The Case For CM Punk: Wrestler Of The Year 2022
We are a spoilt fanbase.
How could we not be when the standard of match quality has somehow continued to rise beyond even the futuristic highs of the 2010s into something altogether stratospheric in the 20s?
This was a strong argument for being the pro wrestling match of the year despite consensus saying it wasn't even the best match the two men had together, nor even the best match of the first half of 2022. First two months, even. It's quite something that CM Punk's such a 1980s/90s Bret Hart Guy and MJF was a 2000s/2010s CM Punk Guy, because if the February 2nd Dynamite main event had taken place in any of those four eras, it would have been an instant classic.
A supercharged contemporary and crowd witnessed something presenting itself as a throwback - Body part work! Holds, counter-holds and deathblows brought back from the dead! Dusty f*cking Finishes! - that was in fact a perfect blend of both. The brawling felt real, the high spots felt opportunistic and the 38.09 runtime never once came even close to feeling indulgent. Generational stuff from generational talents, and the younger one bagged a win that ensured - eventually - a violent and cathartic rematch.
Between the ropes, FTR were up next for Punk on behalf of their Pinnacle boss, and the one-time fever dream of CM Punk and Jon Moxley working together was suddenly realised in a match that doesn't even feel of this century let alone this year. Foreshadowing the year Dax Harwood and Cash Wheeler would have in-ring, this closely and carefully fought chess match was an early-year highlight as AEW's momentum felt no signs of slowing.
The Dog Collar payoff with the 'Salt Of The Earth' at Revolution instantly inserted itself into an iconic tier unto itself by being all things to all fans. This was bloodier than their TV epic, and subsequently more box office as a result. That it echoed Roddy Piper's classic with Greg Valentine as well as Punk's own violent war with Raven in epics past ensured the details that had defined the rivalry were ever-present in its conclusion.
The quality of Punk and MJF's work and Tony Khan's creative vision for the outcome saw Wardlow's split from his boss folded into wrestling's best feud of 2022 as it was in process. This was the sort of thing elevating Khan and his company not just beyond their competition, but up and amongst those great angles, feuds and matches of years gone by. Impeccable whilst in progress, occasionally even better upon reflection.
Much of this thought, imagination and lightness of touch have been missing in AEW ever since. How much of that can be traced to Punk's trajectory within the organisation? A Hangman Page promo line the rest of us all forgot about had a seismic impact on everything later in the year, but up to and including the Double Or Nothing title match, the classic pro wrestler within Punk was burning as bright as the devastating fuse that had just been unknowingly lit by the AEW original.
CONT'D...