9 Times CM Punk Bounced Back In His WWE Career

Twelve months later, and we arrive at what proved to be one of the straws that broke the proverbial camel’s back. For the third successive WrestleMania in a row, Punk was to be kept away from that show-closing, main event spot.

The worst part about this latest snub was that, on this year more than any other, Punk was deserving of the spot. As mentioned previously, the 2013 Royal Rumble marked day 434 in his colossal reign as champion. All of that was sacrificed so that The Rock could return, win the belt and set up a rematch with Cena at another Showcase of the Immortals.

Considering the run that Punk was enjoying, and if the company were so intent on having Rock and Cena in the main event once more, the least they could have done was make it a Triple Threat. Punk was instead paired with The Undertaker—which, as far as consolation prizes go, is a fairly sound alternative.

The two put together a gripping program, centred around Punk’s diabolical behaviour regarding the passing of 'Taker's former manager, Paul Bearer, before capping it all off with a brilliant meeting at the show itself. For the umpteenth time in his WWE career, Punk had bounced back from a disappointment to make chicken salad out of something very different.

Now, as I said in the introduction, I realise that bouncing back from a WrestleMania snub is a million miles away from bouncing back from a UFC defeat. But hopefully this article provided something of a respite from the negativity that's followed Punk's recent humbling. Anyway, it may be best that fans of Punk stick to articles like these, which focus on looking back at his glory days—because if his loss to Gall is anything to go by, things may not be getting much better anytime soon...