Orton Isn't The #2 Guy... CM Punk Is.

[InsomGTS]

While Orton was once the #2 guy, he is now #3 at best. Ever since the Supershows started you could compare the reactions Punk and Orton get on live TV. It's obvious to me that Punk gets bigger pops, sells more T-shirts and is involved in more important angles. Randy may have been #2 a few months ago but Punk is bigger than him now.

 

[Red Rum]

Do you know why this is? It's because Randy Orton was drafted to SmackDown. Nobody really cares about SmackDown, and it's truly the B-Show of the WWE. Also, not a lot of people don't see the point in watching SmackDown on Friday because you can always read up on the results on Tuesday.

It's a shame, because SmackDown does have a few talents they could really work with to make it compete with Raw. I say, make SmackDown go live on Tuesdays and balance the rosters a bit more. If they don't want to get rid of the brand extension completely, at least make both shows formidable and just as exciting to watch. That's just my two cents on this matter.

Anyways, back on the topic of who the number two guy is. It is CM Punk indeed, at least right now. I think certain fans have also got tired of Randy Orton and his repetitive, stale snake gimmick. I miss the old Randy Orton myself. The cocky, arrogant kid who always had a chip on his shoulder.

 

[Headman]

While Orton was once the #2 guy, he is now #3 at best. Ever since the Supershows started you could compare the reactions Punk and Orton get on live TV. It's obvious to me that Punk gets bigger pops, sells more T-shirts and is involved in more important angles. Randy may have been #2 a few months ago but Punk is bigger than him now.

That's fair. I'd even go so far to say Sheamus out pops Orton at the moment so he may be #4 soon. Doesn't seem like the crowd in cleveland liked Punk much, but I'll concede if we don't count Triple H who seems to be out popping everybody, Punk is #2 right now.

 

[XXJJ]

Punk was the number 1 guy during the summer. He owned the summer.

Orton still gets loud pops. He outpopped Punk a couple of weeks ago on Raw. Fans are still into his matches. Orton has a lot more longevity being in a top spot than Punk. You have to see what kind of pops Punk is getting a year or two from now.

Orton outpopped Punk on the live Smackdown by a lot. They are on different brands so I really dont see the comparison. When Orton becomes less popular. They will just turn him heel again. I dont think they are married to him being a babyface like they are with Cena.

Anyway its good news that Punk has entered the main event picture. That what made the attitude era great. They had a lot of big names. WWE currently still needs a couple of more guys to step up and become legit main event wrestlers.

 

[S.J. Maximus]

It's hard to deny that Orton is a lot less over now than he was at this point last year and it's even harder to deny that Punk gets the biggest pops these days. That being said, I would agree that Punk is the #2 guy, for the moment. Punk is on RAW, getting the push of his career, and feuding with a megastar in Triple H. Randy is on SD, lacking any direction, and just cleanly lost his title to the 15-year jobber named Mark Henry. Booking is the only reason Punk is bigger than Orton right now, and when they work out their roster and finally start giving every wrestler storylines instead of just 4 or 5, Orton will regain his #2 status and maybe even take #1 like he was so close to doing last year.

 

[silrock316]

It's hard to deny that Orton is a lot less over now than he was at this point last year and it's even harder to deny that Punk gets the biggest pops these days. That being said, I would agree that Punk is the #2 guy, for the moment. Punk is on RAW, getting the push of his career, and feuding with a megastar in Triple H. Randy is on SD, lacking any direction, and just cleanly lost his title to the 15-year jobber named Mark Henry. Booking is the only reason Punk is bigger than Orton right now, and when they work out their roster and finally start giving every wrestler storylines instead of just 4 or 5, Orton will regain his #2 status and maybe even take #1 like he was so close to doing last year.

Actually I think HHH is burying Punk at the moment. This is typical of HHH. You would think they would be trying to get Punk the clear cut pops when they are in the ring together but HHH is acting like a face and its hurting Punks momentum in my opinion. This is HHH's mo. Basically saying "Yeah Punk you are big right now but im HHH and my penis is bigger than yours" Punk has lost a little steam to me. Every week you can hear his "its clobbering time" saying much clearer because the crowds are confused whether to like him fully or not and thats because HHH is acting like a full blown face.

Which brings me to my answer, Orton is obviously still the #2 guy in the company as he is THE FACE OF SMACKDOWN. Cena is the FACE OF RAW. Which means Punk by default is still only the #3 guy.

You can't go by individual pops per show because if Orton comes out in just a regular spot and Punk comes out to save, lets say, a John Cena getting beat down by the new nexus, who do you think is going to get the louder pop at that time?

Punk has been out for a few months, Orton has done this at the top for a much longer time.

So to me Punk has the ability to be the #2 guy but until he is the face of either show and until HHH finally stops burying people, its the way it will stay.

 

[InsomGTS]

Uhh.. Punk kicked out of 2 pedigrees. You know who last did that? Undertaker. He's not getting buried by Triple H at all. Triple H beat him after he took a jacknife powerbomb and picked up the scraps. You're right Orton is the face of Smackdown, the show that has god awful attendance and ratings with him as the face of it. CM Punk could easily be the face of Smackdown but he's at the top of the RAW card which is more prestigious.

 

[Little Jerry Lawler]

Uhh.. Punk kicked out of 2 pedigrees. You know who last did that? Undertaker. He's not getting buried by Triple H at all. Triple H beat him after he took a jacknife powerbomb and picked up the scraps. You're right Orton is the face of Smackdown, the show that has god awful attendance and ratings with him as the face of it. CM Punk could easily be the face of Smackdown but he's at the top of the RAW card which is more prestigious.

When has Punk ever been a draw? Answer me that one. Have the ratings increased because of the Summer of Punk? How were the ratings when he was the top guy on Smackdown two years ago? I'll be waiting

 

[InsomGTS]

When has Orton been a draw? I just read a report on this very site about another abysmal Smackdown attendance. Every time Orton wins the WHC the SD ratings drop the next week. You hear about Punk's T-shirts selling out, has that ever happened with Orton? Punk is just getting big now, Randy has what, 10 world titles at 31 and still isn't over as Punk and barely Sheamus?

 

[XXJJ]

When has Punk ever been a draw? Answer me that one. Have the ratings increased because of the Summer of Punk? How were the ratings when he was the top guy on Smackdown two years ago? I'll be waiting

Yeah Raw ratings have went down since Punk shoot promo, and since he has been the focal point of Raw. I dont think he should be knocking Orton for low ratings on the 2nd tier show on Scyfy.

For years WWE been treating SD like the B show. Not even Mr. Smackdown himself Edge returning raised the SD ratings. I honestly dont even think Cena could revive Smackdown, ratings wise.

Vince is a businessman. If Orton wasn't making the company any money. They would of stopped pushing him all these years. He has a new dvd and is on the cover of the new WWE 12. Read the live reports.. When they talk about which wrestler got the loudest pop Ortons name is always mentioned. Fans last night on raw were chanting his name to come out during the Henry JR segment.

 

[Big Nick Dudley]

When has Orton been a draw?

Since... always. That's what you are when you're the second most over guy on the roster.

I just read a report on this very site about another abysmal Smackdown attendance.

No one, outside of Austin and Hogan, could make Smackdown a success. It's the #2 show, and no one gives a shit. Blaming Orton is beyond stupid.

Every time Orton wins the WHC the SD ratings drop the next week.

I'd love to see his numbers side-by-side with guys like Taker and Edge. Move Punk to Smackdown, and I'd venture to guess not much would change.

You hear about Punk's T-shirts selling out, has that ever happened with Orton?

Well, given how over Orton is, I'm guessing his t-shirt sells. Oh, and once again, you fail to provide any proof backing up your claims. Why should anyone take this with anything more than a grain of salt?

Punk is just getting big now, Randy has what, 10 world titles at 31 and still isn't over as Punk and barely Sheamus?

How old is Punk? Seriously, you're lost. Orton gets huge ovations just about everywhere he goes. Punk is over, but no more so than Orton. Crowd reactions say I'm right.

 

[InsomGTS]

Orton hasn't been getting "huge ovations" lately. He's been getting a small shriek from women when he comes out. At Night of Champions he hardly got a "huge ovation".

 

[Magooder]

Yea, Smackdown is definitely the B-Show, just the whole setup of Smackdown doesn't pull me in like RAW does for some reason.

I'm not on the ball, can someone explain to me the deal with this new 'supershow' thing? Are both RAW and Smackdown mixed into one every Monday and Friday from now on?

 

[jaceynightheat]

I think Punk is the number 2 guy as well. But we know RKO will be with WWE forever.

If Cena is the current Rock/Hogan, I see Punk as the current Austin/Piper

 

[ZexImmortal]

Punk is number #2. look at his story arcs and what not. Punk is put in way more important matches (Hear me out), I know the WHC is important and all but the build behind it doenst make it feel so important. While Punk is on these big angles, Orton doenst really have much going for him. While his fall does benifit Mark...still. Orton just doesnt feel as important as Punk does. Punk doesn't need a title. Orton however...i dont think i can say the same thing.

Punk is the number 2 guy hands down

 

[ZexImmortal]

Well, given how over Orton is, I'm guessing his t-shirt sells. Oh, and once again, you fail to provide any proof backing up your claims. Why should anyone take this with anything more than a grain of salt?


It was posted on WZ that his T-shirts sold out Immediately I believe in canada (some where in Canada, the best in the world shirts)

 

[JGlass]

Pffft, CM Punk is more over than Orton? Tell that to the overwhelmingly huge reactions Orton gets compared to the often lukewarm reactions Punk gets. Tell that to Orton's 5 PPV world title matches compared to Punk's 2. Tell that to the fact that Orton is trusted to put on high quality matches with the likes of Mark Henry while Punk has been privileged to work with some of WWE's best wrestlers in Mysterio, Cena, and Triple H.

The only thing Punk has on Orton is that he's a better mic-man, but even that isn't making him more popular than Randy.

 

[Redemption-2012]

Stop kissing or tons ass, the reason that cm punk is getting louder pops is because or ton is stale and boring and the crowd find him very overrated, he hasn't earned what he has been given, he has been handed it.

 

[JGlass]

Stop kissing or tons ass, the reason that cm punk is getting louder pops is because or ton is stale and boring and the crowd find him very overrated, he hasn't earned what he has been given, he has been handed it.

Have you watched any of his matches lately? This time last year I couldn't stand Orton... but he's upped his game completely and is now one of the best wrestlers on the card. Sure, he's had the benefit of working with Christian, but he's also put on great matches with less veteran guys, like Sheamus, and even guys who have no record of consistently putting on good matches, like Mark Henry.

And how do you figure Punk is getting bigger pops than Orton? The only time I've ever heard Punk out-pop Orton was at Money in the Bank, and that was because they were in Chicago.

Also, I'm fairly certain Orton doesn't read this forum, or even knows about its existence, and if he does, I doubt he cares what anyone has to say about him, so I don't think anyone is kissing ass here... just being smart about Orton's value to the WWE compared to Punk's.

 

[PunkNation26]

It's laughable that you guys think that Orton is better than Punk. Within 3 years, Punk will be on his way to Austin and Rock legend status. He is definitely the next huge star that fans have been waiting for. He's edgy, funny on the mic with great material, and most importantly, he's one of the best pure technical wrestlers in the world.

He doesn't need crappy move sequences like Orton does in order to fill ring time. Sure he does have his knee in the corner followed by his top rope clothsline, but he doesn't always do it and doesn't depend on it. Orton basically lives on his "powerslam of doom" sequence. Before that he basically just punches, clothslines and stomps them while they're on the ground.

It terms of drawing and who's number 2 on the depth chart, I definitely say it's Punk and here's why. Punk was in the main event at Night of Champions against Triple H. Orton was in a semi main event that nobody cared about against Mark Henry. Heck the only reason anybody cared about that match was that Orton finally got what he deserved for screwing Christian. ( Alright maybe I'm in the minority on that)

Punk is taking the Austin route to the main event. Austin had his "3:16" speech. Punk had his June 27th "Shoot". Also, Punk is far more entertaining than Orton could ever dream of being.

 

[mickaiel]

Punk is not the number 2 guy in the company, its still Randy. But we can see WWE is pushing CM Punk, he kicked out after 4 finisher or something at NoC, WWE made Punk looks strong last sunday. In the future maybe Punk would surpass Randy as number 2 or even Cena as face of the company, anything is possible in this business. It takes 1 or 2 years for Austin to draw huge ratings during Monday Night Wars.

 

[flawd101]

punk is hot right now. he is in the main story line. orton gets huge pops and always delivers. just becasue orton lost doesn't mean hes done. i think losing is good for him because now smackdown has a credible heel.

 

[Theo Mays]

I absolutely despise Randy Orton, but to think that he isn't the WWE's number two guy is just asinine. Orton is insanely over and the face of Smackdown. The guy gets a crazy good reaction no matter where they are. The fans just love the guy and he is one of, if not the most consistent superstar on the card. He puts on stellar matches week in and week out. I get the love for CM Punk, the guy is great. He is arguably the best in ring star in the business and on the mic. However he isn't over near as much as Randy. Punk's pops are inconsistent. Sometimes the crowd absolutely adores him and eats right out of his hand. Other times it just doesn't feel like it is there. Both guys are great, but Punk isn't a guy the WWE is going to put the burden of the load on his shoulders and let him go. Punk is the second tier star behind Cena and Orton. He is a guy that will put on great matches and contend for the championship, but will never surpass what Cena and Orton are going to do.

 

[PunkNation26]

There's probably more sheep than lone wolves in the world. Orton's fans are ignorant women who only like him because they think he's hot ( which is why Orton grew the beard in my opinion) and little kids. Teenage and adult males used to like him until he caught the Cena virus, to which I'm not sure if there is a cure.

Punk fans are intelligent men who know bullshit when they see it and Orton is definitly bullshit. Also Punk isn't going to shamelessly pander to kids, and he's definitly not going to be on the "hottest guy in the world" magazine. However, Michelle Beadle of SportsNation thinks he's hot, which gives him all the credibility he needs.

You see because Michelle Beadle is super hot and loves sports and isn't a typical female sheep.

Also, when WWE finally puts 100 percent focus on Punk as the number 1 guy, the demographic of the people who attend live shows will change back to being predominantly teenage and adult males, like it should be in my opinion, as they make awesome wrestling crowds. I'm sick of reading about fans being kicked out for using profanity just because some dumb little kid happens to be sitting nearby. Hell wrestling is simulated violence. You don't want profanity, take your kids to see the Wiggles.

 

[Theo Mays]

You see because Michelle Beadle is super hot and loves sports and isn't a typical female sheep.

So because Michelle Beadle thinks CM Punk is hot, makes him the number two guy in the whole company? Michelle Beadle is a fucking idiot who is lucky to have a job. She knows jack shit and is easily one of the most irritating people to ever grace my television screen. We get it, you're a Punk mark. Your name tells us everything we need to know. No matter how it is diced you are going to claim Punk is better than Orton. Hell I like Punk more than Orton, but he isn't better than Orton in terms of company importance. Sure the smarks may believe Punk is the number two guy, but the company has all the faith in Orton and clearly the fans see it in him as well. Clearly your fanhood of Punk is getting in the way of seeing that Orton is the guy.