WWE Survivor Series 2012: Have We Seen the Debut of a New NWO?

CM Punk retained his WWE Championship at Survivor Series by defeating John Cena and Ryback in a Triple Threat match, but the shocking debut of Seth Rollins, Dean Ambrose and Roman Reigns stole the show.

Have Punk and Paul Heyman actually formed a sort of reincarnation of the New World Order?

Rollins, Ambrose and Reigns ambushed Ryback in the main event of Survivor Series. They beat down the behemoth and ultimately put him through a table. Their interference allowed Punk to capitalize on a fallen Cena and pick up the pinfall victory to retain his title.

Over the summer, SportsTownChicago.com had an interview (transcribed by ProWrestling.net) with Kevin Nash in which he went on record and said he believed Punk would be a fitting leader for a new NWO faction.

A few months later, it seems that the faction has finally materialized.

Fans have anxiously awaited the debut of the NXT standouts. After what transpired at Survivor Series, they’ve clearly aligned themselves with the WWE Champion.

If that’s the case, Punk has formed quite a formidable group. With Heyman at the helm, the sky is the limit for these four men.

Rollins and Ambrose are two phenomenal wrestlers that will take the undercard by storm. Either of them is capable of securing a secondary singles championship, and we may even see them set their sights on Team Hell No and the WWE Tag Team Championships.

Reigns, on the other hand, is a natural fit as the group’s enforcer. At 6’3” and 265 pounds, he is a true beast between the ropes.

The group is already off to a solid start. In addition to aligning themselves with Punk right off the bat, they’ve established themselves as a cohesive and effective unit by dismantling the most monstrous Superstar in the WWE today.

After all, Ryback has been built up as one of the WWE’s most formidable forces for months now. He’s defeated multiple people at once with ease, so picking him apart was a great first impression for Rollins, Ambrose and Reigns.

Also, throw in the fact that Ryback is one of the more popular figures in the WWE, and they’ve already put a decent amount of heat on the three of them.

This group, led by Punk, has the potential to be the most dominant group in the WWE since Evolution. While the Nexus was an impressive faction, this group already has an advantage in that Punk is the WWE’s top heel and Heyman is the business’ premier manager.

With Punk and Heyman there, these three newcomers need not even speak. All they need to do is let their dominance speak.

Survivor Series 2012 was certainly newsworthy. It appears we’ve seen the debut of the WWE’s next big faction—a new NWO.

Michael Prunka is a Bleacher Report Featured Columnist and Sports Writing Intern. Stay up to date with him by liking his Facebook page and following him on Twitter.

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