1. Independent and International Wrestlers Are Below The WWE Standard
Somewhere we absolutely know CM Punk is aware that ex-Ring of Honor champion Kevin Owens has likely wrestled fellow ex-Ring of Honor Champion Samoa Joe in a match where former Combat Zone Wrestling World Champion Drake Younger was the referee and former New Japan Pro Wrestling Junior Heavyweight Champion Prince Devitt made a run-in. As well, he knows that former Pro Wrestling Guerilla Champion Sami "El Generico" Zayn is likely to feud with all three once he returns from injury. Also, once these wrestlers get to the main roster as stalwarts, there's global standouts Neville and Cesaro waiting for them, too. Punk's also probably laughing at the scenario, with a bittersweet smile on his face, too. Groundbreakers like CM Punk and Daniel Bryan made WWE aware that they were missing something in disregarding size and style but looking instead at heart and passion when thinking about independent and internationally renowned pro wrestlers. More than anything, it's the passion that the seven seven men not named Punk or Bryan that were mentioned have for pro wrestling that's truly important and is the one thing that's changing WWE these days the most. Having wrestlers who care about wrestling around -- more than anything else -- is what is allowing some to feel that WWE is shedding its out of touch ideas and embracing the modern era to the betterment of their product.
Besides having been an independent professional wrestling manager for a decade, Marcus Dowling is a Washington, DC-based writer who has contributed to a plethora of online and print magazines and newspapers writing about music and popular culture over the past 15 years.
