WWE Money in the Bank: Is Cena-Punk the Most Important Match in Recent History?

Hulk Hogan vs. The Iron Sheik, January 23, 1984. Bret Hart vs. Shawn Michaels, November 9, 1997. Steve Austin vs. Shawn Michaels, March 29, 1998. Stone Cold vs. The Rock, April 1, 2001. Shawn Michaels vs. The Undertaker, March 28, 2010.

The above matches are widely considered to be among the most important in the history of both World Wrestling Entertainment and the entire professional wrestling industry.

Each meant the beginning, or end, of something monumental in the business. They are memorable not only for the action provided in the ring, but also their long-reaching effects.

This Sunday, a professional wrestling industry that has been in a slump for a number of years will receive a shot of adrenaline when CM Punk challenges John Cena for the WWE Championship, capping what has been both a highly-controversial and a highly-entertaining storyline that has created a buzz about the product that simply has not recently existed.

There is no denying that business is down. Ratings are extremely low, with SmackDown disappointingly achieving new lows on an almost-weekly basis. Despite a super-hot angle featuring Punk and his shoot-nature promos, RAW scored only a 2.9 television rating.

The previous week’s low rating could be written off as a consequence of the Fourth of July weekend. This week, with Punk returning and more worked-shoot gold, there is no excuse of the continued ratings drop-off.

Add to that, the continued plummeting of the WWE stocks and it is clear that Vince McMahon, his company, and the two featured talents in Sunday’s WWE Championship match must deliver a match worthy of its pre-event hype.

John Cena vs. CM Punk is the most important match in recent WWE history because it is a main event match, on a B-level pay-per-view event, that has a fan anticipation attached to it usually reserved for matches at WrestleMania or, occasionally, SummerSlam.

Word of mouth is spreading an polls across the Internet indicate potential for increased pay-per-view buys. The fact that this one match, a one-on-one contest that has played out dozens of times before, is more hyped and more anticipated than either the RAW or SmackDown Ladder Match, or any match on this past year’s WrestleMania card, is a testament mostly to the work of CM Punk, but also John Cena and Vince McMahon.

For the first time in a long time, fans seriously cannot wait to see what happens and what its aftermath will be.

In the last three weeks, CM Punk has evolved into an anti-hero, not unlike Steve Austin was in the late 1990s.

He has spoken his mind and has said things no other WWE Superstar could get away with saying. He has performed at a level no other star in the company is capable of, with a realism and a conviction that has captured the imagination and attention of WWE fans from all age groups.

Capitalizing on his new-found popularity and the interest in the "Straight Edge Savior" should be priority number one.

Win, lose, leave or stay, Punk’s performance at Money in the Bank could very well steer the company in a new direction, perhaps reinvigorating a stale and boring product and an overworked creative staff.