Projections for CM Punk's Feud with Kane

At Sunday’s Royal Rumble pay-per-view, the feud between CM Punk and Kane hugely intensified.

The two first came to blows early on in the battle royal, when Kane came in a No. 5 and immediately faced off with Punk (the Director of Operations had, of course, made the “Best in the World” the No. 1 entrant on last Monday’s Raw).

Their exchange ended when Punk managed to toss out and eliminate his corporate foe.    

Kane got his revenge though, when he ran out later on in the match to eliminate Punk, just as he managed to make it to the final five.

from WWE.com

“The Big Red Machine” then chokeslammed Punk through the long-suffering Spanish announcers’ table for good measure.  

Ideally, the two will now face off in a singles match at Elimination Chamber. Given enough time on the card, this could turn out to be a very decent match.

This could serve as culmination to their brief feud—and gear Punk up for a match with Triple H at WrestleMania XXX on April 6.

from WWE.com

Of course, one development on Tuesday evening suggests a Kane vs. CM Punk bout won’t come to fruition—at Elimination Chamber or anywhere else.

Per reports from F4Wonline, via WrestlingInc, the star has apparently walked out on the company—in a move reminiscent of when Stone Cold Steve Austin famously took his ball and went home in 2002.

This explains why Punk wasn't on Monday's Raw or featured at the Main Event/SmackDown taping the following night .

from WWE.com

No doubt details will be revealed in the upcoming days/weeks about just what led to this.

Maybe Punk felt this program with Kane was a massive waste of his talents.

Their feud has been decent enough, but it’s hardly going to set the world on fire. It would be easy to understand if he felt frustrated with the booking team right now.

Or has his famously tough in-ring style finally taken its toll on him? Maybe Punk got tired of playing second fiddle to Daniel Bryan, who has greatly surpassed him in terms of popularity? Or angered by his demotion to the midcard over the past year?

Punk vs. Kane could be an interesting bout at Elimination Chamber—assuming of course, that it even happens.

If he does patch up things with Vince McMahon and management and return in the next few weeks, it could even be mentioned in the storyline, with Kane bringing up Punk’s tantrum and using it against him.

One thing is for sure: these are interesting times ahead for the “Voice of the Voiceless” right now.