Match Point is an ongoing series at Last Word on Pro Wrestling, where we look at intriguing matchups in indie wrestling and beyond. They may be dream matches, first-time matchups, or hotly anticipated rematches. In this edition, we will focus on WWE SummerSlam 2024’s most highly anticipated clash – CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre.
CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre – Spectrum of Intrigue
Usually with such a multi-layered storyline, you start at the beginning. Yet with a wrestler or personality like CM Punk, defining the beginning is hard. Like the Pale Horse Rider in the Book of Revelation, hell follows.
Entangled in that hell is history. A legacy of nostalgia, anger, change, and burnt structures that many are not willing to forget. Some haven’t and won’t forgive.
In kayfabe, this feud with Drew McIntyre started just before Royal Rumble 2024. But to talk about Punk and WWE, even if you omit and care about nothing from his time in AEW, a place where he slated his old “home” to the frustrations of Seth Rollins, how far do you go?
Before Colt Cabana’s podcast? How things ended at Royal Rumble 2014? The infamous pipebomb? This history is part of “the magic of CM Punk.”
As the man himself told Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, the blurring of reality and the kayfabe sticks to what Punk does like flavor stuck to a well-used pan. Distinct, but it’s not to everyone’s tastes.
Those watching on Saturday, August 3 have various reasons to watch this match beyond the build. There is a spectrum with extremes.
Those devotees who want the Second City Saint to complete his homecoming. Those who want to see a great performance and return to form.
Those who want to see Punk victorious and revive that Summer of Punk under the sunlight of Triple H’s fan-pleasing booking.
At the other extreme end, those who can’t separate the character from the artist. Those more concerned with the real man than the fiction.
Those who legitimately want Punk to have a poor performance. To get injured. Be embarrassed like it’s the UFC all over again.
Plus, those in between. Both men’s efforts will be rewarded with fans’ undivided attention.
Drew McIntyre – Hater, Surrogate, Equal
Plenty of folks want McIntyre to win and to be vindicated. Or to vindicate their own opinions of Punk.
In the months since the Royal Rumble and the various social media spats, McIntyre’s promos and the vicious Chicago beatdown for those who hate Punk have been a catharsis. Seeing a false prophet (“Fragile Phil” as some online called Punk) being exposed.
Whether in referencing that past, like Cabana, or posting a picture with Jack Perry, McIntyre has earned his status as the frontrunner candidate for Hater of the Year 2024. For those who dislike Punk, McIntyre has become a surrogate who is in the position to call out and tackle the man’s hypocrisy.
McIntyre’s work as a heel, even before his December promo, lived up to the hopes of many fans. Those, including myself, who felt McIntyre had been short-changed after being the man to carry Raw through the pandemic.
A possible feud with Punk prior to the rumored Rollins match at WrestleMania seemed preferable to the teased Shinsuke Nakamura feud. However, given the rumored WrestleMania match, if things had gone to plan, this would have been a warm-up feud.
Instead, due to an unfortunate accident, McIntyre’s Futureshock DDT tore Punk’s triceps during the Royal Rumble. The multiple layers of symbolism and irony, again Punk being hurt for a third time in his late career.
Tearing the other triceps, not the one he tore in AEW. Injured again in the Royal Rumble.
It’s only added to Punk’s mythos. McIntyre capitalized.
McIntyre, from the following Raw where he said he prayed for this to happen, and assaulted Punk has elevated McIntyre to Punk’s equal. Adding volatile fuel to what’s become an out-of-control wildfire that has needed a marshal to maintain some control.
Tit for Tat
With Punk sidelined, McIntyre’s attention turned to Rollins, and taking the position that Punk would confirm on the MMA Hour was his spot on the WrestleMania card. That explosive interview only made Punk a more polarised figure.
Yet, in discussing his belief towards the wrestling business, it retrospectively displays Punk’s sharp mind and attention to detail. Given his physical and in-ring limitations, Punk’s focus has been on securing butts on seats and filling buildings with each appearance and interaction.
Pushing the boundaries in a way that Punk is aware guys like himself and The Rock can get away with. Punk tries to see things from the booker’s perspective.
Everything that has happened with Punk being injured has been designed for maximum impact at the right moments. Punk, as a character, has been allowed to break the rules.
This included distracting and costing McIntyre the championship at WrestleMania. And even adding salt to the wound by costing McIntyre in front of his home city at Clash at the Castle.
In hindsight, a strong decision for the wider story. However, for fans who paid £700 or more to see the show, watching McIntyre lose (again) is something that long-term might hurt WWE’s business in the UK (read about it here).
McIntyre bloodied Punk in his hometown. Stole the bracelet with his wife and dog’s name on it. Tit for tat.
This extreme descent into one-upmanship has blurred the lines. Both have justification for their actions.
And yet, both men have become mirrors of each other.
Descent into Obsession and Reality
Although some fans will not want to acknowledge this, this match owes some credit to AEW. Particularly Punk’s feud with MJF for the blueprint.
The way Punk and McIntyre have played with both men’s history, perception, and version of the truth has created a similar atmosphere of obsession, reality, and blurred lines. This shouldn’t take credit away from Triple H’s plotting that’s made this feud last seven months and stay red hot.
Triple H’s booking mindset overlaps with what fans have wanted for years: logic, consistency, and clarity. A further deep dive into Triple H’s creative can be found here. The injury and recovery from it have also helped.
Likewise, McIntyre deserves an immense amount of credit for being the weekly driving force of this feud. Again, whether it’s been in his online social media posts or his acting, McIntyre has carried the program while Punk has been away healing.
Both men’s rage and obsession have only deepened. Punk twice decided, for the sake of revenge to screw McIntyre out of a world championship, he (in theory) could have been fighting for at SummerSlam.
Each time with a mischievous smile. Both men – behind their words or motivations – are just as bad as each other.
Rollins and The Result
The outcome is not clear. WWE historically has had returning wrestlers, especially those who badmouthed the company, lose on the way back in.
Is this a thing of the past? Although a new regime, I’ve discussed elsewhere how many of the tropes of Vince McMahon’s creativity are still here in plain sight (here).
Rollins as the guest referee fits on multiple levels fits well. From Punk’s return to WrestleMania to even Money in the Bank, Rollins has been present.
It signposts that, when one chapter closes with McIntyre, the next with Punk/Rollins (that delayed WrestleMania match) opens. One chapter ends and another opens.
Or is this addition by subtraction? Adding another body to a blood feud could stop the blood flowing. Or does this telegraph the ending?
Rollins’ addition makes sense because of the larger story. Especially as McIntyre took Rollins’ title and then Punk cost Rollins his one shot.
References and comparisons between Rollins and Shawn Michael’s role in the SummerSlam 1997 have been made clear. However, will Rollins’ referee outfit and presence take attention away for the wrong reasons?
Or is this by design as well as borrowing from history? In evoking the history of Michaels, Bret Hart, and The Undertaker, is this an attempt to build a new improved version of nostalgia fans have enjoyed since the Liv Morgan/Rhea Ripley storyline?
If, by design or accident, Rollins screws either McIntyre or Punk, the way this happens could reap mixed results. Just like the ending of Clash of the Castle which, in the short-term, angered some attendees. Just like the use of the Money in the Bank contract divided some.
But then, in the grand scheme of things, those points feel nit-picky. Especially if the match and result are perfect.
The Fiction and The Reality of CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre
When Punk returned at Survivor Series, no one imagined his first feud would run seven months and include no televised singles matches. Compared to the other hotly anticipated matches at SummerSlam, this one perhaps takes the prize for the smartest, layered storyline.
It’s not just Punk’s history that is interwoven into this story. Beyond being a surrogate for either fans’ feelings or wrestlers in the back, why would McIntyre want someone else stepping in to steal his spotlight?
From a let-down “Chosen One” to a revived warrior, complete with a large sword, McIntyre worked his way to be the champion at the direst of times. Post-COVID, what did McIntyre get for his efforts?
Nothing beyond reliance, loss, and a duet with Tyson Fury that made the character look stupid.
As a justified heel, McIntyre has his reasons to expose Punk as a hypocrite. As a man who once was the anti-establishment figure who raged against the part-timers, McIntyre wants to surpass Punk and his perceived hypocrisy.
In part, this might have been due to injury. And for those who saw Punk tear his other triceps, there’s a pattern of correlation that Punk cannot survive big matches anymore.
Some fans will have not considered Punk’s time outside of WWE. For others, that is part of the story.
Will Punk remain healthy? Some folks will be watching or checking the results to see if that does happen.
To see if Punk becomes exposed. The risk is the bar has been set too high.
If it fails, the idea of Punk’s return was better than the reality. In contrast, if Punk succeeds, it will reaffirm Punk’s place as one of the best in the world.
The only thing certain about Punk right now is nothing is certain.
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