Better in ring: CM Punk or Aj Styles

[Disturbed]

I have picked two more competitors for my, Better in ring Series. I have been putting these in the Old School section but since both men are still in the wrestling business and working in the two major companies, I thought I would put it in General Wrestling. So the next two are AJ Styles and CM Punk.
I am tired of naming both mens accomplishments, so I will copy and paste from wikipedia.

Pro Wrestling Illustrated
PWI Tag Team of the Year (2006)[153] with Christopher Daniels
PWI ranked him #1 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2010[115]
Pro Wrestling Report
Tag Team of the Year (2006) with Christopher Daniels
Ring of Honor
ROH Pure Wrestling Championship (1 time)1[154]
ROH Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Amazing Red[8]
Total Nonstop Action Wrestling
NWA World Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[155]
NWA World Tag Team Championship (4 times) – with Jerry Lynn (1), Abyss (1), and Christopher Daniels (2)[156]
TNA Legends/Global/Television Championship (2 times)[2]
TNA World Heavyweight Championship (1 time)[157]
TNA World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Tomko[158]
TNA X Division Championship (6 times)[159]
First TNA Triple Crown Champion (4 times)
First TNA Grand Slam Champion (2 times)
Mr. TNA (2003–2005)[4]
TNA Match of the Year (2006) with Christopher Daniels vs. Homicide and Hernandez at No Surrender, September 24, 2006[160]
TNA Match of the Year (2009) vs. Sting at Bound for Glory, October 18, 2009[76]
TNA Tag Team of the Year (2006) with Christopher Daniels[160]

World Wrestling Entertainment
ECW Championship (1 time)[173]
World Heavyweight Championship (3 times)[174][175][176]
World Tag Team Championship (1 time)[177] – with Kofi Kingston
WWE Intercontinental Championship (1 time)[178]
Mr. Money in the Bank (2008, 2009)[71][87]
Slammy Award for "OMG" Moment of the Year (2008)[74] Cashing in Money in the Bank to win the World Heavyweight Championship
Slammy Award for Shocker of the Year (2009)[96] Forcing Jeff Hardy out of the WWE after Steel Cage match victory
Slammy Award for Despicable Me (2010)[179] Harassing Rey Mysterio and his family
Nineteenth Triple Crown Champion[85]
Wrestling Observer Newsletter
5 Star Match vs. Samoa Joe at ROH Joe vs. Punk II on October 16, 2004
Feud of the Year (2009) vs. Jeff Hardy[180]
Best Gimmick (2009)[180
ROH Tag Team Championship (2 times)[20] – with Colt Cabana
ROH World Championship (1 time)[20]

Remember this has nothing to do with mic skills. It is by ring work only. So who is better in the ring, AJ Styles or CM Punk?

You know the drill.

 

[MarchingOnTogether]

Although I think Punk is a great wrestler, AJ is better IMO. He's simply phenomenal, his move set is just ridiculous. You could argue the fact that Punk has better in ring psychology. But I'ld pick Styles over Punk in a MATCH anyday.

 

[The_Gene_Genie]

I'm leaning towards Punk because he has performed for both TNA and WWE. AJ is as his his nickname suggests, Phenominal, but CM Punk edges it for me. Despite AJ's unparallelled style, I'm of the opinion he would eventually drown in the WWE whereas Punk has proven more versatile with his in ring style throughout his career. I also find AJ somewhat repetative in the ring these days; still awesome to watch though.

 

[Find'er Woo'er Ryder]

Aj Styles.

They both have good in-ring skills but Aj takes the cake. He is phenominal in the ring, hence why that is his nickname. His moveset is incredible from the figure four leg lock to a springboard 450 splash. He was involved in the greatest match i have ever seen: Aj Styles vs Samoa Joe vs Christopher Daniels (the first one). CM Punk on the other hand has evolved into one of the most hated heels in the biggest wrestling business, WWE. I do like them both but see Aj Styles the better in-ring competitor.

 

[Mr. Artistic guy]

The reason AJ gets such a good rep is that he is this generation's shawn michaels in that he can adapt to any style (no pun intended?) and any opponent. He could face big show and look as much the competitor than if he had faced amazing red. I'm not denying punk's in-ring accomplishments, but when your as good a punk is or has been when he is allowed to work a match properly after putting in 100% and your still not as good as someone else like AJ, it's time to bow down and face facts. Angle has admitted it, I'm sure guys in WWE have admitted it.

Just take for instance the chaos theory rolling german suplex he did on magnus a couple of weeks back, he had probably never done one live before and although he didn't hit it square, he was 5ft10 and his opponent was 6ft3 which logistically doesn't make any sense but he managed to pull it off still. As someone else pointed out, I can't remember the last time williams did one to an opponent 6ft or over himself. More importantly the talent has been there since day one, you can go back and watch work he did in 01/02 time and you'll see that even then he could tussle with the best of them.

Punk would win against most other guys in the WWE but you happened to have picked the guy who is so good that it even forced PWI to curb their habits and rank him the #1 wrestler in the world, first time accomplishment for a TNA wrestler. Let's be honest he's not a dream personality on the mic, he's not a failure but he's not a lot compared to some guys even in TNA so it isn't his talking that made him a 211 day world champion, there is obviously something special about the guy.

This is one occasion where I'd say thank God for TNA because in the past this guy would have been buried on a WWE show, his personality wouldn't have got him over. TNA with their former management were more like a cross-between ROH and WWE, story's and great wrestling. Saying that, since it's been taken over by Bischoff and boys the guy has been buried so. But the name phenomenal at least does him justice, Punk has no such precident for his own name.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

For me it has to be AJ Styles, although I hate having to vote against Punk, who I also think is one of the best in the world today.

While good ol' CM is probably the more varied wrestler, with more technical/submission based offense, I personally do not think his wrestling style is as exciting as that of AJ Styles, probably the most spectacular main eventer in the business today. Styles has the most innovative offense of anyone in the business, you can see any AJ Styles match and watch him perform a move you have never seen him do before. He is so adaptable, and can wrestle anyone and put on a great match, and take a bump like noone else. Other wrestlers would give anything to be able to move like AJ can.

From the early days of TNA he has been THE MAN. I recently picked up the TNA Year 1 DVD and I was blown away once again by the brilliance of Styles, he was simply Phenomenal. The matches with Low-Ki, Jerry Lynn and Pcicosis were astonishing, and he has me on the edge of the seat no matter who he is wrestling. I still rate his early TNA stuff, and the feud with Daniels and Joe, as some of the greatest matches I have ever witnessed.


I hope to God that we see AJ Styles main eventing in the WWE today, the fans would love his style of wrestling. It remains to be see though, whether he would be in favour with Vince and some of the WWE hierarchy, but I hope we find out someday. I would hate to see AJ wasted in the 'E.

Punk on the other hand has surprised everyone and made it to the top in WWE. While I do love his work, I personally think that without his promo ability, he may not have become world champion. In this thread we are not discussing mic skills though, and so I will look at his in-ring work. It is good, no question, his kick based style (toned down in WWE- look at his ROH work for a better representation of what he can do) is different from most other wrestlers, and I like that he has both a grapple and submission finishing move, I think other wrestlers should vary their offence like this.

However, I am going to vote for AJ Styles, there is noone else I enjoy seeing perform as much as AJ.

 

[JGlass]

Oh AJ Styles is definitely the better wrestler, which is not to take anything away from Punk. I think Punk is a good wrestler, but I think AJ Styles is an outstanding wrestler. He's extremely innovative, very brave, and can wrestle a bunch of different styles. He'll always carry around a bit of a spot monkey stigma, and he'll be remembered as a high flier when all is said and done, but the truth is he's quite talented when it comes to a more traditional style as well. On top of that, AJ Styles has had some epic, amazing matches, the type of match that I will never forget, specifically Styles vs. Daniels vs. Joe at Unbreakable 2005.

CM Punk is a very talented wrestler, but I don't think he'll ever be as good as AJ. He's much less innovative and not nearly as creative. Punk is much more of a wrestling purist, but when he has guys like Daniel Bryan to compete with he's not very impressive by comparison. And while Punk has had some very interesting feuds, I'm hard pressed to say that he's ever had an unforgettable match. He's had good matches, but I can't honestly say he's had a GREAT match.

AJ Styles is a better wrestler than Punk. He's more creative, more fun to watch, and his matches are more memorable.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

This is a tough one. I like Punk more than Styles but I think that Styles is better in the ring. Its not really a question of movesets or ring psychology though. Not even a question of having phenomenal matches either. Some of CM Punk's ROH matches are up there with any match that Styles has ever had.

But coming back to the point, I don't think I have ever seen CM Punk have a great match with a big guy. I remember a few matches with Kane which got considerable amount of time, I think 15 minutes or so, but the match was still boring. The same could be said about his matches with Big Show. AJ has had great matches with guys like Abyss, who is probably a shittier worker than Big Show or Kane.

That is really the only point where I can differentiate between the two. Also I feel that CM Punk's abilities in the ring are a bit overshadowed by his mic skills. AJ is a phenomenal wrestler with below average mic skills so it may be that he is percieved to be better than he actually is.

 

[mrbrownstone]

I think this is a very subjective question to which there is really no right answer, one person may view ring skills based of the psychology they exhibit while another person may define ring skills by how many flashy flips a wrestler preforms.

With that being said I would lean towards AJ Styles but I feel it is very close. Perhaps it is due to the opponents he has been given to work with, after all two of CM Punks most notable feuds are with a drug addict and a giant who can't move in the ring, hard to show off when that is what you have to work with isn't it? To be fair to AJ though he did manage to get a great match out of Abyss.

Anyway I feel AJ has just had more classic matches in his career than CM Punk, against the likes of Daniel Bryan (in ROH, they are fantastic matches check them out if you haven't already), Samoa Joe, Chris Daniels, Abyss, Kurt Angle, Doug Williams and many others. He can work nearly any style as shown above, he can work a technical style with the likes of Williams, Bryan and Angle, he can work a high flying style as he has done against Joe and Daniels, he can work with big men as he did with Abyss, he can work gimmick matches like Iron Man, Ultimate X, Cage matches and others. The main thing about all of this is not only can he do these things but he can do them damn well.

Like I said though, Punk hasn't been given as much opportunity to show off, he has been stuck in the mid-upper mid card for a lot of his WWE tenure where AJ has been the face of his company. Perhaps if you ask this question again in five years time the answer would be different but right not I have to go with AJ.

 

[Poetry_In_Motion]

In Ring? AJ Styles, hands down. He's an absolute amazingly talented wrestler with an equally amazing moveset. Punk, not saying he's bad in the ring, because he isn't. He's good, but just not AS good as Styles.
HOWEVER, if this was a Mic Skills contest, this would be totally flipped on it's head. Punk would win that hands down.

 

[Ferbian]

Personally I have a bigger joy in watching CM Punk wrestle. CM Punk has a lot of various moves that makes him rather exciting to watch, with his numerous kicks, as well as many various submission based holds (Like the surfboard he has performed a few times on Rey Mysterio).

And sure, some of his moves are very basic, and I'm sure A.J could be performing them all just fine without too much effort, but he doesn't perform them, and I just overall have a bigger joy in watching a CM Punk match than I do with an A.J Styles match.

One thing that I would like to think that also makes CM Punk stand out is the fact that his move set seems to at least change based on his alignment. CM Punk was energetic and exciting to watch in the ring as a face, however when he turned heel he became more ground based and "deadly" so to say in the ring. He became more about moves that could cause damage from a kayfabe / legitimate aspect, as opposed to being a guy that is just fun to watch in the ring.

This isn't something I can truly recall about A.J Styles. Sure he's able to be versatile in the ring, but his move set, whether heel or face takes stand in the same basic moves here and there. When he turned heel, he still had some of his many moves that gets a pop from the crowd, as opposed to CM Punk who don't really have that many, if any moves that he currently performs for a good pop.

 

[Uncle Sam]

Two of my very favourite wrestlers. While AJ was a large part of the reason I stuck by TNA for so long, Punk is a large part of why I still watch the WWE today. Punk is obviously a superior promo man - that much is painfully obvious - but that's not what the thread is asking.

Punk, despite what people will tell you, is equally as capable of putting on a good match in the WWE as he was in ROH. Arguably moreso. The main difference is that his matches will now be suitably concise with a lot less fannying about with restholds and the like. Some of his midcard fare before he became a world champion proper is criminally overlooked. Well, actually, I suppose it's no more overlooked than most midcard fare. Since becoming world champion, he's stolen the show with the likes of Jeff Hardy and Rey Mysterio. He even got a decent match out of The Big Show in Chicago. Most recently, he had a very impressive match with John Cena on RAW.

AJ on the other hand is better known - infamous, even - for putting on great matches. The 2005 three-way with Daniels and Joe at Unbreakable immediately jumps to mind. He featured in what's probably my favourite tag team match of all-time; AJ Styles & Christopher Daniels vs. LAX at Bound For Glory 2006. And, to dispell another myth, AJ is no mindless spot monkey. He wrestles differently as a heel than as a face. Hell, he even wrestled differently when he was Prince AJ than when he was (is) a member of Fourtune; and he was a heel both times. His character does carry across to what he does in the ring.

I can't make a decision. In fact, I refuse.

 

[Kenny Powers]

Both are great in the ring. I will give the slight edge to Punk for being a better in ring performer since he receives a bigger reaction as a heel then AJ Styles ever could. Maybe it is because the Impact zone is spoiled and doesn't cheer as much for AJ Styles since they have seen everything in his arsenal. AJ may be the best pure athlete in wrestling, but he doesn't have the in ring psychology like Punk does. Punk has the ability to use flashy moves, but doesn't need them to captivate an audience. I hate to say it but if AJ Styles wasn't such a great in ring competitor then he would be another face in the crowd.

 

[Strong Style X]

CM Punk has much better ring psychology than AJ Styles in my opinion. That being said, AJ is more visually appealing to watch but I feel that AJ isn't a very technical wrestler at all. AJ has flashy moves and a good arsenal; for sure. But he's somewhat of a spot monkey and doesn't rely on actual wrestling, selling body parts, etc. CM Punk, despite the fact that his two WWE finishers are completely stolen and he didn't even bother renaming them, is the much better wrestler out of the two in my opinion.

 

[Calderownz]

In terms of the moves, the quickness, the style points (no pun intended), the agility and what have you, I'd go with AJ.

However, in terms of getting the crowd involved with less movement, the storytelling and his ability to mix up his offense, I'd go with Punk. In the end I think that might be just a tad bit more important at the highest level. Still, neither is far off in the others strong points and both can pt on very compelling match ups.

With that being said, I'd go with CM Punk, by a Triple H nose.

 

[RD_21]

Punk by a mile and I really, really like AJ.

AJ is great in ring, Punk is not as great as him, but I would still like to see a Punk vs Angle match to see how Punk could match it.

But as far as character, charisma, mic skill, Punk is DESTROYING Styles, in fact Punk is probably destroying everyone in this era of wrestling, except maybe Jericho.

So to me it's obvious that it's Punk but I still really like Styles and prefer TNA over WWE lately.

I know you said to not look at mic skill but it's part of the package. Otherwise the best guy could be in a backyard fed. He has to made it into big company and it's part of what you need.

With that said for the pyschology and the personna I still go with Punk, even if Styles may be a little bit better on pure athletism.

 

[Disturbed]

Punk by a mile and I really, really like AJ.

AJ is great in ring, Punk is not as great as him, but I would still like to see a Punk vs Angle match to see how Punk could match it.

But as far as character, charisma, mic skill, Punk is DESTROYING Styles, in fact Punk is probably destroying everyone in this era of wrestling, except maybe Jericho.

So to me it's obvious that it's Punk but I still really like Styles and prefer TNA over WWE lately.

I know you said to not look at mic skill but it's part of the package. Otherwise the best guy could be in a backyard fed. He has to made it into big company and it's part of what you need.

With that said for the pyschology and the personna I still go with Punk, even if Styles may be a little bit better on pure athletism.

You just contridicted yourself. You just said, Punk is not as great as AJ in the ring but Punk by far because of his character, charisma, and mic skills. I agree with you that Punk is by far better than AJ on the mic but dude, seriously? This thread is all about in ring skills. I said that in the first post that you should have read. AJ Styles is better in the ring and you even said it yourself. It has nothing to do with Personna. The best guy couldn't be in a backyard fed because I am only comparing AJ and Punk. Are either of those two in a backyard fed at the moment? Negative.