CM Punk: Will This WWE Championship Reign Be His Best?

WWE fans—or, more specifically, CM Punk fans—have made quite the habit out of saying Punk has never really been treated like a top star in the company. 

I’ve been guilty of it as well, but of course, that really depends on what you think it entails to be treated like a top star. And at least on paper, Punk has been treated better than any WWE star not named John Cena or Randy Orton over the last three years or so. 

A rarely addressed fact about Punk is that although the WWE only recognizes five reigns because of his tricky situation over the summer, he already has had six world title runs with the company. He’s held the World Heavyweight Championship three times and is currently in the midst of his third (or is it second?) WWE Championship reign. 

Let’s take a look at how long those reigns have lasted: 

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WHC: June 30, 2008—Sept. 7, 2008 

WHC: June 7, 2009—July 26, 2009

WHC: August 23, 2009—Oct. 4, 2009 

WWE: July 17, 2011—July 25, 2011 (Storyline left the company, although he was recognized as one of two WWE champions when he came back) 

WWE: Aug. 14, 2011—Aug. 14, 2011 

WWE: Nov. 20, 2011—Present 

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Now, the question on my mind is this: Will Punk’s current WWE Championship reign be better than each of his previous World title reigns? 

And I think the answer is a resounding “yes.” 

After beating Alberto Del Rio win the WWE title at Survivor Series last month, Punk came out the following night on Monday Night Raw and cut a promo in which he declared that he would hold onto the belt for as long as possible: 

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 And now that I have the WWE title, I want you all to know that the little game of WWE hot potato is over. This title is where it belongs. It sits on the shoulder of the best in the world, and it’s gonna stay there. 

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And I certainly believe him. 

Punk’s current run with the WWE Championship isn’t like his first three runs with the World Heavyweight Championship, which combined lasted less than six total months and were really used to gauge how he would perform in a top spot in the company. During at least two of those three reigns, the WWE did what the company almost always does with first-time champions: It made him look weak, and it booked him like he was a fluke of a champion. 

The only exception was his feud with Jeff Hardy in 2009, which was arguably the best of the year and featured Punk going over Hardy at SummerSlam in one hell of a match. For the most part, though, Punk got the Jack Swagger treatment, and it almost seemed like the WWE would never have the confidence in him as a top guy. 

But that all changed in 2011 when the fans spoke and Punk finally got his permanent spot at the top of the WWE. 

He was—and still is—the hottest act in all of the WWE, and it led to him beating Cena in the best match of the year at Money in the Bank in his hometown of Chicago to win his first WWE Championship. Of course, that title run was marred by dumb booking in which Punk kayfabe left the company, and both he and Cena held the WWE title simultaneously. 

Punk’s first run in the WWE Championship run hardly even qualified as one, and his second one was ruined when Del Rio cashed in his MITB contract just minutes after Punk beat Cena to unify the WWE titles at SummerSlam. 

Yeah, so much for Punk being a top guy full time. Or would he? 

After Punk stepped away from the WWE Championship picture for a little while following SummerSlam, the WWE slowly but surely built him back up into the No. 1 contender and made one of its best-booking decisions of the year by having Punk beat Del Rio for the title at Survivor Series. 

Now, at least theoretically, all Punk has to do is have a couple of successful pay-per-view title defenses and hold the title for more than two months in order for it to be considered his most successful world championship run ever. 

There’s no doubt in my mind that that’s exactly what he’s going to do. 

It looks Punk will officially be done with Del Rio following WWE TLC, and unless the creative team wants to make a complete asinine decision, Cena isn’t going to be holding the WWE Championship as heads to Wrestlemania 28 and his match with The Rock. 

That leaves—at least in my opinion—two legitimate options to be holding the WWE title as we head into the granddaddy of them all: CM Punk and The Miz. 

I suppose there’s a chance The Miz could win the belt before then so Punk can win it back from him at Wrestlemania, but that would be dumb booking. 

And given Punk’s promise to keep the WWE Championship from being passed around like a cheap hooker, I think he’ll hold onto it through Wrestlemania and well past that pay-per-view. 

In fact, don’t be surprised to see Punk have the longest run with the WWE title since Cena held it for more than a year from 2006-2007.