WrestleMania 28 Highlights: CM Punk Victory Is Best Result for WWE

CM Punk is a subplot machine.

The straight edge superstar shut up Chris Jericho in WrestleMania 28 continuing his reign as a WWE Champion. And keeping the belt on his waist was the right decision for professional wrestling.

The pair of wrestlers used The Grandest Stage of Them All to settle who “The Best in the World” truly is. But there was far more on the line in the match than the championship belt.

Leading up to the bout, Jericho wasn’t just aiming his trash talk at CM Punk. The challenger had Punk’s family lined up in his sights.

CM Punk sent this message to his 787,631 followers just before his showdown with Jericho tweeting:

"

It's almost clobberin' time. @SOIANYC

— CM Punk (@CMPunk) April 2, 2012"

And he did just that forcing Jericho to tap out with an Anaconda Vice.

The WWE needed to keep CM Punk afloat. In a sport plagued with steroid abuse, he’s pretty much the company’s role model. As a straight edge, Punk speaks out against drugs, alcohol, etc.. so it’s only fitting that the good guy would maintain his throne.

He is also a money-making machine. Comparing Twitter followers, CM Punk boasts nearly 200,000 more than Jericho. Punk is simply the more popular wrestler.

And he touched on Jericho’s lack of popularity in an interview with ESPN’s James Walker saying:

"

“There's always, I think, somebody that has overshadowed him.  I guess an argument can be made that John Cena is still “The Man.”  But, the numbers don't lie with merchandising, ratings, and everything else.  We're not trying to hotshot the title around or play hot potato with it.  We're giving people a champion they can believe in.  And Jericho was never really that guy.  He was never really, I guess, the ambassador John Cena has been and that I've been lately.”

"

CM Punk is a champion who fans can believe in. 

And the haters existing out there who don’t believe, they better get used to Punk being on top.

David Daniels is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report and a syndicated writer.

Follow @TheRealDDaniels