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When wrestling fans think about CM Punk and The Rock, it often comes down to the differences that made the duo such a compelling program a decade ago.
One is a massive legacy performer who had as many aspirations outside of the squared circle than between the ropes, while the other is a snot-nosed son of an electrician who got to WWE based on willpower and hard work alone, rubbing plenty of people the wrong way while building a cult of personality around his unique stylings.
And yet, in the opinion of Luke Gallows, a man who worked closely with Punker in the Straight Edge Society, the duo are actually more similar than different, as they have a way about themselves that keeps people talking.
“Talk about headlines all week. Here's the thing about CM Punk in WWE. No matter what your personal feelings are, from a fan perspective, a performer perspective, a wrestler perspective, a friend perspective, and ex-friend perspective, the one thing you can't deny about the dude is that if you say his name and put him on a screen anywhere in the world, everybody is talking about him,” Luke Gallows said via Fightful.
“He's a polarizing character. That's what this whole business is based on, being a polarizing character. I don't think anybody has ever drawn the comparison before, but in a lot of weird ways, if you look at just the pure pro wrestling aspect of it, there are some strange similarities between Dwayne Johnson and Phil Brooks.”
While The Rock may not have long enough arms to box God, he is an incredibly compelling personality that arguably had more fans talking than any other performer in the lead-up to WrestleMania 40 despite having a smaller role in the proceedings than the other three men he shared the ring with. And who, you may ask, had the second-most people talking? Well, that would probably be Punk, a man who was only doing commentary on a single match due to his appearance on Ariel Helwani's The MMA Hour, going so far as to force Tony Khan to announce the release of the AEW All In footage out of anger. If that doesn't prove Gallows' opinion, I don't know what would.
Jim Ross understands why AEW played the CM Punk All In footage.
Speaking of Tony Khan's decision to release the CM Punk All In footage on the Dynamite after WrestleMania 40, one person who approves of the decision immensely is Hall of Fame commentator Jim Ross, but not for the reason you might think.
While the idea of shaming Punk certainly played into AEW's decision, as did the idea of adding drama to the FTR's match with the Young Bucks, in the end, JR explained on his Grillin' JR podcast that he believes the real winner of the segment was Jack Perry, who might just return to the promotion this weekend.
“The value of showing that footage to me was the fact that you got on with your storytelling [with] FTR and the Bucks. So to me, when that was the direction that was chosen, I was much more comfortable showing that footage. Other than that, I'm not sure what it meant. I'm not sure why we did it, other than the fact that it helped tie together a very crucial and important pay-per-view match. So that's my thoughts on that deal,” Jim Ross said on his podcast via Fightful.
“As far as Jack Perry's concerned, I've been a Jack Perry fan since day one. I remember being somewhat resistant on calling him Jungle Boy. Because I told him, I'm not gonna rely on this Jungle Boy moniker as much as it has been in the past because you're not gonna be a boy forever. I never had a cross word with this kid. He's always been very polite. I got to know his mother and his sister. They're just wonderful people. But we all can mistakes, and he's young and can be somewhat impetuous, but that just goes with the youth. Hell, some of us old guys are young-thinking and impetuous, but I hope that they get everything worked out with Jack. Wouldn't Sunday be an interesting time for him to return?”
You know, if you look at the decision from JR's perspective, it actually does make perfect sense to release the footage, as it makes Perry look like a scapegoat – his current moniker – while getting fans to sympathize with his situation, which isn't ideal for a heel character but could pay dividends long-term. If Punk entered WWE as a babyface for messing with AEW, then Perry should earn strong reactions for his return to All Elite Land, too, especially if TK books him the right way.
