WWE's Latest CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins Rumor Would Be a Major Mistake

WWE fans know that CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins is inevitable. The fun part about it is the how, the why and—most important of all—the build.

But the latest rumors? Not so fun.

The when of Punk vs. Rollins was always a forgone conclusion. WrestleMania, Night 1 main event. Easy. But according to Dr. Chris Featherstone of Sportskeeda Wrestling, WWE has booked the match for Raw's debut on Netflix in early January.

Talk about a mistake.

Look, WWE wants to set the tone of the debut episode on the streaming platform as a sort of soft reset, almost like the start of a new season—fine. One can assume Netflix is pushing for something major like this on the debut episode, too.

But it would feel rushed. That leaves less than a month for the Superstars to actually build up to the match.

Sure, one could argue there are years and years of material and real-life blending that have already gone into the "feud" between the two. But the dedicated fans who know that background lore are going to watch regardless. The more casual fans who aren't as tuned in to the drama need a reason to care, get invested and return to the product weekly and that will require a proper build. One can also assume that December isn't exactly the month to do that with so many viewers caught up in real-life stuff around the holidays.

That's not to suggest the two couldn't pull it off. They're two of the greatest to ever do it, not just in the ring, but from an overall perspective. But that's part of it too—the payoff should be in a ring at 'Mania, and potentially with a title.

Right now, there just aren't a lot of ways to get a title involved on such short notice, especially without doing Gunther dirty. And while a trilogy of matches worked for Punk's feud with Drew McIntyre, it might not here. Remember, that feud had months and months of extra build while Punk wasn't cleared to wrestle due to injury.

Also, is there actually enough material to craft another trilogy? Bringing up McIntyre is important here because honestly, his dislike for Punk and how the feud and promos unfolded are similar to Rollins' reasons for a feud. Running the feud long could risk it feeling like a rehash of what has already been done.

Punk against Rollins, Part I should probably take place at 'Mania. On one hand, having them link up just once might not be popular across the entire fanbase. But on the other, it would add to the importance of the moment, especially on that Night 1 stage after the two have struggled for years to carve out their own 'Mania main events.

That long-sought-after 'Mania main event being the end of a three-match feud just might not hit the same. There's only so much they can do, only so many stipulations that wouldn't come off as silly as a feud-capper in a main event at 'Mania.

The only, only exception to this is if WWE has some masterful storytelling planned around Paul Heyman and the idea is to get Punk past Rollins for a 'Mania main event against Roman Reigns.

Fun as that sounds, though, there's one big problem—The Rock. It's pretty clear by now that WWE doesn't have anything firm or committed from the part-timer as he hovers around all things Reigns, Bloodline and Cody Rhodes. It would be a major shame to have him turn up late and plans change after WWE already used Punk vs. Rollins on Netflix, especially after last year's messy booking involving Rhodes.

In the end, this doesn't sound like the careful storytelling the Triple H era has established. Surely, there's no way WWE has hinted at this feud for more than a year just to blow it off in a rushed manner over a three-week build.

There are many, many other things the debut episode of Raw can do. Rock could make an appearance. Other big titles could be on the line. John Cena's retirement tour is kicking off. Plenty of returning legends and even surprise debuts and/or returns could happen.

To waste Punk vs. Rollins on short notice to drum up streaming numbers that don't need the help would be a misstep. In pro wrestling, predictable doesn't have to be bad and the two main eventing Night 1 or WrestleMania is about as good as it can get.