In many ways, Money in the Bank 2011 was the peak of CM Punk's career. In less than three weeks, he had gone from preparing to take an extended hiatus to being the hottest star in the professional wrestling business. While getting to that point was largely his own doing, there was one piece of the puzzle that came down entirely to luck: Money in the Bank 2011 was in his home town of Chicago. While we can't know for sure, it's highly unlikely that anyone considered the end date of Punk's contract when the live events department picked Chicago for that pay-per-view. It's theoretically possible, but WWE doesn't plan long-term for much besides WrestleMania and Punk had been stuck in purgatory for months as the leader of The New Nexus. And if that show wasn't in Chicago, does Punk avoid the Money in the Bank winner walk out with the title, much less beat John Cena to win it in the first place? Even if he did, he wouldn't have been able to do what he next did that night: Pose with his friends and the belt in different parts of their neighborhood before heading home to put the belt in his refrigerator. And bragging about it on Twitter using Cena's catchphrase. Awesome.
Formerly the site manager of Cageside Seats and the WWE Team Leader at Bleacher Report, David Bixenspan has been writing professionally about WWE, UFC, and other pop culture since 2009. He's currently WhatCulture's U.S. Editor and also serves as the lead writer of Figure Four Weekly and a monthly contributor to Fighting Spirit Magazine.
