This article wasn't called "a love letter to a match that immediately feels like one of the best ever" as much as it might have read as one. But all of that is precisely Why CM Punk Just Lost In AEW For The First Time.
Ironically, Punk was right when he said MJF wasn't one of AEW's canonised "four pillars".
The pillars are his matches. Maxwell Jacob Friedman's the whole f*cking house, and one need only look at his battles opposite Cody, Jungle Boy, Jon Moxley, Chris Jericho, Darby Allin and especially Punk to see it being built brick by brilliant brick. This specific Dynamite classic doesn't even represent the conclusion of the story with Punk, suggesting they could yet top what they've already done. The featured promo duels could be spoken of in similar glowing terms because MJF's been the best talker on the show since the day AEW opened its doors.
This angle - like all of his angles, realistically - starts as something for CM Punk. It's peaking currently with something for MJF, and it'll climax as something for Wardlow. As artistically outstanding as it is magnificently economical, Punk's defeat here has informed the further cathartic violence still to come. Nobody could watch Punk/MJF 1 and not want more of it. And now, rewarded with the first bite, they'll pay for the second.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation over 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett
