WWE: The Importance of CM Punk and Building New Stars

The last two months of WWE programming has been the longest-running breath of fresh air for the company since the formation of Evolution and subsequent rise of John Cena, Batista, and Randy Orton.

Think about that seriously, though. That was eight years ago. Think about what can happen in a matter of eight years in professional wrestling.

Such a time span is an eternity.

In less than eight years, Shawn Michaels went from one half of the Rockers, to the Heart Break Kid accomplishing the boyhood dream, to the leader of D-X, to out of wrestling with a broken neck. The Rock’s career as a full-time professional wrestler—from being Rocky Maivia, to the leader of the Nation of Domination, to being the People’s Champion—didn’t last eight years.

Following Michaels’ retirement, major stars like Batista and Chris Jericho leaving the company, and HHH and The Undertaker becoming little more than special-attraction performers, we looked forward to the new New Generation.

Last year’s WrestleMania, we thought, was going to be a moment of change. It would be the dawning of a new day in the WWE; the company would begin taking a new direction.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

While the show did draw more than 1 million PPV buys internationally, reversing a trend and pumping up the company’s pay-per-view numbers for the year, it wasn’t the sea change we had hoped it would be.

The show drew such huge numbers due to the presence of the Rock, the involvement Austin had in the Lawler-Cole feud, and a classic match between HHH and Taker that didn’t lead to anything beyond that night.

The Miz, while still a major player, isn’t the draw we hoped he’d be at this point. Edge was forced to retire, leaving a massive gap on Friday nights. Alberto Del Rio has still yet to become the focal point of any show. And there still is very little to celebrate in the form of a mid-card anywhere.

That’s why the next six months are so important as the company runs to this year’s WrestleMania, which could be the turning point we’ve all been waiting for.

That’s why the way the WWE handles the push of CM Punk is so important.

Again, I’ll ask you to think. Think about the last legitimate main-event draw that the WWE created. Since the landmark victories by John Cena and Batista at WrestleMania 21 in 2005, there are been only a few names that could be considered new draws.

Edge will go into the Hall of Fame, but it’s hard to really say he could draw PPV numbers on his own. Orton made the big face turn and could be considered a major draw, but he was established as a main-event heel as far back as 2006, so I wouldn’t put him here either.

Jeff Hardy is the closest thing we have. But his personal problems are well documented, and it’s difficult to wager that he’ll ever make another dime for Vince McMahon beyond the money generated by his DVD appearances.

That’s more than half a decade without a new, legitimate main-event draw. Cena has been entrenched in the role for a tenure that is bordering on Hogan-esque, reminiscent of the 1980s, when the Hulkster was in the main event of eight of the first nine WrestleManias.

Earlier this year, HHH was installed by Vince McMahon as the head of a new talent development division within the company, a role that is playing out on television as “Chief Operating Officer.”

During interviews as part of this week’s financial report, Vince has repeatedly stated the importance of developing new stars and building a new, vibrant creative direction.

Ever since he was burned by Brock Lesnar and given prior talent-management conflicts with The Rock, Austin, Angle, etc., Vince has been hesitant to build his company around new stars. The best explanation I’ve read is that he wants people to pay to see the WWE, not to see Austin, Michaels, or Cena.

He wants the brand value of the company to carry the weight and not allow himself to be stuck having to form his business decisions around the contentment of his most famous employees.

Frankly, this direction has not been successful—not in the way the company was when they put the show on the backs of Hogan and Austin, respectively.

Fans pay to see characters, not letters, and when Vince is truly dedicated to returning the creative philosophy to building marketable stars that individuals are willing to pay to see, it will be a good day for us fans.

Which, again, brings me back to the point of this column (I know, it’s taken me some time to get here).

The last two months and the upcoming six months are critical to the WWE's effort to build new marketable stars that fans will pay to see.

At the center of that effort is CM Punk.

It’s not an exaggeration to say that his push is unprecedented during the Cena era. Since his being drafted to Raw the night he and Batista switched brands with the belts, there has never been a question as to who is the top babyface on the Monday nights.

Even when Orton was coming into his own as a crowd favorite and pulling big pops, he was always viewed as second in the pecking order. He and Cena were friendly, not friends, but not hostile either, despite their having spent the better part of their careers at odds.

For the first time, a wrestler drawing big pops from the crowd has challenged John Cena for his place at the top of the WWE, for his place on the soda cups, and for his role as the face of the company.

We’ve heard many people draw comparisons between Punk and legends of the past.

The first and most obvious—the one I’ve submitted on numerous occasions in this forum—is to Austin: the anti-establishment babyface that doesn’t pander to the audience but rather proves his worth by taking down the boss head-on.

A comparison I heard more recently was to Shawn Michaels: a plucky, quick-witted underdog that can wrestle circles around anyone and always puts on the best match of the night.

This high praise is wonderful, but it's nothing without follow through.

Austin could have dropped the 3:16 promo and taken Bret Hart to the brink, but without the next year of his career leading to his crowning WrestleMania moment, his buzz could have fizzled.

Shawn could have put on the jaw-dropping IC Title unification ladder match against Razor, drawn great responses from his feud with Diesel, and proven to be the Show Stopper, but if he doesn’t fly down that zip line and beat Hart in the Iron Man match at WrestleMania, we may look at him the same way we view Curt Hennig or any other top-notch performer that never quite crossed over into superstardom.

The importance of CM Punk is enormous.

The opportunity for the company to create a bona-fide main-event draw that appeals to adults and kids alike, can carry a feud on the mic and in the ring, and run as a heel or face is invaluable.

Unfortunately, another common comparison for Punk is Chris Jericho, who qualifies for each of the above criteria other than bona-fide main-event draw.

There is a distinct difference between all-time great performers and all-time favorite performers. Jericho struggles to be considered in the former, despite being among the most popular in the latter.

Punk needs to go beyond Indy/IWC darling and become a truly transformative figure, one that connects with the casual fan. He needs to inspire the common Joe who is flipping channels on Monday night to stop and watch him in a match or on the mic, much in the same way The Rock and Austin did in the late 90s.

He then needs to hold that fan’s attention, get him to tune in the next week, and ultimately plop down $50 to see what he does on PPV.

If Punk can successfully become the next generational superstar for the WWE in the same way that Cena has and Orton seems to be on his way to doing, then we may indeed finally be seeing a new day in the WWE.

Otherwise, we may sit through another eight years that feel more like an eternity.