Is CM Punk really the Best in the World?

image courtesy of bleacherreport

Obviously, before I answer my own question, everyone's opinion on CM Punk is going to be different and the everyone's answer is going to be different simply because of their opinion. But first, for sh*ts and giggles, let's look at some statistics;

• CM Punk is only a 5 time world champion (3 times World Heavyweight Champion, 2 times WWE Champion)
• CM Punk has never won a Royal Rumble match
• CM Punk is the only person to win a Money In The Bank match twice in a row, and cash it in successfully both times
• CM Punk is only a 1 time Tag Team champion (with Kofi Kingston) and a 1 time Intercontinental champion
• CM Punk holds the record for the longest WWE championship reign of the modern era (434 days)

Now statistically CM Punk clearly is not the best in the world...

But that's all statistics are these days, statistics mean Jack Sh*t! Like Mick Foley said to Punk a few weeks ago, "do you want to be a legend, or do you want to be a statistic"...the fact is every body is a statistic in wrestling until they take that step into becoming a legend. 

These days in WWE there aren't many legends in the making, sure you have the likes of John Cena who will no doubt go into the HOF and be called one of the greatest of all time, then there's the Big Show, he's been in the company for about 15 years, and despite doing almost absolutely nothing, accomplishing only average, and is only really around for his size as he has no wrestling ability whatsoever, he will go in the Hall of Fame, then there's Kane, who's been there about 2 years longer than the Big Show and is without a doubt the most deserving of the term legend when it comes to the current active roster, he hasn't accomplished much as far as titles and honors go but that's because he's always been kind enough to put younger talent ahead of himself (he was one of the reasons Batista got over with Vince), I think Rey Mysterio would more than likely find himself in the hall of fame one day, despite barely have completed a full competitive year in his career as he's injured more times than Michael Owen and Jonathan Woodgate combined. 

CM Punk, in my opinion, is part of the new up and coming generation and part of a group of upcoming future legends. But it seems like Punk is the only member of that group. Punk started his WWE career in 2006 with ECW, but all of the wrestlers from that era who looked like they could go on and be top stars for the company, the likes of Carlito, Shelton Benjamin, Chris Masters, Mr Kennedy, MVP, Gregory Helms (The Hurricane), they all split and left, Punk is the only one of that generation who looked to be a star in the making who stuck around long enough for us to see it come true. Now I'm not one of those whiner babies who blame everything on John Cena or Triple H or PG or Linda McMahon, bottom line is: CM Punk had the making of a star back then, he still has that, back then he had the drive to become a star, and he did. The other guys may have had that drive, but they lost their fight, I know this may sound like a monologue from Rocky or something but it's true, these guys pissed and moaned that they weren't getting pushed and weren't up to Vince's standards, well guess what? If you are going to complain, maybe you should be working harder, if you're not up to his standards, maybe you should entertain the crowd a bit more instead of turning down the WWE title because you were satisfied with your position in the company for the time being, the asking for you release cause you weren't satisfied with your position in the company anymore (yes Shelton, I mean you). 

CM Punk is as close to an actual workhorse you'll get in WWE right now, he clawed his up from the top, Vince hated him for the start, and if it wasn't for the constant pushing from guys like Michael Hayes, Jim Ross, William Regal and especially, more than anyone, Paul Heyman, Vince would have scrapped Punk a long time ago, just like he did with all the other "future stars". CM Punk is a prime example of a wrestler working his fingers to the bone, feeding off scraps, and becoming a star out of nothing. As far as his wrestling and promo ability goes, he is unmatched, and for that he is truly deserving of the title; 

BEST. IN. THE. WORLD.

Holla, holla, holla,

Andrew.