Ranking All 30 WWE SummerSlam Main Events

5. 2009 – Hardy (C) Vs. Punk

Undertaker CM Punk SummerSlam 2009.jpg
WWE.com

Sometimes when art imitates life, it makes for compelling art.

Such is the case with the 2009 feud between the oftentimes-troubled Jeff Hardy and the Straight Edge Superstar, CM Punk. The two men’s personal stories meshed perfectly for a tale of the conflict between a hero who has succumbed to vices before and a drug-free villain who is only too gleeful to point out the hero’s failings.

Punk and Hardy traded the World Heavyweight Championship back and forth between them several times during the summer of 2009, with Punk cashing in his second Money in the Bank briefcase in June, only for Hardy to win the belt back in July. Punk would recapture the gold at SummerSlam in a TLC match that showcased the best the two men had to offer. Hardy hit a Swanton Bomb off a 15-foot ladder, putting Punk through the announcers’ table, but Punk was able to climb the ladder for the win.

Really, the end result was never in doubt, as Hardy was leaving WWE. But the two let it all hang out for the fans. Unfortunately for Punk, Undertaker would return to chokeslam the Second City Savior, paving the way for a new title feud that Punk would ultimately lose.

Contributor
Contributor

Scott is a former journalist and longtime wrestling fan who was smart enough to abandon WCW during the Monday Night Wars the same time as the Radicalz. He fondly remembers watching WrestleMania III, IV, V and VI and Saturday Night's Main Event, came back to wrestling during the Attitude Era, and has been a consumer of sports entertainment since then. He's written for WhatCulture for more than a decade, establishing the Ups and Downs articles for WWE Raw and WWE PPVs/PLEs and composing pieces on a variety of topics.