10 Times Vince McMahon Cut Off His Nose To Spite His Face

5. The Lukewarm Summer Of Punk

Vince McMahon
WWE.com

This is one of the more heartbreaking entries on this list, given the inglorious manner of CM Punk's real exit from the company just a few short years later.

McMahon felt he couldn't follow through with Punk's leave-WWE-as-champion idea in full because his roster was incredibly thin in 2011. While he had a point, his short-term thinking robbed fans of an unprecedented angle for the ages. Besides which, the Cena Vs. Mysterio pairing had legs - it hadn't really been done before, and a battle between two men who didn't know the meaning of the word "quit" contained within it a natural dramatic heft and rubber match stipulation.

If Punk had been gone for just three months, defending his title in buzz-worthy moments custom built to bolster WWE's burgeoning social media presence, a Cena Vs. Mysterio series may not have grown tiresome at that point. Even if it had, Del Rio was waiting in the wings with his Money In The Bank contract. All that is moot, of course - Triple H got in his ear and wormed his way into the hottest angle of the moment, which he's had a suspicious habit of doing over the years.

Vince thought he had no option but to curtail his long-term plans, but in sacrificing a mouthwatering angle at the altar of Triple H's ego and weekly TV ratings, he sold the fans and CM Punk short.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over seven years of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by former AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and current Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!