The first report

Bryan Alvarez of F4WOnline.com received the following information, which he shared with listeners live on the "Bryan & Vinny Show" earlier today:


"There may be a big change in that the WrestleMania match may be being changed to Triple H vs. Daniel Bryan, as opposed to Triple H vs. CM Punk. Which is why Bryan was written into a promo on Monday that happened to be a promo with Triple H … and there has been absolutely zero mention with CM Punk and Kane, their feud, or anything having to do with it. Bryan may be getting Punk's match."

The website is now reporting that WWE Superstar CM Punk told Vince McMahon personally that he was going home, and then got on a plane for Chicago. WWE.com has since removed Punk from all upcoming live events and house shows over the next few weeks including Monday Night Raw. At this time he is still being advertised for the Elimination Chamber PPV on February 23rd in Minneapolis, MN but it remains to be seen how long Punk will be gone.

This seems to fly in the face of other recent reports from the Observer that have stated that WWE had no plans of changing Daniel Bryan's WrestleMania match after a hostile Royal Rumble crowd, but plans are constantly changing in the company and anything is possible at this point, it would seem. CM Punk tweeted the following message on Monday morning:

Also keep in the back of your mind that with The Authority being both a real life managerial structure and an on-screen faction, it wouldn't be too crazy to assume that WWE wants this information getting out, so they can use Punk's absence in a future storyline

As we reported last night, CM Punk was said to have told Vince McMahon on Monday night that he was leaving Raw and got on a plane and went back home to Chicago. Dave Meltzer noted on the Wrestling Observer Radio program that WWE did not see this coming from Punk, however, the company did expect him to leave after his contract expires in July.

It remains unclear as to why Punk decided to leave on Monday night, and it's unknown whether or not a singular incident took place to motivate his decision, but it is being said that Punk in general seemed frustrated in WWE over the course of the past year. Punk wanted to be the top guy in the company, but knew that would never be possible as long as John Cena was around.

Punk has reportedly saved his money during his time with WWE, has made a lot throughout the years, and feels he doesn't need to be in WWE if he doesn't want to be there.

As for his creative plans on Raw Monday night, PWInsider.com reports he was either supposed to lose a bout to Antonio Cesaro after interference from Kane, or he was supposed to cut a promo about his involvement in the Royal Rumble match. Punk was also slated to face Triple H at WrestleMania 30, but it appears as if that plan will be nixed, and it's very possible Daniel Bryan will replace Punk in that match, which is likely why the opening of Raw was booked with both Bryan and HHH.

Another take

By Spike Eskin

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – CM Punk, arguably the most popular wrestler in the WWE over the last five years, has reportedly walked out on the organization, fueling speculation that he is leaving all together.

I don’t necessarily believe that he’s actually quit, or that he won’t return. This seems to me like it’s a ‘work,’ which means it’s just part of a storyline created by the WWE. He wouldn’t be the first guy to ‘quit’ or ‘get fired,’ and not actually have either happen in real life.

Those who dislike wrestling will say, ‘well the whole thing is fake.’ This is a fair point. The difference between this and the pre-determined result of a match, is that it is reasonable to assume it’s possible that CM Punk could be fired or quit. It is not reasonable to assume, given what we know, that the wrestlers are actually fighting in the ring. With that disclaimer, I will proceed.

A report from Wrestling Observer says that Punk walked off the job Monday (via PW Torch), after telling Vince McMahon that he was “going home.”

The walk-off was just the next in a series of things that have happened over the last week that speak to some trouble in Punk’s world in WWE.

He reportedly requested off a weekend of house shows, after expressing in a recent interview that he is unsure whether or not he’ll continue with the WWE after his contract expires. After appearing at Sunday’s Royal Rumble, Punk did not appear on Monday’s episode of Raw. He then did not appear at a Tuesday taping of WWE Smackdown.
CM Punk that acknowledged the support he has been getting, regarding the recent rumors, in a Tweet Monday evening.

Punk has historically been a bit of a ‘rebel’ in the WWE, having reached the height of his popularity while being honest about what he thought about the company during a series of promos (speeches) that he called ‘Pipe Bombs.’

CM Punk has been scrubbed from all appearance listings on WWE.COM for the next two weeks.

I don’t think CM Punk is leaving the WWE. What is CM Punk going to do every day if he’s not in the WWE? No offense to him, I don’t think I’ve got that many marketable skills either.

This is a perfect storyline to build anticipation for April’s Wrestlemania XXX

IN my day, this wasnt a Wrastler! This was a guy sitting next to me THIS WAS WRASTLING! Guys bigger than life. Beasts! Pain! sure, there was 1 or 2 'technically sound' guys! But they didnt become stars?????

_________________
"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

hmmmm once again this kind smells like a work cuz i reckon a year or two ago, or maybe was it "the summer of punk 2011" that his contract expired when he was champ and he was seein at cubs games and all over the place with the belt, and with no official word as to his re-sgning ppl iwondered if we'd end up with another divas-belt-in-the-trash-on-nitro segment. if punk has F-U money r and some sort of injuries/concussions a break might make sense, i.e. make it through mania, if that, and then come back fully recharged for summerlsam?

or is the thought that absence makes the heart grow fonder and after a couple'a years of being top-of-the-card he got pissed that orton/HHH took over the spotlight (like remember HHH interjecting himself as "specal guest referee" at MITB 2011 to kick off "the summer of punk" cuz in the end, really, it all comes back to "how does [current storyline] factor in with HHH?" and now that 'HHH's old buddies the new age outlaws are tag team champs, and orton got the push because HHH/mgmt said so burying the hottest guy in the company (and seemingly beyond that of building up the fans' desire to see him EVENTUALLY break through @ mania for a long long payoff) and blah blah blah maybe he knows he'd have to job to HHH un/clean at mania to prop up his imagine and he's thinking "WTF??!!? I WAS AS HOT IF NOT HOTTER THAN D-BRY AND NOW YOU GOT ME FEUDING MIDCARD STYLE AND RAH RAH RAH.... I DONT NEED YOU"--- maube he can live on his millions and get some more legendary work in with some indie matches b4 returning to "the E" ???

or maybe it's all a giant work cuz ever since the "pipe bomb" promos they flirt with the 4th wall / breaking kayfabe and the plan all along is to make his return "a surprise" and when he comes back he factors into the bigger picture cuz if the next move was having hi job out hard to the authority.... i can see where he's going from. hr went from being a big player to LOL SON U HAD A NICE CPL YEARS BUT THIS IS THE WWE AND WE KNOW THAT EVERYBODY NEEDS CENA/ORTON 25-30 WITH A SIDE OF HHH MEDDLING TO KEEP D-BRY/PUNK OUT OF THE PICTURE..... cuz obviously HHH-DBRY makes the most sense cuz if D-BRY is the hottest thing going, well ask bret hart, HHH is the mastermind of latching on to the hottest angles/feuds and interjecting himself to be a legend by proxy. we all know how that works.

either way, my guy says 60/40 work / actual frustration.... and since he's not super super rich (im sure WWE contracts dont set up generational weath unless you sell a shit-ton of t-shirts for a long time and even then tht's dependant on how much swag WWE puts out there to sell)then yeah,0 i mean, he'll be back..... if they do this FUCK YOU I QUIT stuff it'll be interesting to see if they give it a few months instead of chickenshitting out and having him show up 2-3 weeks later with HHH in the ring addressing itk cuz in the end the WWE of 2013-14 = top fueds alwasy coming down to the most important question:"how does this affect Triple H?"

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I hope its more of a work, because after Daniel Bryan, he is the most over, the WWE pushes Cena, but I would take Punk over Cena if I wanted to watch someone.

Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart pretty much opened the door for smaller guys to be stars, you know, like 20 years ago.

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Most oof the sheetz including The Meltz say he actually has quite a bit of money saved and that's one of the main reasons besides his general dissatisfaction for why he was unlikely to re-sign in the first place. If it iss a work, which I highly doubt, it would be silly to keep one of their 3 most over full-timers out for months when they're trying to sell the network, renew a TV contract, and build to the biggest PPV of the year.

One theory that's come up a bunch is that after the fans crapped all over the Rumble they decided to give Bryan the Triple H match at Mania, therefore leaving Punk in the irrelvant midcard match Bryan was likely headed for. He's whined for years about never main eventing there (especially when The Miz has), so bumping him down the card probably wouldn't have gone over well.

Sounds like we have seen the last of Punk,

TMZ – CM Punk Story


The breaking CM Punk story has been picked up by TMZ.com, who claims they have "exclusive details" about the CM Punk's departure from WWE. TMZ is stating that Punk left primarily due to Batista winning the Rumble, going on to main event WrestleMania 30, and the fact Punk wouldn't be.

TMZ.com reports: "Punk was livid when he learned officials scripted Batista to win the Royal Rumble … because he feels Batista isn't in great wrestling shape and shouldn't be featured in the title match at the upcoming WrestleMania (the biggest event of the year)."

Something had to give at some point. The roster is just getting WAY too top heavy for this Mania (not that that's a bad thing for viewers).

You've got Orkman, Cena, Bryan, Batista, Sting, HHH, Taker, Hogan, Lesnar, Punk, Sheamus... Throw in something involving The Shiled and the Wyatts, plus a Diva Match , Rhodes vs Rhodes.... you're already over booked And that's without a single mid-carder making the show (I don't count the Rhodes match because that's a legacy favor for Dusty)

Another angle being put out there regards CTE (Christ don't tell Bernstein) ....

ESPN Cleveland reporter Casey Kulas reports that there may be some concussion issues that came into play during CM Punk's argument with WWE officials on Monday. Kulas posted to Twitter:

My info on CM Punk: I do know from sources that at #Raw in CLE there was heated exchange backstage between Punk & staff. Topic - concussion.
— Casey Kulas (@CaseyKulas) January 29, 2014


Punk was heard arguing with staff saying "I passed all your damn concussion test" and "I'm not going out and telling fans that BS"
— Casey Kulas (@CaseyKulas) January 29, 2014


It's kinda hard, for me anyway, to not see CM Punk just being this side of actually being a bitch ... I mean, it's not like they gave him a title run for 2 weeks and said 'fuck it'. On the flip side, if he's been smart with his money as every report seems to indicate, if he can live off what he's got then I couldn't be happier for him and God bless him going forward whether he comes back or not ... he earned the money, which earned him the chance to say "I don't want this or that" ... we should all be so wise.

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Power is always in the hands of the masses of men. What oppresses the masses is their own ignorance, their own short-sighted selfishness.
- Henry George

AJ his girlfriend is tweeting about it and some Sting news.

http://www.wrestlezone.com/news/449015- ... se-concept

For sure a work

NVM, I don't think she actually tweeted that

I am assuming it is a work, although I do not doubt at all that Punk is pissed about the outcome of the Rumble. And I think he is exactly right.

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"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Meh ... if it's a work then it's really sad how far working the smarks (or the boys for that matter) has fallen since Pillman perfected it.

Since we're here .... a little bird years ago gave me the impression that the famous Hogan/Russo blow-up was a work as well .... it wasn't entirely convincing, but I gave it more credence than I previously had though that's not saying much ... anyone else have any insight?

_________________
Power is always in the hands of the masses of men. What oppresses the masses is their own ignorance, their own short-sighted selfishness.
- Henry George

Page not found.

Right, Punk had the longest title reign in 20 years and was made the top heel in the company. He can suck up Batista winning the Rumble. Batista's on a full time contract, unlike Rock's part time stuff.

Longest title reign in years, but yet not once been the main event of a Mania.

Yet Bautista comes back and gets one right away?

That is bullshit.

_________________
"He is a loathsome, offensive brute
--yet I can't look away."

Yeah ... no ... he was brought back specifically to hot-shot and I'm a fucking retard and I'm fully aware of that so for Punk to feign surprise about the development is complete horseshit.

It wouldn't surprise me in the least if one night Punk irked Vince just the wrong way and VKM decided to teach the dime-neck little bastard a lesson and started the process of bringing Batista back just to remind Punk who's company it was. I'm not saying that's what happen, I'm just saying I wouldn't be surprised if the story wasn't awfully damned close to that. There's no end of stories about Punk being a moody, petulant child so it's a believable if not outright probable scenario.

_________________
Power is always in the hands of the masses of men. What oppresses the masses is their own ignorance, their own short-sighted selfishness.
- Henry George

Punk will win the Elimination Chamber match.

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CSFMB: Home of the small minded

Yeah, I'd think Punk's too smart to take his ball and go home over Batista in a WM title match. In the grand scheme of things it's a winter Chicago pothole in his career. Then again I'd also figure WWE was too smart to put a guy that was never that over in Batista right back in a WM title match either.

I guess I should qualify, Batista not being "over" in any sustainable way in my opinion. Also a "bad" wrestler.

And one more thing about Punk, he's been the best thing in WWE for a while now, but based on WWE's historical booking, he's not typical a WM main eventer. It sucks for him and real fans, but WM is a different animal (Batista joke) than the other PPVs.

It must have got pulled, my question is how do you guys feel about the part-timers that come in for the big events and leave.

I see both sides, they help ppv buys and get the people excited, but if I was guy there all the time I would be mad if I got pushed aside for a guy brought in for 1 event, especially if the crowd was behind you.

Ill add this question to the Punk saga, if the Rock couldn't come back last year, would Punk left the Rumble the champ and headed to Mania as the Champ, especially against the Undertaker?

Raw March 3rd at the Horizion should be a thing. If Punk isn't back, should be near riot.

Well don't you get a cut of the buys if you're in the PPV? Punk would still be on the card and get paid, possibly more if the guy who bumped him is a bigger draw. The guys that get dumped to the pre-PPV match would be the ones annoyed.

One of the things he complained about when he was interviewed last weekend is that the company has been quite opaque whether PPV bonuses would continue to exist at all once the network launched. And I always got the impression Punk was more interested in the spot of headlining a PPV than the financial benefits per se. All of his complaints about The Miz headlining WM 27 derive from that. Some of the speculation is that he was completely underwhelmed by the prospect of fighting Triple H, which knowing Trips' ego is utterly hilarious to me.

Also the AJ tweet was clearly fake.