10 Wrestlers Who Saved World Championships

3. CM Punk - WWE Championship

It's easy to forget how good CM Punk was. Sometimes it feels like the controversies around Punk since his departure from professional wrestling in 2014 overshadow his quality in the ring, but he was one of the best of his generation. Whether he was delivering classics in ROH with Samoa Joe, or doing great work with Jeff Hardy in 2009, Punk stood out as a phenomenal wrestling mind.

His peak as a wrestler and as a performer came after the infamous Pipebomb promo, where he won the WWE Championship from John Cena at Money in the Bank 2011. He dropped the title too soon following a cash-in from Alberto Del Rio, but thankfully regained the strap at Survivor Series 2011 to a huge pop.

He would hold the title for over a year, making it feel significant with his masterpiece clashes with Daniel Bryan and John Cena before brilliantly turning heel in the middle of the reign. It might not have ended in the way many hoped it would, with The Rock dethroning him on the road to a John Cena rematch, but it still holds up as a defining world title run that made many believe in WWE again.