The BEST Wrestling Moment Every Year (1989 - 2026)

18. 2009 | CM Punk Mocks Jeff Hardy

Cm Punk Jeff Hardy
WWE.com

The CM Punk Vs. Jeff Hardy programme of 2009 was sensational. 

A great wrestling feud is an exercise in contrasts - the stamina machine playboy Ric Flair versus rotund working class hero Dusty Rhodes being the archetypal example - and Punk Vs. Hardy was perfect. Punk was the sanctimonious straight edge narcissist, Hardy a man with very public substance abuse issues that fans loved regardless. Punk’s incredulity at the dynamic was as great as the dynamic itself. 

The premise was superb, the plotting even better. Punk was magnificent; as much of a cheating, conniving prick as he was, feigning an eye injury to get out of a pay-per-view match, he would always insist that he was a better man and a more reliable role model than his liability of a rival. 

Their match at SummerSlam was the best single Tables, Ladders and Chairs match ever. With blood banned, Punk and Hardy made sure to use every awful jagged edge of the plunder to put over the gruesome intensity of their feud, and the big action set-piece - Hardy’s ill-fated leap from possibly the tallest ladder ever used in a WWE ring - felt more character-based than a spectacular spot for the sake of it. Hardy took risks to his detriment; Punk was too mentally sharp to wade in those waters. 

After falling in the Loser Leaves Town Steel Cage blow-off, Jeff Hardy came out to say goodbye on SmackDown - except, he didn’t. It was CM Punk, cosplaying as Jeff in a fabulous ruse that was convincing for a few, heartbreaking seconds through the use of Hardy’s face paint. 

A classic wrestling feud with actual finality, since Hardy quit WWE as soon as it was over, this exclamation mark was as brutal as any chair spot at SummerSlam.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael Sidgwick (Creative Writing BA Hons) is an editor, writer and podcaster for WhatCulture Wrestling. With over a decade of experience in wrestling analysis, Michael was published in the influential UK institution that was Power Slam magazine, and specialises in providing insights into All Elite Wrestling - so much so that he wrote a book about the subject. You can order Becoming All Elite: The Rise Of AEW on Amazon. Possessing a deep knowledge also of WWE, WCW, ECW and New Japan Pro Wrestling, Michael’s work has been publicly praised by AEW World Champions Kenny Omega and MJF, and Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes. When he isn’t putting your finger on why things are the way they are in the endlessly fascinating world of professional wrestling, Michael wraps his own around a hand grinder to explore the world of specialty coffee. Follow Michael on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MSidgwick for more!