5 Possible Feuds for CM Punk and the WWE Title in 2012

CM Punk is on top of the WWE world right now and despite a recent hand injury, he does not seem to have any plans of slowing down.

This past year has been incredible for the Chicago native. He has won the WWE title not once, but twice this year, as well as having the most talked-about storyline in all of WWE.

His feuds with John Cena, Alberto Del Rio and Triple H have all helped Punk to solidify himself as one of WWE's top performers.

With this year drawing to a close, it is time to look to the future. I will present five possibilities for what I feel could be great feuds for Punk going into 2012.

Dolph Ziggler

It is no secret that this kid is on the rise in WWE. Since his days as a caddy for Chavo to his time as a male cheerleader, Dolph has been working with bad gimmicks.

It finally came time for Dolph to develop into his own character and over the last couple of years, he has elevated every part of his game.

He consistently has the best matches when he is facing someone with the same skill level, and his mic skills are getting better each week.

I think it was when he and Daniel Bryan tore the house down three shows in a row that WWE finally realized they had a future main event player in their grasp.

Punk and Ziggler have had some encounters in the past, but they have never engaged in an all-out feud with one another.

Their match a couple weeks ago was good, but even by Ziggler's standards, it was not great. These two guys are the future of the company and pairing them together could make for one of the most exciting programs in WWE.

Cody Rhodes

The current IC champion is somewhat involved in a feud with Booker T, but that will not last forever and when the time comes to move on, Rhodes could be focused on Punk.

If Punk is indeed champion when Rhodes is looking for his next program, then we could see these two face off.

Like Ziggler, Rhodes has faced Punk in the past, but never in a match that had any personal feeling involved.

Rhodes is another guy who looks poised to jump into the next level of competition and with Punk as his opponent, the two could have some amazing matches.

Rhodes had a great match at the last WrestleMania, which ended in him defeating Mysterio. This was his first major win over a top-tier wrestler, and it started him on the path to being a main-eventer.

Rhodes is talented, dedicated and, most of all, entertaining. His mask is no longer the crutch for his gimmick and now he can focus on turning into a violent heel, much like Orton did early in his career.

I included a match where Punk and Rhodes were partners because there were no good examples of them fighting.

Wade Barrett

The Barrett Barage is in full effect on SmackDown and with his recent push with Randy Orton, he could be poised to jump back into the main event picture in WWE.

Back when he was running Nexus, there were few PPVs that did not feature Barrett in the main event of the night in some capacity.

After the breakup of Nexus, he seemed to be floundering a little, but recently he found his groove again and it could be time to look towards the future.

Barrett would be a welcome addition back to Raw, and he and CM Punk have history already, with Punk ousting Barrett from his own group.

These two could engage in a great feud because it would be completely fresh to the WWE audience.

Barrett is a great performer who can only get better at this point and if he ever get drafted back to Raw, I think he would be a great opponent for CM Punk.

Christian

Punk and Christian have had some encounters in the past, but they have never engaged in an all-out feud over a title.

With Christian being out for the moment, it will be interesting to see how WWE brings him back into the fold.

Moving Christian to Raw might make it so SmackDown loses one of its top heels, but it would also allow these two great wrestlers to have a real program.

I think Christian is to a point where he could still be a WWE champion, even if he is just used as a transitional champion.

He is a solid performer in every aspect and if he decides to make an impact by returning and attacking Punk, then we could see a good program develop between the two that could go through 2012.

Kane

CM Punk and Kane are no strangers to each other, but they have never really been bitter rivals. With the buildup for Kane's return, we could see him jump into the WWE title scene if he does not stay on SmackDown.

Kane is one of my all-time favorite big men in the business. He has proven over the course of his run that not only can he take a back seat to others, but he can also be the main event.

When he and Taker were feuding last year, he had never looked better in terms of performance and promos.

Kane may or may not be coming back with the mask, but we do know he is coming back with a vengeance.

I am looking forward to Kane's return and hopefully he can have one more run with the WWE title before retiring down the line.