10 WWE Decisions That Enraged The IWC

9. The Rock Defeats CM Punk

Randy Orton, Christian, Handshake
WWE.com

Holding the WWE Championship for 434 days is no mean feat, but CM Punk’s lengthy reign wasn’t always as glorious as the timescale suggests.

Punk had the belt, but he was rarely treated as “the guy,” and often found himself booked in John Cena’s shadow. Nonetheless, he ran through a vast array of challengers as WWE Champion, and his immense support endured among the IWC.

Unfortunately, Punk’s reign ended in the worst way possible. WWE decided that The Rock’s forthcoming WrestleMania rematch with Cena required some extra juice, and had ‘The Great One’ defeat Punk at the 2013 Royal Rumble. Rock/Cena II became a title fight, and Punk lost the gold to a semi-retired part-timer who wasn’t there for the long haul, and would scurry back to Hollywood after ‘Mania.

Losing to Rocky essentially proved the points Punk made when he dropped his “Pipe Bomb" in 2011. The Chicagoan only ever headlined a PPV when he was defending his belt versus Cena or The Rock, and wound up dropping it to the embodiment of everything he raged against. The internet’s response was one of complete dismay, and Cena/Rock II turned out to be a big disappointment.

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Andy has been with WhatCulture for six years and is currently WhatCulture's Senior Wrestling Reporter. A writer, presenter, and editor with 10+ years of experience in online media, he has been a sponge for all wrestling knowledge since playing an old Royal Rumble 1992 VHS to ruin in his childhood. Having previously worked for Bleacher Report, Andy specialises in short and long-form writing, video presenting, voiceover acting, and editing, all characterised by expert wrestling knowledge and commentary. Andy is as much a fan of 1985 Jim Crockett Promotions as he is present-day AEW and WWE - just don't make him choose between the two.