50 Ups & 50 Downs For WWE's Decade: The 2010s

10. Pipe Bomb

CM Punk's Pipe Bomb
WWE

'The Voice Of The Voiceless' spoke mostly for himself when given a live microphone at the end of yet another tepid edition of Monday Night Raw in 2011, but CM Punk's truth to power was as much down to a genuine belief that he'd be leaving the organisation just a few short weeks later.

Punk making himself the hottest performer in mainstream pro wrestling right before his contract was set to expire was gamesmanship almost impossible to summon in 'normal' renegotiation circumstances. The Chicago native was legitimately ready to walk away, and thus had no reason not to throw everything he had into a grand farewell angle.

The end result was a complete shift in the narrative for WWE - a glass ceiling cracked if not smashed that at long last created wiggle room for the countless faces (and heels) pressed up against it.

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Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett