Rise of Punk: Why Taker losing to Punk makes sense

Wrestlemania time is almost upon us once again. And like every year, it generates a lot of buzz and interest. Those who have not been following WWE throughout the year, start paying attention, which can only be good for the business. You have lot more viewers tuning in every week as Wrestlemania gets closer. One of the main reasons for that is WWE pulls out all the stops when it comes to Wrestlemania, the so called ‘Grand daddy of Entertainment’. It is usually at this time that storylines get interesting, top notch matches are made and legends return for one night.

It is said that legends are made at Wrestlemania, and quite rightly so. The Hogans, Shawn Michaels, Bret Harts and the Undertakers have all made their names at Wrestlemania. Every major superstar who has been the face of the company had his Wrestlemania moment, every superstar except the man leading the new age revolution, CM Punk. Right from Hogan body slamming Andre the giant, to Shawn beating Bret Hart for the WWF Championship, to Benoit winning the World Heavyweight title, Wrestlemania has always produced one magical moment at least for the top guys. So the question arises, what must be done to make CM Punk a ‘Steve Austin’ of this era? The answer can only be one thing – Do something with him at Wrestlemania that will elevate him into Austin’s and Taker’s league.

This isn’t to say that Punk isn’t in Austin’s league. When you compare both their styles, they’re pretty similar, yet very different. Both were/are great in-ring technicians (Yeah, Austin was a great in-ring technician before he became ‘Stone Cold’), both are untouchable on the mic, and both have great business minds. Austin came into the spotlight at the right time, when wrestling needed to be revolutionized, and he did just that. CM Punk too finds himself in a similar situation, and you feel he’s just one moment away from breaking the proverbial ‘glass ceiling’ in the industry. And that moment can be at Wrestlemania if everything is planned right.

To begin with, Punk finds himself going up against The Rock at Royal Rumble. Now, if you’ve read my previous article, it’s blatantly obvious that I want Punk to retain the title. Otherwise, it wouldn’t make sense to me. I won’t go out of topic, but if WWE wants to do a Rock – Cena 2, they can always find a better storyline and make it interesting. They don’t have to end the longest reign in modern history by making Punk lose to Rock at Rumble. I find it perfectly fine to turn Cena heel this time around, by making him interfere in the WWE title match. The point is, if Punk loses to Rock, he’ll lose his momentum. Everything he has done till now will be ruined. Last Wrestlemania saw Punk facing Chris Jericho, and honestly, how many people can remember the match even though it was arguably the match of the night? (Most will say Taker – HHH was the match of the night, but Punk – Jericho was one of the best pure wrestling matches that happened in a long time). The answer, sadly, is not many.

You cannot drop the ball with a guy you’ve been pushing for over a year during Wrestlemania time. That will undo all the hard work and faith WWE have shown in Punk. And honestly, Punk deserves to go into Wrestlemania with the WWE title. So, the question arises: Who should Punk face? For me, there are three people who make sense, and only one which is possible. They can turn Punk face and make him face Brock Lesnar, by making Paul Heyman turn on Punk and nearly costing him the match at Royal Rumble. Or they can bring Stone Cold for one night, although the build up for that should have started long ago, as it would have made one of the biggest matches of Wrestlemania history. Or the more likely option – make him face the one man who has been the centre piece of Wrestlemania history – The Undertaker.

If you want to give Punk the push of his life, he should face Taker at Wrestlemania, and do the impossible – Beat the Deadman at Wrestlemania. I am the biggest Undertaker fan you could see, since I started watching wrestling because of him. And the one thing that puts Taker in a different league from the HBKs, Austins, Rocks and HHHs, is his loyalty and his love for the business. Not that the other guys don’t love the business, but Taker does what is best for the business, putting his selfishness aside. You can never find another guy who is as respected in the wrestling industry as The Undertaker. And if something is good for the business, he’ll do it, no questions asked.

I always thought if you could do something that would shake the industry to the core, you should do it. I understand the sentiments of the fans. I wouldn’t want Taker to lose at Wrestlemania, never did. But this is one match which even if Taker loses, the wrestling industry wins. Punk will get the rub of his life; most cannot understand how big of an impact this would create. It would turn a rookie into a mega superstar over night. And if the guy is Punk, he would become one of the biggest names of wrestling industry in one night, in the league of Austins and Hogans. And that opportunity doesn’t come very often.

In wrestling business, they say you have to strike the iron while it is hot. The same applies in this case. When you have the marquee of Wrestlemania participating probably in his last match, you should do everything possible to make it count in the future. If Taker wins, the fans will be happy, but a loss doesn’t put a dot on his career either. Win or lose, Taker will be the biggest name to ever come in the wrestling business. But a loss would instantly elevate Punk to mega stardom, and make him the biggest heel in the history of the business. And Punk needs that badly, and more so does the WWE. With declining ratings and decreasing revenues, WWE needs to do something drastically to change how the company is shaping up. If you can make Punk into this era’s Hollywood Hogan, you’ve struck gold. Punk is the best talker in the industry at the moment, and when you combine his in-ring skills, his mic work and the biggest rub of his life, the sky is the limit for Punk and for the WWE. Sentiments are never good in this business, and many times, people forget that. If so many of the fans wanted HBK and HHH to end Taker’s streak (Which would have made NO sense whatsoever), they should have no problem in Punk being the man to finally put an end to Taker’s unbelievable streak. Not only will it quadruple Punk’s stake in the industry over night, but it will also create triple the impact of Punk’s infamous worked shoot, and that can only be beneficial for WWE and for the wrestling business. And that is why if all the stars align and the match does take place, Punk should beat Undertaker at Wrestlemania. Punk should be THE one ending the streak.