Who REALLY Carried WWE Every Year (1985-2026)
16. 2011 (CM Punk)
Before getting started, an honourable mention: The Miz deserves a shout out for his work during the first half of 2011, but the year belonged to CM Punk. Ask most fans to name something they remember from WWE in 2011 and they'll surely bring up Punk's timeless "Pipebomb Promo" on the 27 June Raw. That was a historic moment in WWE history, and it led to blistering matches vs. John Cena at both MITB and SummerSlam.
Truthfully, the bizarre situation with Triple H and Kevin Nash was a wobble, but Punk rebounded to reclaim the WWE Title from Alberto Del Rio at Survivor Series. That launched his 434 day reign, so it's fair to say that this was one heck of a year for someone who'd been promoted and demoted from the top line mix more often than he could care to count over the past few years.
The McMahons, including Trips, probably didn't want to admit this, but even Punk's biggest doubters had to: He was incendiary with a live microphone in his hands, and nobody could touch him on promos once the rulebook was torn to shreds and tossed to the side. When he was let loose, Punk was a phenom.
His 'best of the independents' in-ring style also upped the quality expected from WWE main events of the era, and he gelled insanely well with Cena. At MITB alone, the duo became pro wrestling soulmates. They formed a bond that'd last forever, and Punk began laying down foundations for his own legacy.
His lengthy WWE Title reign was up and running.