By the summer of 2011, fans had grown bored with the repetitive and stale nature of WWE programming, as had CM Punk, who was on his way out the door when a brand new opportunity arose. On the June 27 episode of Raw, Punk sat atop the Raw stage and cut a blistering promo that included some of the many frustrations he was dealing with at the time. Suddenly, he became the biggest star in the industry, a pop culture phenomenon who appeared on Jimmy Kimmel, spoke on countless radio shows and podcasts, and sold more merchandise than any other Superstars on the roster. Including the franchise star of WWE, John Cena. On July 17, Punk would enter the AllState Arena, the fans in his hometown of Chicago reacting rabidly for his arrival. They were determined to watch the Second City Saint achieve his dream, winning the top prize in professional wrestling from the man who represented all that they hated about the sport. For 30 minutes, the top two workers in the sport dazzled the die hard, incredibly vocal fans in the Windy City with a match full of nearfalls, reversals and high spots. It was an emotional roller coaster ride for fans both live in attendance and watching from the comfort of their own homes. And when Vince McMahon and John Laurinaitis made their presence felt late in the bout, those same fans were absolutely certain the boss and his right hand man would find a way to screw the immensely popular Punk out of the match and title. Their attempts at interference were for naught, though, as Punk delivered GTS, escaped the ring with the WWE Championship and stuck it to the egomaniacal chairman of the board one more time, much to the delight of the Chicago faithful.
Erik Beaston is a freelance pro wrestling writer who likes long walks in the park, dandelions and has not quite figured out that this introduction is not for Match.com. He resides in Parts Unknown, where he hosts weekly cookouts with Kane, The Ultimate Warrior, Papa Shango and The Boogeyman. Be jealous.
