CM Punk walks into WrestleMania 41 prepared for his first ever ‘Mania main event, a Triple Threat with Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins. Though The Straight Edge Superstar has been well-protected since his return to WWE, he enters a scenario in which it’s entirely feasible he could lose, working against the face of the past decade of WrestleMania in Reigns and a fellow top star in Rollins.
Does the city in which a show like this occurs matter? There’s no telling for sure, but Punk has had a pretty remarkable history in Las Vegas these past fourteen years, including two major career highlights. Indeed, for those wagering on match outcomes at WrestleMania 41, past precedent suggests that they probably shouldn’t bet against Punk.
CM Punk Dropped A Pipe Bomb
CM Punk had a good WWE career from 2006 to 2011. He starred for ECW and won the brand’s championship. He went on to overachieve in twice winning Money in the Bank and twice successfully cashing in to win world titles. Other highlights included winning a SummerSlam main event and getting a lot of heat via his Straight Edge Society faction.
Punk leveled up, though, when he got a live mic and a long leash on June 27, 2011, in the build to the Money in the Bank PLE in which he challenged John Cena for the WWE Championship. He delivered a promo that represented all of his best, most provocative qualities—walking the work-shoot line with aplomb, lending voice to the chip on his shoulder, and taking aim at those who might seek to oppress him, ranging from Cena all the way to Vince McMahon himself.
That promo happened in Vegas and took Punk from the kind of career that likely would have garnered a middle-of-the-class Hall of Fame induction one day to a surefire future Hall of Fame main eventer. (And if that triumph in Vegas weren’t enough, Punk also won his last televised WWE match in Vegas too, over The Big Show.)
CM Punk Enjoyed His Biggest AEW Win In Las Vegas
In addition to CM Punk’s WWE successes in Las Vegas, he also garnered his biggest AEW victory in Sin City. At Double or Nothing 2022, Punk challenged Hangman Adam Page for the AEW Championship and emerged victorious coming out of a very good bout.
It’s unfortunate that things were all down hill from there. Punk got injured, returned, won the title back, lost it in short order, won it back, but got injured in the process. His remaining time with AEW overshadowed and defined by backstage happenings, including the infamous “Brawl Out” incident and clashing with Jack Perry. Still, Punk’s triumph in Vegas—winning his first world title in nearly a decade, and doing so cleanly and in front of a boisterous crowd—marked a career highlight and certainly his most noteworthy triumph under the AEW banner.
CM Punk Vs. Roman Reigns Vs. Seth Rollins Should Be Special
There are clear reasons why the CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns vs. Seth Rollins Triple Threat Match got the WrestleMania Saturday main event nod over Gunther vs. Jey Uso or either women’s title match at WrestleMania 41. The star power is incredible. The three-way feud is white hot. The match is all but guaranteed to be one of the best of ‘Mania weekend. There’s every reason to expect that whatever happens here will have major implications moving forward, including the victor transitioning into one world title picture or the other before long.
CM Punk’s track record in Vegas and momentum as a character both make him a likely victor. There’s also the intrigue of Paul Heyman owing Punk a favor dating back to Survivor Series when The Straight Edge Superstar helped out Roman Reigns and The OG Bloodline. Could that favor entail The Wiseman turning on the The OTC, formally realigning with Punk in a shared heel turn? Nothing’s for sure, but part of the fun of this main event is all the fantasy booking possibilities. Whatever plays out, this looks to be a huge night for Punk.
