WWE: CM Punk's Lifted Suspension Gives John Cena What He Wants

Actions usually speak louder than words, but on Monday night, the words were far more important than any of the wrestling that took place in the ring.

And for the first time in a number of years, I became a John Cena fan in the process.

I will admit to being a wrestling fan, a fan of old school mat wrestling and action that leaves me wanting more. Lately, the WWE has not been able to deliver on that desire.

The best thing going for them was the rant by CM Punk and the subsequent suspension for what Cena said was his First Amendment Right.

Way to go, Champ.

Cena’s promo in the opening segment of the show was more than brilliant and while it may have been an act and may have been part of the script, it was as close to live drama as Punk’s tirade last week.

“We have major unrest in the WWE Universe,” Cena explained in the ring. “Are we supposed to sweep him (Punk) under the rug and forget about him? It sucks!”

Cena’s words were poignant and to the point and we saw a side of him we have not seen since he announced that Bin Laden had been killed.  It was refreshing and real and made me think that while the Punk shoot was probably part of a script and a plot and a program, it is bringing real drama back to wrestling that does not involve drug use, steroids, affairs or the angry black man.

“Although I do not agree with what he did, I see nothing wrong with it,” Cena went on.

The fact Cena told Vince McMahon at the end of the show that he did not sign up for some of the things McMahon was doing with the WWE, and that included taking away Punk’s chance to wrestle in his hometown at Money in the Back with a chance to win the WWE world title.

Cena handed the title to McMahon and walked off the ramp. It was gripping. Not as dramatic as Punk, but it was gripping. McMahon reinstated Punk with the understanding if Cena loses, he will be fired from the WWE, which makes me wonder if Cena leaves WWE for a bit, heals, makes another movie and comes back to kick everyone’s ass in the fall, maybe with a face change or a character overload.

We have seen this before with wrestlers challenging authority or being suspended for their actions. Stone Cold Steve Austin fought the authority and transformed himself into the anti-hero. There have been battles within WCW about booking, titles, entitlement and who would run the ship.

Ric Flair fought with Eric Bischoff over his contract and his place in the company. Eddie Guerrero called out WCW management because he was being underutilized. Chris Benoit walked out of WCW after winning the world title because he would not work with his wife’s former husband, Kevin Sullivan. And of course, we have seen the real-life situation between Edge, Lita and Matt Hardy play out in WWE and recently, the Jeff Jarrett/Kurt Angle “angle” in TNA got more miles out of it than a roadrunner on steroids.

But nothing seems to have the same punch and fire as Punk, WWE’s new version of Austin and his quest to make a statement. And it shows that Cena has more stroke in the company than Austin, Hogan or The Rock before him. This is not like WCW when Ric Flair was suspended and Hulk Hogan and Randy Savage fought to have him reinstated. It goes way beyond that. It also shows Cena gets what he always wanted, and that was to work a story with Punk with the title on the line.

So while we sit and wait to see what happens next week, rest and ponder. We wonder what happened with the triple-threat victory by Alberto Del Rio and what it means to the title situation and we wonder how long it will be before Punk spews more venom in the face of McMahon and the WWE universe.  While the action in the ring was sub-par last night, the words spoken in the ring were second to none.