WCW Region, Houston Region, Second Round: (6) Edge vs. (11) CM Punk

[Tastycles]

This is a second round match in the WCW Region, Houston Subregion. It is a standard one on one match. It will be held at the Toyota Center, Houston, Texas

#6. Edge

Vs.

#11. CM Punk

​

This match takes place 1 week after round 1.

Polls will be open for three days following a one day period for discussion. Voting will be based on who you feel is the greater of the two competitors. Post your reasons for why your pick should win below. Remember that this is non-spam and the most votes in the poll win. Any ties will be broken by the amount of posts of support for each candidate, with one vote per poster.

Also remember that this is a non-spam forum. If you post a response without giving a reason for your selection, it will be penalized for spam and deleted.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

This would be a great match to watch and both guys would really bring it and leave it all laying in the ring. Edge spent the last roughly 6 years of his career as truly one of the top guys in WWE and had 11 World Championship reigns to show for it. He also had a great run as mid-card and, most certainly, a tag team wrestler.

CM Punk has been extremely hot since the middle of last summer in which he finally made the leap from feared mid-carder for life to the main event level. We all know what Punk can do inside the ring and we know how good he is on the mic. He's certainly had the overall strongest run with the WWE Championship in several years and I expect him to hold the title for much of the rest of this year.

In the end, I'm going with Punk for the win over Edge. It's true that Edge has accomplished more than Punk has and I'm not doubting Edge's ability or credentials. For me, however, I've seen CM Punk do something that I don't think Edge was ever able to do: defeat John Cena clean in a one on one match for the WWE Championship. I know that Edge did cash in MITB and beat Cena so I guess, technically, a case could be made for Edge beating Cena cleanly based on the rules & stipulations of the MITB concept. However, no matter what, such a win is always going to carry some sort of taint in the minds of a lot of fans. Such a thing does carry weight with me, especially with CM Punk in the midst of being a heel at the time. How often have we seen John Cena over the past 5 or 6 years beaten cleanly by a heel?

As I said, it'll be a great match and both guys will leave it all inside the ring. I look for Edge to hit multiple spears & Punk to hit a couple of GTSs with both kicking out. However, I see Punk claiming the victory between the 25-30 minute mark after locking in the Anaconda Vice, possibly for also the 2nd or 3rd time during the match, only Edge is too worn out to some how get to the ropes or work his way out of the move.

 

[FlexAmerican Dynamite]

This was match I was fearful of for Punk. With Edge's retirement and his multiple accomplishments I feel some would mindlessly vote for him. But Punk takes this, it won't it be easy though. Edge is tough no doubt but I just don't think he can out wrestler Punk. Yeah he will hit a spear or two but I think based on Punk's overall record and his current hot streak since this summer that there is no way Edge beats Punk. Punk makes the rated R superstar tap in the 20 minute mark.

 

[GI Cake]

I'm going to side with CM Punk on this one. Pretty much just to get on JGlassy's shit list for this round.


Wait, what on earth is this? The ultimate Opportunist getting suckered punched out of his world title by CM Punk? No no, this can't be right. Edge is the Ultimate Opportunist, he wouldn't have been taken advantage of like this by Punk of all people. Well, it happened. Punk can be just as dastardly and cunning as Edge if need be. And like in the video, out smart Edge.

Anyone else remember this night? This is the night where CM Punk beat the face of the company for the biggest title in Professional Wrestling clean. Now Edge has plenty of wins over Cena, but all of them resulted from out-smarting and using his cunning to cheat the win. Edge bested Cena using his cunning. Punk bested Cena by using both his cunning and actual ring ability to pin John Cena.

CM Punk gets my vote here.

 

[The Gribbler]

AH FUCK!! How could you do this this early! How in the blue hell and I supposed to seperate two of my all time favorites?

Really I can't split them on any criteria I can think of... Oh wait... 11 world title reigns to ... less than 11.... but Edge's were all short... Shit Shit..

Edge has been around longer, done more on the big stage...

Im gonna go Edge but I am not happy bout it.

 

[TheHeartbreakPunk]

I gotta go with cm punk for this one. Both are two of my favorite superstars, but cm punk has been on a big streak lately. I say around the 26 minute mark, punk hits a second gts when edge misses an attempted second spear.

 

[It's...Baylariat!]

PUNK WINS! PUNK WINS!

Why?

BECAUSE HE'S THE BEST IN THE WORLD!

Seriously, Punk's one of the smartest in-ring technicians in the business. The past 10 years, I can't think of anyone outside of HHH who can get into your head by simply being a smug, smart-minded jerk. Punk can do that, and Edge doesn't have the composure to focus enough and win this match.

Ultimate Opportunities come along when one presents itself. Punk will not present that opportunity and hits the GTS in a Match of the Year candidate. Lots of near falls, neck breakers, Lita, and some handcuffs for whatever reason.

 

[JJYanks121]

Well, Punk showed up to Edge's hall of fame induction WITH Lita so does he have a mental edge? Perhaps...........

I digress. Somehow, I'm not sure if that's an issue. What is an issue is Edge's character. He has like 11 title reigns in his career but the average reign like 2 months. This is a guy that took advantage of opportunities but if he matched up against a big face and was unable to cheat, he lost. This isn't a dominant heel, this is a sneaky one. With WWE rules and him being watched like a hawk in a tournament, I'm not sure his tactics would work.

Edge never had the type of reign Punk is having now. His last reign as a babyface was close but he wasn't nearly as over as Punk. Edge will go down in history for his crazy amount of title wins (all different titles), but Punk might go down as one of the most popular guys ever with a few majorly long title reigns. Heck, he's already held a World title 5 times!

It's close but I am going with Punk here due to Edge's inability to be sneaky.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

I think it all boils down to the fact that while Edge has had more World Title runs than Punk, Punk has had the more dominant run. Seriously, when was the last time that a face other than John Cena has held the WWE title for so long on Raw, WWE's flagship show? This is the guy that unseated John Cena as the top merchandise seller in the company which is just further proof of how big a star he is.

Someone will come into this thread and start talking about how sneaky Edge is, but Punk may be one of the smartest babyfaces of all time. Even in his latest 6 month reign as champion, he has faced and overcome a plethora of heel tactics. The GM of the show has been against him and has tried to get him to lose the WWE title via disqualification not just once, but twice, against both Alberto Del Rio and Jericho. Punk has won against Dolph Ziggler despite outside interferences. Mind games do not work on Punk either as has been evidenced by his recent wins over Chris Jericho. Punk even evaded an MITB cash-in once at Money In the Bank against Alberto.

Punk may have fallen prey to sneaky heel tactics once or twice but on most occasions, I expect him to overcome them. Simply because I have not seen a face overcome so many sneaky tactics on a consistent basis in a long, long time. Edge, in his prime is a sneak par excellence, while Punk, in his prime, is a super smart face who evades sneaky tactics every single time.

Vote Punk.

 

[#hamler]

Can someone point me to the match where CM Punk won cleanly over Cena? I'm looking, and I'm looking hard - I don't see it. What I do see is a dirty finish at both Money in the Bank and Summer Slam 2011. At the Money in the Bank PPV, Punk capitalized off McMahon's decision to have Laurinaitis bring him the ring bell, thus distracting Cena. At Summer Slam, Cena's foot was clearly under the rope when Triple H counted the fall. Those don't classify as clean wins. If so, I can point to numerous times where Edge has pinned Cena.

I don't see how Punk's reign right now is anything spectacular. He's being hugely over shadowed by The Rock and John Cena and now Brock Lesnar and John Cena. Punk's reign isn't impressive. On the other hand, Edge completely dominated Smackdown for the better part of his time on the Blue Brand's roster. Edge has victories over Undertaker, John Cena, Randy Orton, Mick Foley, Rey Mysterio and many more. Edge's accomplishments tromp all over Punk's. King of the Ring, Royal Rumble, Money in the Bank - Punk's managed to knock off two wins at the Money in the Bank but has yet to win the Rumble, or King of the Ring. In fact, didn't Punk lose to a very midcard William Regal in the finals of King of the Ring? Edge beat Kurt Angle in the finals - one of the best ever. Not to mention, Edge's live sex show got a 5.2 rating - a rating Punk will never accomlpish.

Edge wins here. Same way Orton won at Wrestlemania 27 only replacing the RKO with the Spear.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

Can someone point me to the match where CM Punk won cleanly over Cena? I'm looking, and I'm looking hard - I don't see it. What I do see is a dirty finish at both Money in the Bank and Summer Slam 2011. At the Money in the Bank PPV, Punk capitalized off McMahon's decision to have Laurinaitis bring him the ring bell, thus distracting Cena. At Summer Slam, Cena's foot was clearly under the rope when Triple H counted the fall. Those don't classify as clean wins. If so, I can point to numerous times where Edge has pinned Cena.

Both guys were interfered against when it comes to Money In the Bank. Punk had Cena down with the GTS when Cena rolled out of the ring and at the same time Lauraniatis and Vince came down to the ring. Punk wasted some precious time staring at them because he was anticipating an interference which allowed Cena to lock in the STF. It could be said that Punk may have won there and then had Vince and Lauraniatis not come into the arena.

Edge has only won against Cena by some blatant cheating which is a hell lot different from what Punk did to Cena. Punk was the guy who was interfered against at MITB which puts him at a disadvantage while Cena does not like winning in an unclean manner which puts him at a disadvantage as well. Since both guys had something going against them, that puts them at an equal footing here. Very different from what Edge used to do, mind you. He always had the unfair advantage over Cena due to his use of unfair tactics. Yet, Cena still won some of those matches.

I don't see how Punk's reign right now is anything spectacular. He's being hugely over shadowed by The Rock and John Cena and now Brock Lesnar and John Cena. Punk's reign isn't impressive. On the other hand, Edge completely dominated Smackdown for the better part of his time on the Blue Brand's roster. Edge has victories over Undertaker, John Cena, Randy Orton, Mick Foley, Rey Mysterio and many more. Edge's accomplishments tromp all over Punk's.

Yeah, if you think that Edge would not have been overshadowed by the likes of Rock and Brock, then I do not know what to tell you. Mind you, Punk has still done well enough. When Cena's match against Rock was announced on the night after Mania 27, most people were speculating that anything that Cena would do for the rest of the year would pale in comparison to Cena vs Rock.

But one man made us forget for a while that The Rock even mattered. That was Punk. The summer of Punk was so hot that people forgot about The Rock for a while. Punk showed that you could have a hot story without an Attitude Era star returning and for a while, no one was talking about Cena/ Rock. Everybody was talking about Cena/ Punk. Surely that must rank as one of Punk's achievements, if anything. Edge did not have the charisma to do that. He could not, even in his dream, have a feud good enough to make us forget about the inevitable clash Cena/ Rock. Edge was the top heel in an era when there was no one around whereas Punk is the guy who stole the thunder from Rock and Cena and even became the top merchandise seller.

Edge wins here. Same way Orton won at Wrestlemania 27 only replacing the RKO with the Spear.

That was not Punk's peak and there is no way that Edge wins against Punk in his peak because as I have showed, Punk is better than most other babyfaces at countering sneaky heel tactics that are Edge's forte.

Vote Punk.

 

[#hamler]

Both guys were interfered against when it comes to Money In the Bank. Punk had Cena down with the GTS when Cena rolled out of the ring and at the same time Lauraniatis and Vince came down to the ring. Punk wasted some precious time staring at them because he was anticipating an interference which allowed Cena to lock in the STF. It could be said that Punk may have won there and then had Vince and Lauraniatis not come into the arena.

It still qualifies as a dirty finish either way you look at it. Therefore, Punk never beat Cena cleanly.

Edge has only won against Cena by some blatant cheating which is a hell lot different from what Punk did to Cena. Punk was the guy who was interfered against at MITB which puts him at a disadvantage while Cena does not like winning in an unclean manner which puts him at a disadvantage as well. Since both guys had something going against them, that puts them at an equal footing here.

Granted, both were on equal footing, Punk still capitalized off Cena being distracted.

When Cena's match against Rock was announced on the night after Mania 27, most people were speculating that anything that Cena would do for the rest of the year would pale in comparison to Cena vs Rock.

But one man made us forget for a while that The Rock even mattered. That was Punk. The summer of Punk was so hot that people forgot about The Rock for a while. Punk showed that you could have a hot story without an Attitude Era star returning and for a while, no one was talking about Cena/ Rock. Everybody was talking about Cena/ Punk. Surely that must rank as one of Punk's achievements, if anything.

That's purely speculation. Ratings stayed normal the entire time throughout Punk's "hot streak." The only reason the internet blew up because they're the only ones who know who Colt Cabana was and what an ROH is.

Punk is the guy who stole the thunder from Rock and Cena and even became the top merchandise seller.

A 5.2 rating for a segment stomps all over that. Has Cena ever managed to draw a 5.2 rating? Or Punk? I don't care enough to look but I doubt it.

That was not Punk's peak and there is no way that Edge wins against Punk in his peak because as I have showed, Punk is better than most other babyfaces at countering sneaky heel tactics that are Edge's forte.

What heel tactics has Punk overcame? And has Punk overcame any heel that was better than Edge? Edge is the ultimate opportunist for a reason. No heel Punk has ever faced match Edge's ability to pull a win out of the most stickiest of situations. Punk won't overcome him. He hasn't had the challenge yet.

Vote Edge.

Fixed.

 

[JJYanks121]

It still qualifies as a dirty finish either way you look at it. Therefore, Punk never beat Cena cleanly.


Granted, both were on equal footing, Punk still capitalized off Cena being distracted.


That's purely speculation. Ratings stayed normal the entire time throughout Punk's "hot streak." The only reason the internet blew up because they're the only ones who know who Colt Cabana was and what an ROH is.


A 5.2 rating for a segment stomps all over that. Has Cena ever managed to draw a 5.2 rating? Or Punk? I don't care enough to look but I doubt it.


What heel tactics has Punk overcame? And has Punk overcame any heel that was better than Edge? Edge is the ultimate opportunist for a reason. No heel Punk has ever faced match Edge's ability to pull a win out of the most stickiest of situations. Punk won't overcome him. He hasn't had the challenge yet.


Fixed.

I don't think you should be using the 5.2 defense for Edge. Somehow I doubt people were tuning in to see him talk about being champion. I'm pretty sure the idea of Lita being naked likely drew a few horny teenagers that they had a chance to see some boob on TV. Outside of that one segment, was Edge really such a gigantic draw? Prove me wrong but I don't think he was.

I think the harsh reality here is that Edge spent too much of his career as a heel. He was on his way to being a HUGE face in 2002-2003 but the injury had him come back to garner a reaction less than he was used to and he was turned into a bad guy who relied on sneaky tactics to win. In fact, he did so more than almost any other heel. Half his title wins come from sneaking into matches, sneaking pins in multi-man matches, etc. In one on one contests, Edge got his comeuppance against major faces. That is precisely what Punk is and this is a one on one competition in the WCW region. Edge is put in a one on one where his opponent knows what he's up to. He loses here though it's a match that would likely steal the show.

 

[Hulk Hogan's Brother]

It still qualifies as a dirty finish either way you look at it. Therefore, Punk never beat Cena cleanly.


Granted, both were on equal footing, Punk still capitalized off Cena being distracted.

It was not a clean finish but Punk did defeat Cena when they were on an equal footing. Unlike Edge. That has to count.

That's purely speculation. Ratings stayed normal the entire time throughout Punk's "hot streak." The only reason the internet blew up because they're the only ones who know who Colt Cabana was and what an ROH is.

Ratings stayed normal even on the Road to WrestleMania even when Rock was on the show. Does that mean that Rock made no impact? Punk was able to become the top merch seller in the company on the basis of this angle and a while later he became the first face other than Cena to have a long run with the belt in years. That is a staggering achievement in itself. The July PPV(MITB) also managed to get more buys than it had in the previous couple of years.

A 5.2 rating for a segment stomps all over that. Has Cena ever managed to draw a 5.2 rating? Or Punk? I don't care enough to look but I doubt it.

Nor has Edge ever since. Which makes me pretty sure that it was the live sex that was the draw and not Edge. Also ratings were automatically higher in that era as compared to this era.

What heel tactics has Punk overcame? And has Punk overcame any heel that was better than Edge? Edge is the ultimate opportunist for a reason. No heel Punk has ever faced match Edge's ability to pull a win out of the most stickiest of situations. Punk won't overcome him. He hasn't had the challenge yet.

Check out my first post in the thread. Punk has overcome a nasty, scheming general manager in Lauraniatis, managers like Vickie and Ricardo Rodriguez, mind games from Chris Jericho and even an MITB cash-in. Pretty much Edge's entire repertiore in the space of 6-7 months.

Vote Punk.

 

[Born To Fly]

If the referee stays awake during the match and doesn't get bumped, this is CM Punk's to win. Should the referee take a bump, Edge would probably hit CM Punk with a Con-Chairto or something similar and take the win. My money is on CM Punk, though, as he is a better wrestler and can overcome all odds thrown his way, especially by Edge.

 

[#hamler]

Nor has Edge ever since. Which makes me pretty sure that it was the live sex that was the draw and not Edge. Also ratings were automatically higher in that era as compared to this era.

What's there to prove people didn't tune in because of Edge? Not to mention, compared to other shows and segments around that time, Edges segment still drew drastically more.

Check out my first post in the thread. Punk has overcome a nasty, scheming general manager in Lauraniatis, managers like Vickie and Ricardo Rodriguez, mind games from Chris Jericho and even an MITB cash-in. Pretty much Edge's entire repertiore in the space of 6-7 months.

I understand but none of these performers were built as the ultimate opportunist though. Edge has proven he can find ways to win in any situation. Who's to say he cannot do the same to Punk?

I don't think you should be using the 5.2 defense for Edge. Somehow I doubt people were tuning in to see him talk about being champion. I'm pretty sure the idea of Lita being naked likely drew a few horny teenagers that they had a chance to see some boob on TV. Outside of that one segment, was Edge really such a gigantic draw? Prove me wrong but I don't think he was.

Is Punk? Edge at least has that segment to his name.

 

[bigpotaka]

I think this would be a great match and don't mind who wins either way, i actually like edge better than CM Punk, but the way i see it, CM Punk wins, hits something big on the outside, injures edge and wins by countout

 

[BK Styles]

Can someone point me to the match where CM Punk won cleanly over Cena? I'm looking, and I'm looking hard - I don't see it. What I do see is a dirty finish at both Money in the Bank and Summer Slam 2011. At the Money in the Bank PPV, Punk capitalized off McMahon's decision to have Laurinaitis bring him the ring bell, thus distracting Cena. At Summer Slam, Cena's foot was clearly under the rope when Triple H counted the fall. Those don't classify as clean wins. If so, I can point to numerous times where Edge has pinned Cena.

You make a fair point here, but at the same time, he took everything Cena had and didn't give up. Also, Cena was distracted, and Punk capitalized, but that was no-one's fault but Cenas.

I don't see how Punk's reign right now is anything spectacular. He's being hugely over shadowed by The Rock and John Cena and now Brock Lesnar and John Cena. Punk's reign isn't impressive.

Disagree here a little. I can totally understand your reasoning, but bear this in mind; Punk has beaten everyone who has been in front of him for the last five months, including five guys in an Elimination Chamber. How many of Edge's single title reigns lasted that long? His second World Heavyweight title reign was for 105 days. At the time of me typing this, Punk is going at 157, and will top out at 160 should he lose at Extreme Rules. If he doesn't, who knows?

On the other hand, Edge completely dominated Smackdown for the better part of his time on the Blue Brand's roster. Edge has victories over Undertaker, John Cena, Randy Orton, Mick Foley, Rey Mysterio and many more.

Whilst I cannot disagree here, Punk is currently one of the top guys on Raw. Anyone is going to be second fiddle to Cena, that's just the way it's gonna go. Hell, Edge was when he was on Raw. If Punk was to go over to Smackdown now, you could guarantee he'd be at the top of the card with Orton.

Also, that is an impressive list, but Punk has beaten Cena, Taker, Mysterio, Batista, Jeff Hardy (in the best form of his career) and Chris Jericho. Not exactly a bad resume

Edge's accomplishments tromp all over Punk's. King of the Ring, Royal Rumble, Money in the Bank - Punk's managed to knock off two wins at the Money in the Bank but has yet to win the Rumble, or King of the Ring. In fact, didn't Punk lose to a very midcard William Regal in the finals of King of the Ring? Edge beat Kurt Angle in the finals - one of the best ever. Not to mention, Edge's live sex show got a 5.2 rating - a rating Punk will never accomlpish.

The last part doesn't really have much to dow ith who would win in a match between the two of them, but I'd urge caution at saying Punk will never reach that. You simply never know these days. Besides, Punk managed to shift his spot and raise his stock in the WWE with one promo; before that he was nowhere near the main event, and after he was at the very least in the ball park.

Accolades-wise, you're spot on. Though it has to be said that Punk has only, in the last year, come into his own, and since then he has been on fire. He's nearly held the world title for half a year, which is something Edge could only dream of doing.

Edge wins here. Same way Orton won at Wrestlemania 27 only replacing the RKO with the Spear.

I've gotta say, I'm torn. I really am. Edge is one of my favorite wrestlers of all time, but I'm a huge Punk fan too, and he's the main reason I've been watching avidly for the last year.

As far as ability in the ring goes, I'd say they're close to even. Punk has found a consistency to his work in his recent run, and has put on some stellar matches with the likes of Cena, Jericho and Orton. Edge, while he mostly uses dirty tactics, has some great matches with Taker and Batista and Cena.

Edges clear advantage is his ability to find loopholes and cheat, but lets not forget that Punk, when he needs to, has every ability to do that. There is no question, however, that Edge is the master of this, and that gives him a big advantage. Punk has shown, however, that he has the ability to overcome mind games, such as at Mania with Jericho, and has been a master at them before. this might be enough to help him counter-act Edge.

That said...I dunno. For me, it really could go either way. Edge could steal a win at any point, but if Punk locks in the Anaconda Vise, I can see Edge losing this one. And, if I'm honest, that is the way I see this going.

Punk for the win in a back and forth match with the Anaconda Vise.

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I can't decide on who to go for in this.

Punk is so good right now, definitely one of the best in the world and is likely smart enough to know what Edge is up to and avoid any of his sneaky tactics that usually get him a win.

But Edge has the accolades on his side. He accomplished a phenomenal amount in his career, and IS the ultimate opportunist, even more so than Punk. If Edge spots a chance, he takes it. End of.

Both are capable of beating the other through a variety of ways, clean or dirty. So, I am holding off on voting for now.

Come on guys, win me over. Prove to me who is the correct decision

 

[Davi323]

I am leaning towards Edge, but it's something along the lines of 50.1% to 49.9%. These two guys are just about even in every single way that matters, in terms of mic work, in ring ability, charisma, stamina, etc. Both men can be the face, both can be the heel, both can be the heelish face. As far as match tactics go, both men would cheat if it served their purpose. They aren't quite mirror images of each other, but there are a lot of similarities. The only real difference is that Edge has more hardware to show for it. It's possible that by the time Punk retires, his championship resume will match Edge's...but that's just speculative. We know what Edge did, we know what Punk has done so far. That gives Edge the advantage to me. It's not much of one, given how balanced this pairing is, but it's a small one. However, it's not so much of one that a compelling argument for Punk couldn't sway me.

 

[aza1294]

Oh why did this have to happen in the first round.. Veeeery tough as both are such great workers, but I give it to CM Punk. That is because Edge always relies on underhanded tactics to pick up victories but Punk has shown he can counter that with some of his own. So sad to vote against one of my fav 5 but Punk advances

 

[Coco]

I don't see how Punk's reign right now is anything spectacular.

Lengthy run as a dominant face on the A-show is the pinnacle of success in 2012 WWE, given only to the likes of Cena, DX, Orton, and Batista. The real heavy hitters. Punk has been anointed one of their kind. As good as Edge allegedly was, he was never THAT good.

He's being hugely over shadowed by The Rock and John Cena and now Brock Lesnar and John Cena. Punk's reign isn't impressive. On the other hand, Edge completely dominated Smackdown for the better part of his time on the Blue Brand's roster.

Well this surely is foolishness on your part. Do you really think these situations are comparable? You can't. You see, Rock, Cena, and Lesnar would be overshadowing Edge if he was active while domination of SmackDown means and has always meant comparatively little. I like to give you the benefit of the doubt and assume your brain doesn't operate in this crude, simple fashion. But this is sad.

Edge's accomplishments tromp all over Punk's. King of the Ring, Royal Rumble, Money in the Bank - Punk's managed to knock off two wins at the Money in the Bank but has yet to win the Rumble, or King of the Ring. In fact, didn't Punk lose to a very midcard William Regal in the finals of King of the Ring? Edge beat Kurt Angle in the finals - one of the best ever.

The rise of Angle and guys who were seen as "legitimate" like him (Lesnar and the like) is the beginning of the WWE losing their hold on the Attitude Era fans. You want to ride Punk for being a smark darling? Angle's an even bigger nobody.

Also, we're assuming these men are in their prime in this match. If we're holding 2008 Punk's loss to Regal against him, a loss that came as a result of Regal having an easier road to the finals than Punk, then I'm sure I can find similarly tainted losses against Regal to throw in Edge's face. I guess that Edge really sucks, eh?

Royal Rumble winner? Fine. But Edge was a long-term main event mainstay when he took that home. Punk hasn't had a real shot to match that accomplishment until just this year, when he was as legit as ever was. And he was busy retaining his title. Look for Punk to win one next year or the year after though. Punk's at that level now.

Basically, none of this means anything. You suck at logic.

Not to mention, Edge's live sex show got a 5.2 rating - a rating Punk will never accomlpish.

First of all, Cena drew that rating. The whole segment was built off of his first title loss. That could have been anyone and the segment still would have drawn.

Second of all, numbers don't even mean the same thing they do six years ago. The cable landscape has changed. Comparing ratings in this crude fashion is, and always will be, foolish.

Edge wins here. Same way Orton won at Wrestlemania 27 only replacing the RKO with the Spear.

But prime Punk is current face Punk. And I don't think current face Punk would have a problem with a guy that 2009 face Punk beat clean in Madison Square Garden. Yes, Edge was in his prime and Punk was just starting to main event. And he still put your boy down. 2012 face Punk would decimate him.

Vote: Punk

PS: Hamler's a moron.

 

[The 1-2-3 Killam]

[YOUTUBE]izhrn_m96Ik[/YOUTUBE][YOUTUBE]uwLv94PxxvQ[/YOUTUBE]

[YOUTUBE]7XOV7y_NUeI[/YOUTUBE]

I'm kind of surprised this is so one-sided in favor of CM Punk. I mean, I'm from Chicago and I would love to see Punk get as far as possible in this thing, but not if he doesn't deserve it. Edge vs CM Punk, with both men in the primes of their respective careers would be an unholy battle to behold, but the issue is that Punk probably hasn't even hit his yet. I have no doubt that in five or so years, Punk could take this hands down - if he manages to keep performing at a superior level and holds his place atop the company, it's a no-brainer. But Punk has been "the man" for about a year - most of that time the spotlight was shared with the likes of John Cena, Triple H and/or the Rock.

I won't lie and say that Edge was ever "the man", not held down by another top star. Hell, he was never even a top face at all, making Punk's current role all the more impressive. But that's also a hard thing to judge on, particularly when a heel is a heel for a reason - Edge's reason: he was GOOD at it! Yes, there are a lot of heels that are only heels because they don't have the charisma or creative direction to be anything else. You can find these guys all over wrestling's history. But Edge isn't one of them - he was damn good as a heel, in fact much better than when he was a face. One of the best of all time, dare I say. So I don't want to hear any of that "Edge wasn't good enough to be a face, therefor Punk is better" nonsense. He was fantastic as a heel, so a heel he played.

Edge is a 11 time WWE World Champion. 14 sets of tag championships. 5 times an IC Champ. King of the Ring. Royal Rumble. He is a current WWE Hall of Famer. Obviously a lot of those wins came with under-handed, cheating tactics. But they were still WINS. How is he being over-looked so fast by a guy that's been wrestling at the top of the WWE for under a year? Sure he had multiple title reigns years ago, but were they memorable? Did anybody care? Did he get any real victories without the surprise element of Money in the Bank? I will say his rise to the top has come over the past two years, with feuds with the Big Show, Rey Mysterio and Randy Orton. So two years at a real main event level, against a guy like Edge?

Punk might be the better straight-up wrestler, but Edge wasn't JUST a hardcore specialist. I'm just surprised that so many people are jumping on the Punk bandwagon so quickly. You can't take the future into account in a tournament like this. Punk may surpass Edge eventually, but that's not what we're debating about.

Edge wins.

 

[Uncle Sam]

Thank fuck CM Punk is tournament material now. Previous years, no - it was a cunt even getting him through the first round.

Before July 17th 2011, Punk never stood a chance in these things. At his peak - and I've said it before in almost these exact words - a scrappy, underachieving face that could conceivably beat most of the roster but conceivably lose to them on another night. At his lowest - in kayfabe terms anyway - a glorified jobber to the stars. He proved that wins and losses don't matter; by losing several hundred matches and still remaining entirely relevant. Like I said, not exactly tournament material.

After July 17th 2011, I'd say that Punk is nearly up there with the Batistas, Ortons and, indeed, Cenas in terms of tournament worthiness. Actually, wait, Ortons? I think that's underselling it a bit actually. Yeah - I'd say he's above Edge.

I cried tears when Edge retired; man tears. A solitary tear ran down my handsome but worn features, through my full and luscious beard, over the mountains that call themselves my pectoral muscles, zigzagged along my incredible sixpack, and finally ended up dripping off the end of my immense penis. Yes, I was nude while watching Edge's retirement speech, and with good reason - I was saluting a proper wank wrestler by having a proper wank. The postman was not amused, though he would later admit that it was rather poetic.

I was sad that Edge retired, but not because I thought he was good; because I was attached to him. I mean, let's not go mental. For some years, for his most successful years, Edge was serviceable - a heel that got heat from hanging round with stables and Vickie Guerrero (no shame in that, eh Dolph?) and then a competent face that didn't so much set the world on fire as let off a few lame sparks and then have a nice sit down. When he wasn't working with someone of that top tier - a Cena or a Mysterio, say - I was always left thoroughly underwhelmed. Confident with a microphone but a lame duck whenever he laced up a pair of boots.

Who would win in a match between the two at their peaks, one could argue, is a coin toss. The two have met before and traded wins, but I'd argue neither were in their peaks - in kayfabe terms at least. Face champion Edge versus face champion Punk - that's what I'd say would be the two's kayfabe peaks. Punk is the anointed head of the A-show - somehow overshadowed by the biggest WrestleMania main event of all time - whereas Edge was a belt warmer on the B-show.

It's an easy, and unsurprising, choice for me: Punk.

 

[Coco]

Did he get any real victories without the surprise element of Money in the Bank?

You've gone too far here. How about his victories over Chris Jericho, clean on Superstars and SmackDown in 2009? Sure, Punk's also suffered his defeats to Jericho, but so has Edge. And Edge suffered one of those defeats when it
mattered the most, no less. How about Punk's straight-up wins over Jeff Hardy in 2009 at SummerSlam and the following SmackDown? At his peak, the only way Hardy got put down by Edge was through nefarious trickery involving his older brother. And Punk's victory over the Undertaker is about as legitimate as Edge's. So I'll count that as well. Yes, Punk got victories during his run at the top in 2009. Hell, I'd put 2009 Punk on par with the best of Edge for that very reason. And 2012 Punk leaves Edge at his peak in the dust.

As for your videos, you've omitted Punk's May 1, 2009, win over Edge in MSG. Essentially, Punk was an overachieving midcarder at the time of those first two matches you posted. And by the time that Superstars match came about, he'd already proven himself to be at least Edge's equal. Like I said, he's now Edge's better.

Punk. All day, everyday.