Will ALL IN Change WWE More Than CM Punk’s Pipe Bomb?
WWE.com
There were no half measures taken by Punk during his instantly iconic address. Mindful of the vastly expanded internet audience, he specifically targetted widely-loathed company quirks, savaging Vince and Stephanie McMahon and Triple H as flawed gatekeepers of the day, John Laurinaitis as the disastrous emperor of tomorrow, and Paul Heyman as the stifled and suppressed past-master. He said "wrestling". He peered down the fourth wall to wave at friend Colt Cabana. He referenced New Japan Pro Wrestling and Ring Of Honour by name. These weren't red wires being errantly pulled at by a bomb disposal amateur, they were homing missiles masquerading as air strikes.
With every mention of something from the known naughty list, Punk clutched further at the heartstrings of his own audience. He turned the volume up in his echo chamber so loud that it smashed its walls and the WWE glass ceiling. It was so powerful that by the time the company made it to his Money In The Bank 2011 final destination, the journey simply couldn't conclude there.
A famous night in Chicago couldn't be the end of the story when it was the start of a revolution.
Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 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. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, 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
