I can't believe I'm about to say this...but how is this such a one-sided argument? Look, I'm from Chicago. I followed Punk before anybody knew who Punk was (hipster point, please). I've been to every event in the area since his crazy hot streak of last summer - I'm a diehard Punk fan and even I think the one-sidedness of this debate is ridiculous.
So...Morales was a Triple Crown winner, but Punk did it faster?
No shit he did it faster. While Punk was flying through titles and rising up the ranks of one of the most transitional rosters in wrestling's history, Pedro Morales held the WWWF Heavyweight Championship for three years! Three fucking years! And it's not like he never defended it either - checking the Wiki page alone will show you that he fought Sammartino in a rematch, to a 75-minute draw. Just let that sink in for awhile... During that reign alone he beat Ivan Koloff, Bruno Sammartino, Larry Hennig and Freddie Blassie.
The laundry list of Hall of Famers and legends that Morales has beaten is incredible, not to mention his several lengthy title reigns. And yes, he kind of faded to the back of people's minds when you think old-school wrestling, but I'd wager it was because he was already old when Vince took over and expanded the WWF. He was never one of "Vince's guys", and unless you really followed wrestling by its regions at that point - I'd wager maybe 2 people on these forums actually did, I know I didn't - you'd probably forget about him.
Maybe Punk could win this match. It's in an extreme environment, which Pedro would be totally unfamiliar with. But if you can take Bruno Sammartino to a 75-minute draw, I'd wager you can find a way to outlast a small guy like Punk no matter what the gimmick. Punk has the advantage of being able to sneak out of Pedro's Boston Crab, which is handy. Punk has beaten John Cena, in his home town, and after a big "comeback". He's been at the top of the company, but here's the thing: even as WWE Champion Punk has always been overshadowed by either John Cena, Triple H or the Rock. Something always comes up that is bigger than the "Main event" scene on Raw. When Pedro was the champion, he was THE GUY for three whole years. No minority champion is getting that kind of treatment in 2012. Even the Rock went to the back of the line when Steve Austin was involved.
I'm voting for Pedro Morales. I understand voting for Punk, but I had really expected a bit more from the veterans of this forum. Punk, to me, hasn't proved quite yet that he can handle a challenge like this.