doesn’t seem to have it. He had no athletic background prior to pro wrestling, looked clumsy and as a trainee at Roufusport, we know coaching isn’t the problem. For whatever athleticism he does possess has probably peaked in his advanced age.

Will he ever come back to WWE?

Grant: Never say never, but I might hit the lottery before that happens.

Gibb: Never say never, but I think it would take a Hall of Fame induction. Vince McMahon is a compulsive fence mender, though, so it’s really a question of whether that’s a fence he wants to mend during his remaining tenure.

Gelfand: I know that a lot of people think that eventually everyone returns to WWE. Bruno Sammartino, The Ultimate Warrior and Bret Hart all had falling outs with the company, and they all came back. However, I think Punk is different: he was fired on his wedding day, had a financially costly lawsuit levied against him that was allegedly bankrolled by WWE, and seemed to have some major problems with Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, who are set to take over the company sooner rather than later. So I don’t see Punk returning to WWE anytime soon, if at all

Yuro: I don’t think he will. He had his stint in WWE, but with everything that transpired while he was there, it is doubtful he will ever go back.

Corrigan: He will never return to WWE, but I expect to see him in another wrestling company within the next two years.

Jackson: I really don’t know. We thought Bret, Bruno and Ultimate Warrior would never come back, and they all have/did so you can never tell. Pro wrestling needs Punk more than Punk needs pro wrestling…for now.

Goodwillie: Yes, I do. A lot of people compare this situation to guys like Bret and Bruno’s grievances with Vince, but Punk is a totally different animal. His in-ring career is certainly over, but in a post-Vince world, he would make a terrific color commentator. We’ve already gotten a glimpse of that, after all.

What’s your favorite CM Punk match?

Grant: It’s a tie between Punk vs. Joe I and Punk vs. AJ Styles in IWA-MS. But there are so many, man.

Gibb: I’m not sure that I can pick out an individual match, but I thought he and Jericho were magic together. The match up seems lost to history because there’s so much emphasis on Punk’s great run with Cena.

Gelfand: My favorite CM Punk match was his match with John Cena at Money in the Bank 2011. That match had such a unique and fun atmosphere and is an all-time great moment in wrestling history.

Yuro: CM Punk vs. Daniel Bryan at Over the Limit 2012. It was a great match with two of the best.

Corrigan: Punk vs. John Cena on the Raw before WrestleMania 29. Even though the world knew Rock/Cena II was etched in stone, Punk put on one helluva performance giving us a glimmer of hope that he would crash the Mania party. It’s one of the greatest matches in Raw history.

Jackson: It may surprise a lot of people, but although I am a ROH fanboy, a lot of CM Punk’s ROH matches pale in comparison to his WWE matches. Like many other people, my favorite CM Punk match has to be against John Cena at Money in the Bank 2011. Everything that could be said about this match has already been said, and even more besides that. My comment: it is/was one of the most important matches in the history of pro wrestling, and if there was a pro wrestling match set canon this match would be on it.

Goodwillie: A lot of people are going to say Money in the Bank 2011, and I would tend to agree. But to play devil’s advocate, as I like to do, I’ll offer up another match. With the physical decline of the Undertaker being a hot topic in recent years around Mania time, I think it speaks volumes that Punk was able to carry him through that match on the stage that was WrestleMania 29. Punk’s been very open to talking about how he wrestled that match with a “death wish,” and many consider it to be the “true” main event of the show.

What’s your favorite CM Punk moment?

Grant: His entrance in Chicago at Money In The Bank 2011.

Gibb: The piledriver to Cena on Raw.

Gelfand: My favorite Punk moment is when at the contract signing before Money in the Bank 2011, Punk was laying into John Cena on the mic for several minutes, but the thing that finally set Cena off is when he called him the New York Yankees. That moment always cracks me up.

Yuro: When he quit. He sat down and said his piece. Best way anybody has ever left.

Corrigan: Around 12:30 a.m. on Thanksgiving 2014, when I was ready to fall asleep but stumbled upon his just-released epic podcast with Colt Cabana.

Jackson: Choosing a favorite CM Punk moment is tougher than my favorite match. While the “Pipebomb” is a memorable moment to a lot of people, for me, my favorite Punk moment was his entrance before his final ROH match, against his longtime friend Colt Cabana. The image of Punk crying in the ring, covered in streamers, in Chicago, is incredibly moving, and was probably the most fitting sendoff I’ve seen in wrestling.

Goodwillie: For many, it’ll come down to him walking out of WWE with the world championship in hand or his “Pipebomb” promo. For me, I remember attending a Smackdown/ECW taping in my hometown of Reading where the main event of ECW was Chavo Guerrero’s championship fiesta after taking Punk’s ECW Championship days prior. All of a sudden, the guitar player in the mariachi band steps forward and cracks Chavo in the head with the guitar. That man turned out to be CM Punk in disguise, and the pop was tremendous.

If he truly has hung up his wrestling boots, what’s CM Punk’s legacy?

Grant: Someone who stayed true to his word. One of the best wrestlers who ever set foot in the ring without question.

Gibb: Punk is the marlin from The Old Man and the Sea.

Gelfand: Punk’s legacy will be that he was a polarizing, but immensely popular professional wrestler. He connected with people in a way that few other wrestlers have and he had a major part in opening the door for independent wrestlers and wrestlers from other promotions to succeed in modern-day WWE.

Yuro: Well, I still believe that he is the longest-reigning DEFENDING champion WWE has ever had. Even if Brock broke his record.

Corrigan: Best in the World, at least during the first half of the 2010s. He’ll be remembered for breaking the barrier for indie talents to enter WWE, for breaking the 4th wall on WWE TV before it was commonplace and for walking out on his own terms. I’ll always respect and support Clobberin’ Time.

Jackson: CM Punk’s legacy is monumental in the landscape of post-20th century wrestling. Punk was a man who knew what he wanted to get out of wrestling and how he wanted to get it. Punk was truly a fan favorite. People wanted (and still want) to see him perform, in the ring and on the mic. The fact that his name is still chanted during matches in all promotions (not just WWE) shows the impact he had on the industry. He showed that independent wrestlers can make a name for themselves, regardless of size, look or style. He was a trailblazer and has become one of pro wrestling’s most legendary icons.

Goodwillie: Like I said, I think Punk’s run in MMA has spoiled the idea that he’s this above average athlete, but I never saw him that way. To me, he’s the greatest ring general of his era, and there are so many guys he got good matches out of just because the chemistry was there. John Cena, John Morrison, Jeff Hardy, the Undertaker, Alberto Del Rio and The Rock all come to mind, and that’s even before considering his exceptional ROH career. Frankly, it makes me sad to think of how he views wrestling these days, because he was made for this profession. Is he an asshole? Maybe…I don’t know him personally, certainly not the way Corey Graves “knew him.” But sometimes, that comes with having the insane wit and tone that he brings, and I’d stick him up against anybody to come along this last decade on the microphone.