10 Times WWE Dropped The Ball On CM Punk
2. The Straight Edge Society
WWE never made the most of CM Punk, but the company did at least utilise him as a star. It took them long enough, but Vince McMahon was able to get over his prejudice against Punk to use him as a main event performer, both as a babyface and a heel. To the surprise of nobody at all, Punk excelled in both roles.
It wasn’t quite too little too late, but WWE’s biggest opportunity to make a megastar out of CM Punk was in 2010. The Straight Edge Society was the hottest faction in wrestling, a heel group led by a truly detestable heel that was garnering legitimate heat around the world, simply by being an exaggerated version of himself. Punk was magic in the role, an understatement and a half.
What’s more, the Straight Edge Society could have been a vehicle for a whole list of things. Punk was on his way to becoming the top heel in the company. Luke Gallows was finally getting to shine, free of the potentially fatal Festus gimmick. Serena Deeb, one of the most talented female performers on the roster at the time, was getting plenty of attention without locking-up. Despite itself, WWE had absolute money in the Straight Edge Society.
So what did WWE do with this money? It fed it Big Show, all summer long. Show defeated all three members of the group at SummerSlam, with one hand no less, and any hope that the SES could be a vehicle for big business was dead.