Top 5 John Cena-CM Punk promo face-offs

No. The most famous CM Punk promo is not included in this list. A face off means that both wrestlers have the opportunity give the other a piece of their mind. In this case between Punk and Cena, what made their feud the best and the most defining rivalry of recent times were the promo face offs they had. It involved the segments that they were part of, the words they exchanged. Whenever they stood in the ring together, it felt like it was a battle between two equals. What made it possible and what started it all was CM Punk’s pipebomb on June 27, 2011. What established this was the performances of both these superstars.Here are the top 5 segments:

#1 On The Road to Summerslam 2011

Punk made his return to WWE television a week after he left the company in spectacular fashion, through the crowd, sealing his future with the company following a flying kiss to Vince McMahon.

This time both Cena and Punk had the WWE championship. This obviously called for a match for determing the undisputed champion. So, a Contract Signing happened. A segment took place which was almost 20 minutes long,which also featured a cameo by the Rock via satellite.

This was very enjoyable precisely because the Summer Of Punk had kicked off and Punk had a lot of unflattering things to say about SuperCena. What particularyly stands out is when Punk said that Cena’s victory will make his fans ‘pee in their pyjamas...”

#2 On The Road to Money In The Bank 2011

There is no doubt that their match at MITB in 2011 was a masterpiece. The build up was masterful as well. Nobody could have expected such an interesting build up in a matter of few weeks. To be precise- 3 weeks.

First, it was that famous promo following which Punk got suspended. The following week Cena and McMahon argued about Freedom of Speech and Expression which led to McMahon reinstating Punk. The thrid week is when Cena and Punk had their first important face off. Punk returned to a very positive reaction in Boston. This was heel getting such a reaction in the hometown of the face. He made his way to the ring with a megaphone.

The segment had strong performances from both Cena and Punk. What was refreshing was Cena’s promo. It was after a long time that he was interesting to listen to.

#3 On the Road to Nigh Of Champions 2012

This was the night when something unfortunate took place- Jerry Lawler suffered a heart attack. This segment happened in the final moments of the night in Montreal, Canada with Bret Hart being the moderator between these two. Here, Cena was on the top of his game. He started his promo in a sombre tone but went on to gain momentum and aggression each passing minute. This ended with Cena punching out Punk’s microphone.

The final moment of the segment was quite entertaining where Hart presented Punk with a punk to his face.

#4 On The Road To Hell In A Cell 2012

A majority of their matches and segments took place in 2011 and 2012. they faced each other for the last time in 2013.

This time on the road to HIAC,Cena was injured but he was confident and determined to face Punk at the coming PPV. What’s really entertaining about this segment is the comfort level between these two. They just know each other so well at this point and Cena doesn’t look overpowering at all as he does in most of his interactions. Punk looks unhinged by the fact that he’s talking about Cena the way any hardcore fan would.

#5 On The Road for the last time

This is the last time that Cena and Punk will ever have a face off. Soon after, Punk turned face and for the most part of 2013 he remained a face.

While trying to determine who’s going to be the Number One contender for Rock’s title at Wrestlemania 29, they had a segment just before their maine vent match on Raw the following week. This wasn’t really spectacular but in hindsight gains importance and relevance because nobosy saw Punk’s departure coming.