10 Biggest Wrestling Hometown Pops EVER

Ever since the WWE kicked off the Attitude Era and gave themselves a counterculture slant, it's been hard to come back from. Despite trying to fraternise with the mainstream, they’ve not succeeded to be more than an outcast to more relevant culture for the last 20 years.

As such, fans who stick with the sport are also drawn to underdogs, dark horses and alternatives. So, when the company cements a clean-cut babyface like John Cena as their pride and joy, its stars like CM Punk who find themselves as the Voice of the Voiceless.

This was the perfect backdrop to the Summer of Punk 2011, a storyline which saw the Second City Saint cut through the pristine PG product of WWE to work-shoot a break in the story. Punk threatened to win the company’s top prize and walk out the door with it, capturing the imagination of fans who were disillusioned with WWE’s tired product.

Best of all, he would do this in front of his home crowd of Chicago, who were 100% on Punk’s side. This blurred the line of reality further and added an atmosphere that has made the match one of the best of its decade. The roar of the crowd, from his first steps onto the stage to him skirting over the barricade to leave, never let up - exploding like a grenade when their hero claimed the belt.