WWE No Way out 2012: CM Punk Retains WWE Championship

CM Punk's reign as WWE champion continues, following a victory over Daniel Bryan and Kane at No Way Out on Sunday night.

Unless something drastic happens between now and Raw on Monday night, Punk will surpass Triple H as the longest-reigning WWE champion of the last five years. In fact, the 211 days that Punk has held the belt is the longest run since John Cena held it for 380 days in 2006-07. 

While that does add some legitimacy to the title, which used to be passed around like a hot potato on pay-per-views just to drive up ratings for Raw the next night, the fact that Punk and the title haven't actually been contested in a pay-per-view main event since December is alarming. 

WWE used to go out of its way to protect the championship, since that was the biggest drawing card the company had. Now, it has almost become an afterthought. 

Even in the build to this triple threat match, which should have just been another singles match between Punk and Bryan, all the focus was on A.J. and where her psychotic allegiances lied. There was no real mention of the championship on the Raw go-home show. 

So even though there have been baby steps taken to make the title feel like it is not just some prop that everyone is fighting over for no good reason, there is a lot of work to do in order to rebuild the meaning of the title. 

Punk has been pushed for nearly a year, which is an incredible statement considering where he was shortly before he was due to wrestle Cena at the Money In the Bank show last July. He has not been put at the same level as Cena, but the fact that he is still a featured attraction on shows is a testament to the goodwill he has earned backstage.

After another month as champion, Punk has joined exclusive company of the likes of Triple H and Cena. If Punk makes it through the summer as champion, he will join Cena as the only two wrestlers this decade to have a single title reign of at least 300 days. 

Check back for more on the WWE as it comes, and check out Bleacher Report’s Wrestling Page to get your fill of the WWE. For more WWE talk, check out Ring Rust Radio for all of the hot topics you just can’t miss.

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