Love or Hate Him, There Is No Denying the Brilliance of CM Punk

His encounter last weekend against old rival Samoa Joe highlighted Punk’s worth not only to AEW, but to wrestling as a whole.

SI.com’s Week in Wrestling is published every week and provides beneath-the-surface coverage of the business of pro wrestling.

A match two decades in the making

Before Saturday, it had been 18 years since CM Punk had wrestled Samoa Joe in a singles match.

Their lives were extraordinarily different back then. Punk was 26 years old, and Joe had just turned 25. They were hungry and determined to make a lasting imprint in professional wrestling, which both accomplished (and neither needed a WrestleMania headline bout to do it). Their journeys to immortality took contrasting paths, but it is apropos that their destinations again intersected before the end of their careers.

Punk defeated Samoa Joe in Saturday’s match on Collision, in the semifinals of the Owen Hart Cup, a moment 20 years in the making. This marked their seventh singles bout, and it was particularly satisfying to see Punk finally defeat his long-standing rival. The ending featured a blend of creativity and familiarity: After Punk pulled off the victory, the two shook hands in a sign of mutual respect. Joe then choked out Punk, reigniting the flames of a feud that has existed for two decades—and likely setting up a pay-per-view clash at All In at Wembley Stadium in August.

The match itself paid proper homage to the past. There were callbacks to their famed Ring of Honor trilogy, especially early on with Punk working on Joe’s head and neck. For most of the match, Joe dominated. Punk flourished in the role of underdog, absorbing Joe’s offense.

Longtime rivals CM Punk and Samoa Joe met on Saturday in their first match in 18 years.  / Courtesy of AEW

Collision is a show built around Punk. He was not going to lose this match, especially after showing such genuine emotion about wrestling in honor of Owen Hart, the namesake for this tournament. It only made sense that Punk would win and go on to wrestle Ricky Starks in next week’s final, especially considering there is a building story between Punk and Starks. So it was no surprise that Punk emerged victorious, but the finish was exceptional.

That sequence saw Joe fail in his attempt to land a Muscle Buster, then Punk went for broke with his Go To Sleep finisher, but Joe escaped, reversing his position into a Coquina Clutch. Before you could process the choke, Punk channeled a signature moment from Owen Hart’s career when he exposed a time-tested weakness of Joe’s by hitting the victory roll for the win.

It is not any sort of revelation that Punk has plenty of enemies inside AEW. However, that story is incomplete without including that Punk also has his share of believers. Their faith was again rewarded on Saturday, as Punk worked with Joe to create a tense, physical main event. AEW championed their history, which makes Tony Khan’s purchase of ROH and its vast tape library even more valuable. And the match highlighted Punk’s worth not only to AEW, but to wrestling as a whole.

The billion dollar question at play with Punk is what will happen next. Could another massive blowup occur? A podcast interview that shakes the internet? A post-show presser that goes off the rails? The beauty of Punk is his unpredictability, a quality becoming rarer by the second in the overproduced world of pro wrestling.

Fortunately, this past Saturday offered a glimpse into Punk’s direct future. Here is a spoiler: Punk is going to harness his star power this week on Collision to shine a bright spotlight on Ricky Starks. A true rising star, this will be the most significant moment of Starks’ career, and it will be appointment-viewing to see how he attempts to seize that moment.

Punk is back. And for now, wrestling is a better place because of it.

The (online) week in wrestling

• The Bloodline’s segment last week on SmackDown was phenomenal, leading to Jey Uso challenging Roman Reigns.

• Logan Paul finally started a feud he is going to win against Ricochet (and what a great spot that is for Ricochet). He also made a startling admission last week on his podcast about their failed Spanish Fly from the Money in the Bank ladder match, revealing, “Keep in mind, I’m a newbie. I don’t really know what I’m doing out there, so when stuff goes wrong, I don’t really know how to improv.” Their move did not go as initially planned, and Ricochet improvised on the ropes. Given Paul’s lack of seasoning, this move was more dangerous—and reckless—than the Tiger Driver on display at Forbidden Door.

• On the subject of Logan Paul, his popular energy drink Prime has caught the attention of the FDA.

• Speaking on After The Bell, Big E gave an update on his health. Though he could not share any sort of estimate for a potential return to the ring, he gave a wonderful update on his well-being: “I feel 100%. I don’t even feel like someone who broke their neck. My mobility is incredible. It’s great. My strength is great. I have no issues whatsoever.”

• Impact’s Slammiversary is on Saturday, and while the show will likely end with Alex Shelley defending the belt against Nick Aldis, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Deonna Purrazzo–Trinity close the show.

• Otis has finally regained his momentum in Alpha Academy, which has also allowed Chad Gable—and now Maxine Dupri—opportunities to shine. Looking back, it is fascinating to think Otis won a Money in the Bank ladder match.

• Summer means the return of the Scenic City Invitational. This week in Chattanooga, Scenic City Pro Wrestling will deliver the newest iteration of its three-day event highlighting the best of the indies, culminating with a 16-person tourney featuring Timothy Thatcher, Shazza McKenzie and 2022 winner Jaden Newman.
  
  “Since 2015, we have had diverse lineups filled with big stars and regional standouts, but this year's lineup takes it to a new level,” says Scenic City promoter Scott Hensley, whose shows will air on IWTV. “Jaden Newman is coming back to defend against a field that includes Timothy Thatcher, ‘Action’ Mike Jackson, Sawyer Wreck, the 1 Called Manders and more. We also get to partner with TWE Arena again, which means the live environment is guaranteed to be absolutely electric.”

Two decades into his career, Chris Sabin still delivering world-class wrestling

The Motor City Machine Guns are atop Impact Wrestling.

The world champion is Alex Shelley, whose fighting spirit and history captures the ethos of the promotion. He will defend the belt on Saturday at the Slammiversary pay-per-view against Nick Aldis, who also has a distinguished past in Impact.

Shelley’s MCMG partner Chris Sabin, another integral piece of Impact’s past and present, will also be making a title defense. For the ninth time, Sabin is X Division champion. Remarkably, this current reign is taking place 19 years after he first won the title.

“I always thought the X Division was the future of wrestling,” says Sabin, who is delivering some of his most compelling work at the age of 41. “Now I get to show that with a new generation of wrestlers. This is a chance for a lot of the new guys to get a chance. And I can prove I can still hang with these younger guys, too.”

Sabin is one of the industry’s most endearing underdogs. His future looked bleak in 2012 when he suffered his third ACL tear. Remarkably, his in-ring craftsmanship is still defined by his precision, and the recovery from such debilitating injuries was fueled by his insatiable passion for wrestling.

“I’ve always held on to my love for pro wrestling,” says Sabin, whose real name is Joshua Harter. “I can still watch mid-90s WWE and Bret Hart matches on Raw, and it gives me that feeling again.”

Only 5'9", he was never projected to have such longevity or prosperity in pro wrestling. But his unrelenting work ethic and sincere enthusiasm for the craft caught the attention of Scott D’Amore more than two decades ago. Twenty-three years into his career, Sabin’s work continues to leave D’Amore, who is now the president of Impact Wrestling, in awe. (A side note: D’Amore is also part of the Slammiversary card in a tag bout.)

For the first time in his career, Sabin’s opponent this Saturday is Lio Rush. They share history of their own as part of the Search and Destroy faction six years ago in Ring of Honor (which also featured Jay White and Jonathan Gresham). There is a distinct familiarity with Sabin wearing the X Division belt, which he regained last month at the Against All Odds show, the same night Shelley won the world title.

“That was a night I’ll remember for the rest of my life,” says Sabin. “It was validation for all the work we’ve put in over the years. Alex is one of the most underrated guys ever in the business. We worked for it, but we’re extremely grateful and blessed for these careers. Seeing him win was amazing, and I hope that moment was a great payoff for a lot of fans who’ve been watching Impact for a long time.

“Looking back, I wasn’t sure how I was going to do in the first place. To have made it to this level and still be doing it at 41, it’s a great feeling.”

The Motor Machine Guns are one of the more extraordinary teams in wrestling. Even though Sabin and Shelley are predominantly known for their tag work, they have also kept their singles careers alive, too. It isn’t often that tag team wrestlers star as singles, but that is a feat they have pulled off.

“That’s what makes us different,” says Sabin. “We’re singles wrestlers and a tag team. We’ll always have each other’s backs, kind of like the Rock ’N’ Roll Express. We’re a modern version of that.

“Even if we wrestle each other for one of our titles, we’ll never turn on each other. It will be a competition.”

The current focus for Sabin is making the most of his run as champ, building even more significance for whoever eventually dethrones him.

“With such a legacy and long history in the X Division, my goal is to really make this title mean something,” says Sabin. “I feel like I have the weight of the whole X Division on my shoulders.”

Tweet of the Week

Congratulations to Nikki Cross, who earned her master’s degree in history from the University of Edinburgh.

Justin Barrasso can be reached at JBarrasso@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @JustinBarrasso.