I agree that the way this has gone down it is going to be something other than a straight forward match. I could see Punk tearing into Heyman or something like that with Axel laying out Punk. The one thing that makes me think otherwise is the fact that it is in Chicago, and I think the fans would be greatly disappointed if Punk didn't have his match as advertised. If the match does happen I see Punk winning. It is his return match and again, it's in Chicago.
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WWE Payback: Punk's return; CM Punk VS Chris Jericho
- Thread starter I am Mr. Excitement
- Start date
LoudClearVoice
Mid-Card Championship Winner
As others have mentioned, this could end up as a double-turn. It makes sense to turn CM Punk in Chicago and it's easy enough to do. He can destroy Paul Heyman and Curtis Axel. As for Jericho, it's Chicago, so he'll be booed out of the building no matter what but he can "act like a heel" during the match, taunt Punk (which will get the crowd riled up) ,etc. A double turn would be so easy here but not sure if WWE is going to go that direction.
I don't see a double turn...Jericho will have a mixed reaction. He'll be cheered more than he's booed. The one thing about Chicago....Jericho is highly respected and will get a positive reaction...it will just pale in comparison to Punk, if the match happens.
Plus, remember, Jericho isn't too far off from taking another vacation for a Fozzy tour. They have one coming up in July. But should be ready come SummerSlam.
Plus, remember, Jericho isn't too far off from taking another vacation for a Fozzy tour. They have one coming up in July. But should be ready come SummerSlam.
Mighty NorCal
SHALL WE BEGIN?
No double turn, no nothing.
People want Punk so bad, they are missing the obvious...
Punk is going to no-show, and Curtis Axel will then wrestle Jericho as a replacement. The crowd will literally shit their pants in fury. It will give heat to someone who has roughly zero at the moment (Axel) keep Jericho face, and begin the Punk turn (itll be revealed that Punk no-showed because of Heyman somehow, etc etc)
People want Punk so bad, they are missing the obvious...
Punk is going to no-show, and Curtis Axel will then wrestle Jericho as a replacement. The crowd will literally shit their pants in fury. It will give heat to someone who has roughly zero at the moment (Axel) keep Jericho face, and begin the Punk turn (itll be revealed that Punk no-showed because of Heyman somehow, etc etc)
Terry Gyimah
Championship Contender
Punk is obviously the clear favorite here returning in his hometown of Chicago where he will no doubt be cheered despite being a heel and Jericho being face will get booed like no tomorrow and we haven't seen Punk since WrestleMania 29 where he had one hell of a classic match against The Undertaker and not to mention the history Punk has with Jericho facing each other not just at WrestleMania 28 last year but also at Extreme Rules last year with both matches being for the WWE Championship with Punk as the face in that feud and Jericho as the heel with Punk going over Jericho twice and then their RAW Active Match which in itself was also a classic
Both of these men being the Best in the World at what they do, but clearly Punk is the better man he always has been better than Jericho and he always will be
But as for the actual match itself, Punk I think will no-show the match and it ends up being Axel vs Jericho at Payback with Punk showing up like during the match half-way when the referee is out cold, Punk comes out of nowhere through the crowd jumping the barricade and we all think he will attack Jericho but out of nowhere he hits the GTS on Axel walking out turning his back on Paul Heyman
Both of these men being the Best in the World at what they do, but clearly Punk is the better man he always has been better than Jericho and he always will be
But as for the actual match itself, Punk I think will no-show the match and it ends up being Axel vs Jericho at Payback with Punk showing up like during the match half-way when the referee is out cold, Punk comes out of nowhere through the crowd jumping the barricade and we all think he will attack Jericho but out of nowhere he hits the GTS on Axel walking out turning his back on Paul Heyman
Jericho comes out... waits for a while, crowd is going nuts waiting for punk... suddenly.... lights go out... "Hey Chicago... want to see something really scary?"
Wyatt family comes out... beats the holy hell out of jericho, crowd boos the hell out of them as they have "stolen" punks spot... this also lets jericho leave and take his time off and gives the wyatt family plenty of early heat as they've ruined punks return and beat the hell out of babyface jericho
Wyatt family comes out... beats the holy hell out of jericho, crowd boos the hell out of them as they have "stolen" punks spot... this also lets jericho leave and take his time off and gives the wyatt family plenty of early heat as they've ruined punks return and beat the hell out of babyface jericho
Terry Gyimah
Championship Contender
Yes this would be great, because just when we all think Punk is going to make his return at Payback in his hometown of Chicago, the lights go out and when they come back on the Wyatt family are in the ring as they beat the holy hell out of Jericho leaving him laying, that would give the Wyatt family instant heat right in their debut because everyone expected to see Punk and the last thing they would expect is them and plus it saves Punk from having to return at Payback when he should return at least at SummerSlam or in the build-up towards SummerSlam
This could easily be the match of the night. CM Punk and Chris Jericho are both so extremely skilled in the ring that they have so much potential in this match. I really enjoyed their feud in 2012 and with Punk having been gone for a while, it makes me anticipate this match even more. Their matches from last year will be really hard to top although I have confidence that they can. They never reached their full potential in having a match together during their feud last year, I'd like to see that happen. Punk's return should be a good moment in of itself.
I had to think about it for a while as both wrestlers have pretty good odds of winning. I have to go with CM Punk as the winner here in the end. Jericho won't gain anything from winning here. His part-time status would not warrant a world title push, so what would his momentum from winning do for him? Punk on the other hand had the longest WWE Championship since before most of us were alive yet it never lived up to its full potential, he lost to The Rock at The Royal Rumble and then lost to The Undertaker at Wrestlemania. He has a lot to gain here. A victory against Chris Jericho in front of his hometown fans would be a great thing. Punk walks out of this match the winner and the feud might very well continue into MITB and even Summerslam. I would not be against that. I'll be going into this match with very high expectations. It should go on toward the second half of the night, though I do not think it will close.
DAGGER'S PREDICTION
CM Punk will defeat Chris Jericho.