10 Terrible Decisions That Led To WWE Raw’s Lowest Ever Rating
1. The Summer Of Discontent
"It has to start somewhere, it has to start sometime. What better place than here, what better place than now?"
When CM Punk raged against the machine in 2011, he didn't intend on sticking around to watch the world burn. 'The Voice Of The Voiceless' had apparently made his peace with walking away before parking his a*se and delivering one of the most memorable monologues in Monday Night Raw history.
The fumes from his fire were intoxicating, dragging back lapsed fans and completely reinvigorating those who had suffered through one of the most creatively barren periods in company history. It was said period that triggered the 'Straight Edge Superstar' in the first place; his worked-shoot masterpiece was the portrait of a p*ssed off man, no matter how well it was engineered to sell a pay-per-view.
WWE conspiring to ruin the goodwill from the audience and Punk's self-made gimmick within weeks of him winning the top title from John Cena was record-setting in a way that mirrored their ratings collapse. Illogical inclusion of an injured Kevin Nash, a loss to Triple H and countless defeats before regaining his prize murdered audience enthusiasm in a way that never recovered. WWE lost a generation of supporters in one summer - they've spent the last decade trying and failing to lure them back.