WWE: CM Punk to Decide Future at Money in the Bank

Forget the anger. CM Punk must make the right decision and choose WWE.

The fervor over CM Punk's infamous shoot promo on Monday Night RAW two weeks ago vaulted him from undervalued wrestling star to Internet wrestling community sensation. Even those, like Wrestlezone.com’s Mark Madden, that balk at the influence of the IWC had to give Punk his due credit for the stir he created.

Now he’ll walk into WWE’s Money in the Bank with a decision to make. Does he want to roll the dice on WWE finally using him as the true main eventer he can be? Or does he want to take his talents elsewhere and hope that his short lived, but much talked about, infamy is enough to give whatever promotion he goes to next the mainstream star he thought he could be?

If Punk is smart he’ll understand that when it comes to WWE there is no place like home.

There is no question that CM Punk has been mismanaged in WWE. Sure, he’s a two time champ, but he’s never been marketed as such.

He’s spent most of his career as a mid-card talent that was working programs with guys not even close to matching his talent in the ring and, most importantly, on the mic.

WWE has likely come around later than Punk had wanted. After all, they were willing to let him walk over the use of his name. Punk is one of the few wrestlers to bring his name into WWE and be allowed to keep it. WWE likes to keep the naming rights of their stars (though it’s only ever helped a few guys after their WWE days were over) but rumor has it that they have relaxed their stance on that.

CM Punk is right when he says that there are no DVDs of him, he’s been in no movies and doesn’t appear on the signature of RAW. This is an indictment of WWE’s mismanagement of talent as much as it is anything else.

WWE has frequently ignored smaller wrestlers like Punk in favor of giving stiff giants like The Great Khali a push when his mic skills were horrible and his in-ring ability was no more impressive than anyone reading this article.

Still, that shouldn’t be reason enough for Punk to head out of WWE for another promotion.

If Punk is interested in taking time off for himself, and perhaps to branch out into other areas of the entertainment industry he is more than welcome, but if Punk is concerned about wrestling professionally, there is but one game in town.

TNA is always the “other option” and often the wrong one for most guys in Punk’s position. Kurt Angle, arguably the biggest wrestler to leave in his prime, did so for the lighter schedule but found that his main event status couldn’t draw money at a promotion as backwards and mismanaged as TNA.

Punk has a lot more heat on him than Angle did, but he’s not the performer Angle was and as long as selfish aging stars like Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair are running the promotion there is little chance Punk will help their cause.

The most attractive option for Punk is to go back to the place where he caught a break. Ring of Honor, or ROH as it’s known, has recently found a TV contract and rumors are swirling that CM Punk could be brought in as a partial owner of the company if he were to sign with them. Clearly this means the most money potential and would give any top star pause.

CM Punk is smart though and has to know that the only way that CM Punk makes money in ROH is if there is a forward thinking man doing the booking. This means either ROH would have to try and wrangle Jim Ross out of his cushy job at WWE (unlikely) or they would have to get Paul Heyman as part of that promotion.

There is no question that Heyman could be had, but his mythical status grows each day and with each story of how good he is, more money is added on to his asking price. Of course Heyman could help, but Punk should be careful not to overestimate the ability of Paul Heyman. After all, his groundbreaking promotion, ECW, was eventually bought out by WWE. So much for being the smartest man in wrestling.

If Punk thinks he can walk away and come back to Vince McMahon down the road, he’s right, but that doesn’t mean he’s going to get what he’s being offered now. McMahon is not likely to give Punk the same deal in a year when his name is buried as the star of another roster.

CM Punk will never be the star that John Cena is and that is the truth. While he scoffs at The Rock and is willing to spew criticism, he’s also missing the bigger picture. The Rock sells tickets. CM Punk does not. Of course a good showing for the PPV numbers at Money in the Bank could change that.

If CM Punk is interested in a future in professional wrestling, then his best bet is to stay in WWE. Even a straight shooter must know that it’s a bundle of lies to suggest he could have a bigger career anywhere else.