Orton VS Punk: Doing it wrong.

[Pepperami]

I haven't had chance to watch Raw this week yet, but I have read up on the results and I am appalled by the lazy booking of Orton VS Punk for WrestleMania.

The "stipulation" which will play out on Raw until WrestleMania is that Orton must face Nexus one by one during the coming weeks. If Orton defeats his opponent, they will not be allowed at ringside for the Ortn VS Punk match at Wrestlemania.
We all know the game that Nexus plays. We know it. The Raw GM knows it (which is the most worrying). Punk waves on his henchmen to assist him in winning matches and they do so, with varying degrees of success.
So what I hear from our allustrious Raw General Boss is this:
"If Orton does not defeat his Nexus opponent each week, that Nexus member is fully free to interfere at WrestleMania as long as he doesn't get caught."

WHY? Why does this need to happen? It's a huge disappointment as a stipulation. We all know damn well that the Nexus will interfere if they are allowed at ringside, so how will it be any different to the Nexus-based action we've seen in the past few weeks? We know that Orton can beat them down one by one and still come out on top, so how am I supposed to be excited about a match when:
- We know it will be interfered with
- We know Orton can overcome the Nexus
- There is nothing on the line
- There isn't enough heat. They are just out-smugging each other, which again, is not exciting

With that being said, I think Orton and Punk could have a great match, but not like this.

Here is my fix / solution:
First off, Orton and Punk need to be irate, and I mean getting right in each other's faces, steam coming out of their ears, nasty-ass scowls, that kind of thing. I want to believe in the hatred. Think back to HHH and Austin. Absolute hate. Currently, they are battling it out between the ring and the set,which to me doesn't make me think that the rivalry is that believable.

The WWE's booking is confusing at the moment. Orton supposedly has the mountain to climb against Nexus (hence the stipulation that gives Punk the handicap), but Punk is the one that looks weak because he's subtely hiding behind Nexus, not to mention that Orton's getting the upper hand anyway. Give the mountain to Punk. Take Nexus out of the picture (to go and piss someone else off) and let Punk and Orton build the match themselves.
They could have a no-match fued that involves sabotaging matches on Raw and getting out of control to the point where the GM twinkles in:
"I've had enough! Punk, Orton, you clearly can't control yourselves until WrestleMania, so I have no choice but to give you a special stipulation for your match..."
Street fight, tables match, Hell in a Cell, whatever, as long as it's an exciting stipulation where both Punk and Orton can revel in their vindictive personas. Let them at it.

It's a format we've seen a lot in the past, but with the right rivalry, it works, and I think Punk and Orton could give us something memorable. The current WrestleMania card has nothing risky and exciting.

How would you book Punk and Orton at the moment?
How do you think the rivarly is shaping up with the current stipulation?
Who seems stronger / weaker to you?

 

[sjdigitall]

Well the way i would book this is to have it as the start to the end of Nexus. Orton will win against each of the Nexus members except for Mason Ryan. Then at Mania have Mason Ryan turn on Punk and maybe start a feud there. Thats how i would book it. Though i wonder where WWE will go with this.

 

[EasyE]

First off, Orton and Punk need to be irate, and I mean getting right in each other's faces, steam coming out of their ears, nasty-ass scowls, that kind of thing. I want to believe in the hatred. Think back to HHH and Austin. Absolute hate. Currently, they are battling it out between the ring and the set,which to me doesn't make me think that the rivalry is that believable.

I agree, but let's remember there are still 4 Raws before WrestleMania, plenty of time for things to escalate. I think these two can steal the show w/ a great match.
the booking is awkward to begin with IMO. Punk has a great reason to want revenge on Orton, but it's for something that happened when Punk was face and Orton was a sadistic monster heel. It works, but Orton acting remorseful like a true face would is uncharacteristic for him. Orton never really turned face, he just started fighting heels and stopped antagonizing faces. I wouldn't be suprised if we hear alot of CM Punk support from the crowd at WrestleMania. Personally it might be cool if after a vicious 20min plus battle with a clean winner, Punk offers Orton a Nexus armband and these two go on to terrorize Raw ala HHH and Austin after their fued.

 

[Pepperami]

I hope they can heat it up. It's incredibly hard to get excited if the competitors don't look like they despise each other.
All I can see happening at the moment is the next few weeks with Orton defending himself from Nexus. It should just be Punk and Orton.
I'm not sure who I'll be routing for. I enjoy Orton's persona (although he is taking a leaf out of Cena's book and repeating the same stuff over and over) and CM Punk is fantastic as an all-round entertainer.
In that unique situation, I'm just hoping to see a great match.

 

[THEPUNKB4 CM PUNK]

I hope they can heat it up. It's incredibly hard to get excited if the competitors don't look like they despise each other.
All I can see happening at the moment is the next few weeks with Orton defending himself from Nexus. It should just be Punk and Orton.
I'm not sure who I'll be routing for. I enjoy Orton's persona (although he is taking a leaf out of Cena's book and repeating the same stuff over and over) and CM Punk is fantastic as an all-round entertainer.
In that unique situation, I'm just hoping to see a great match.

i have 2 agree it should just be Punk vs Orton at Mania as we have seen the whole of Nexus vs one man done b4 when the did Cena vs Nexus i think that maybe at Mania too get more heat and peaple wanting to watch it to have Orton and Punk in maybe a hardcore rules match inside hell in a cell with no interference i still think it would of been more interesting in Orton still have the WWE championship

 

[flyguy1609]

whats going happen is orton is going beat the nexus and @ mania, it will be 1-1. Punk wants to prove hes the better man the Randy he wont resort to "Cheating" (i know hes a heel and all) and the new nexus will face off against the corre, in some sorta tag match(weather 2-2 or 3-3, debending on if they do a Wade-Jackson vs Big Show match...

 

[meeks32]

What should happen is Orton beats everyone in Nexus and goes to Wrestlemania to fight Punk. Core should interfere and help Punk win. In the end The Core and Nexus becomes one and wreck havoc on both shows.

 

[shafe_41]

There are still 4 weeks of Raw before Mania and only 2 Nexus members left. Let it build cupcake without saying how awful it is only after one week. Why do you need a stipulation to make this interesting anyway? I really don't give 2 shits how this storyline plays out because it's just kind of thrown together anyway after Cena got hurt and the extent of his injuries were unknown. All I care about is a good match at Wrestlemania. You don't NEED a good storyline going into Wrestlemania to have a great match there. Sure it makes it more interesting, but it's not totally necessary. I think these 2 will have an amazing match and that's the important thing.

It's tough enough to get any kind of emotion out of Randy Orton anyway and CM Punk isn't exactly the person to do it. I love Punk and he's no doubt my favorite heel on Raw right now, but it's the line Orton walks that makes this really difficult also. His face character but still using some heel characteristics make it tough to build anything super compelling. Orton is still emotionless. He always has been. The only time I can honestly remember Orton having a smile on his face and actually meaning it was after Night of Champions after he won the title. I was there in Chicago and after the cameras went off, he was smiling from ear to ear and walked around ringside and shook hands with EVERY SINGLE PERSON that was within arms reach. The man showed emotion. I know he can do it. It's just getting his character to do it.

Let it build. Week 1 and you're already shitting on it. Shame shame.

 

[SuperSav10]

I think the soul purpose of this is to get to the point that Orton will finally get his hands on CM Punk one on one at Wrestlemania. In other words, week in and week out up until Wrestlemania, CM Punk can hide behind the Nexus and do countless beat downs on Orton, while Orton also tries to pave his way through the Nexus to get to Punk.

The aim is to make people want to watch Wrestlemania so they can finally see Orton get Punk one on one, man to man.

 

[MetalBuffalo911]

I just joined, and it was actually because of this idea I mentioned last night to my friend during Raw. Hopefully I'll be on here quite a bit and be an active forum member, but anyway.

See, with CM Punk still being almost a cult leader and manipulator, I'm thinking that maybe down the road, after their match at Mania, or soon thereafter or what not, Punk could almost "brainwash" Orton into joining the Nexus.

The reason I am thinking this is Punk has now tried twice to prevent Orton from punting a Nexus member when Randy goes into his "hearing voices" thing, and each time Orton did consider not doing it. Now my thinking is what if a story ensues that has Punk "stop the voices and stop the pain" or whatever in Orton's head.

This would allow for Orton to turn heel, all the while keeping his viciousness whenever Punk sees fit. I just think Orton's promo about paralyzing CM Punk was WAAAAAY to graphic/absurd/violent for Orton to be a face, just saying.

 

[Hitman-HBK United Inc.]

@MetalBuffalo911. Your idea is fantastic I must say, almost like Punk treating Orton like he was an animal, kinda like in that Jet Li movie which title escapes me at the moment.

But sadly I don't think the WWE creative team would go that route, because I really don't think they have the smarts to do so. I mean this is a money angle if they really tried....Punk brainwashes Orton, controls him for the longest time, Orton breaks out of the spell, leading to a HUGE epic blowoff.

 

[Ferathon]

See, with CM Punk still being almost a cult leader and manipulator, I'm thinking that maybe down the road, after their match at Mania, or soon thereafter or what not, Punk could almost "brainwash" Orton into joining the Nexus.

The reason I am thinking this is Punk has now tried twice to prevent Orton from punting a Nexus member when Randy goes into his "hearing voices" thing, and each time Orton did consider not doing it. Now my thinking is what if a story ensues that has Punk "stop the voices and stop the pain" or whatever in Orton's head.

This would be a great way to make Nexus relevant and exciting for at least another 3 months or so. We'll say July some time give or take a month, then suddenly in the middle of a match where Punk is set to gain something big(MITB PPV if they have it again, maybe), Orton snaps out of it, RKO's Punk, brings at least one member of the New Nexus to his side and the Punk-Orton feud then would be amazing. And a legitimate way to split the Nexus before it gets even more stale.

 

[CowSlayer]

]But sadly I don't think the WWE creative team would go that route, because I really don't think they have the smarts to do so. I mean this is a money angle if they really tried....Punk brainwashes Orton, controls him for the longest time, Orton breaks out of the spell, leading to a HUGE epic blowoff.

"Brainwash"...really? REALLY?

The LAST thing we need right now is some sort of voodoo angle....remember what happened with Ultimate Warrior - Papa Shango?

 

[RkoZ420]

The problem I have with this feud is that the heels/faces are mixed up.

Punk wants revenge from when Orton did a gang attack on him and cost him his World Heavyweight Championship... how exactly is Punk the heel and Orton the face in this?

Same thing with the Triple H/Orton stuff, Orton hated Triple H because Triple H orchestrated a gang attack on him because Triple H was jealous of him winning the WHC.. yet Orton was the heel and Triple H was the face for all of their feuds save the first one.

 

[MetalBuffalo911]

"Brainwash"...really? REALLY?

The LAST thing we need right now is some sort of voodoo angle....remember what happened with Ultimate Warrior - Papa Shango?

Not brainwash as in "voodoo angle," Brainwash as in the way Punk brainwashed Gallows, Selena, and MErcury into having blind faith into him. It's an actual thing, not voodoo shit. Ever heard of a cult?

 

[Robi2184]

I really like the feud so far, the fact they are keeping Punk & Orton from facing each other before the match at WM is very smart. The way I see it shaping out is that at Mania we will see Punk vs Orton one on one and Punk pulling the huge upset win clean.

It would make Punk a serious threat and a top level heel. Orton has accomplished everything in the WWE and is at the top of the mountain and the WWE needs well establish heels.

Think this is just the beginning of great things to come for the Second City Saint.

 

[Twisted]

Well first off neither is really a face character. Punk is trying to go that cult leader route. Orton however never had to do an "act" to be loved, people just started liking him and WWE couldn't do anything about it. He was the top heel and still could be. This feud just needs to focus on these two, Orton being sadistic and Punk being deceptive. "The voices" thing with Orton isn't like he actually hears voices but rather that he just snaps and goes into a rage.

Like said this is still in the early stages to judge. Wait till two weeks prior and come back here. I think alot are right and this could be a good darkhorse match at Wrestlemania. Only thing i would do is maybe have Orton make the Nexus doubt Punk and they don't help him leaving only these two to build their own match. Both are capable of getting us deep into the storyline and can pull off a great match. Come on VKM don't let this slip under the radar just to keep Cena in the picture.

 

[EStreet]

Orton should punt each one of the members in the head. Eliminate them from the picture and make it a real one on one match at 'Mania.

 

[beckyh]

It's just ... bleh

Orton does not have good chemistry with alot of people. I see this as a way to get Punk over with people and climb out of mid-cardville where he has been living for so long.

Let Punk do his thing and move on to greener pastures.

Get Orton some serious booking. And not part of a group/duo/stable.

IF memory serves, Orton was part of Evolution not too long after he debuted in 2002 until 2005.

He was on his own from 2005-2006.

He was with Edge as Rated RKO during the 2006-2007 period then did the Legend Killer gimmick solo until 2008.

Legacy was in the 2008-2010 range and he has been doing singles competition ever since then.

Overall it seems like he has only been doing singles competition for 2-3 years out of his entire career.

His promos during his Evolution until his Legend Killer gimmick were superior to the ones he does now. Earlier in his career you could not get him to shut up and now he won't talk...lol....

 

[Long Island Iced WXYZ]

How would you book Punk and Orton at the moment?

The problemn with the way it's being booked is that Nexus is looking weak right now.

The babyface needs to be at a disadvantage so that it means something when the face finally beats the heel.

Right now Orton has taken out two members on his own.

It makes no sense.

Book Nexus to beat the hell out of Orton, where's the heat on Nexus? There isn't any. They keep getting their asses handed to them. First Cena and now Orton.

Who seems stronger / weaker to you?

In this feud Orton is looking a hell of a lot stronger than Punk based on what I wrote.

 

[beckyh]

Right now Nexus looks like the Straight Edge Society version 2.0. Only no bald girl...or guys....but the t-shirts have similarities.

I agree that the face needs to be seen as climbing a mountain of adversity (in their own unique way) to be successful. If Orton was seen as twisting the members of Nexus against Punk that would help. Have him go around and influence each member that they don't need Punk or each other. That, in fact, the group was holding each of them back as superstars. But if they could one up each other and then go after Punk then they would have respect.

Have this go on and then during a crucial match all of Nexus break out and destroy Punk. Orton wins by 'nefarious' means. Nexus is disbanded. Punk looks like the underdog.

Have Punk come out and start a hard fued with Orton. Nothing soft like tag matches but an extreme rules match or a last man standing match. Increase the pressure every week and let it go on for two or three PPVs.