The Natural Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Maybe Vince and Triple H need to look seriously at why all his top stars except Cena seemingly have a nervous breakdown, leave, and can only stand to be there part-time. Lesnar, Batista, Punk, Jericho, Austin (though that was mostly injury-related), I guess even Lashley... The Rock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cobra Commander Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Maybe Vince and Triple H need to look seriously at why all his top stars except Cena seemingly have a nervous breakdown, leave, and can only stand to be there part-time. Lesnar, Batista, Punk, Jericho, Austin (though that was mostly injury-related), I guess even Lashley... Vince has been a workaholic for decades. So in his POV, they're the ones with the problem, not him But the schedule these days is Raw, Smackdown, two days off, three house shows from Friday to Sunday. That seems ripe for improvement as I've noted before. Move SD tapings off of Tuesday to make it 4 on/3 off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Fresh Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Maybe Vince and Triple H need to look seriously at why all his top stars except Cena seemingly have a nervous breakdown, leave, and can only stand to be there part-time. Lesnar, Batista, Punk, Jericho, Austin (though that was mostly injury-related), I guess even Lashley... The Rock. I left him off because anyone would leave WWE if they had the options that the Rock had/has. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Fresh Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Maybe Vince and Triple H need to look seriously at why all his top stars except Cena seemingly have a nervous breakdown, leave, and can only stand to be there part-time. Lesnar, Batista, Punk, Jericho, Austin (though that was mostly injury-related), I guess even Lashley...Vince has been a workaholic for decades. So in his POV, they're the ones with the problem, not himBut the schedule these days is Raw, Smackdown, two days off, three house shows from Friday to Sunday. That seems ripe for improvement as I've noted before. Move SD tapings off of Tuesday to make it 4 on/3 off I'm not a "fuck Vince" guy at all, but he really needs to retire and the company needs a top-to-bottom overhaul. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPPA Posted January 29, 2014 Author Share Posted January 29, 2014 The Mike Johnson version is similar to Meltzer's version (though it doesn't specifically mention the PPV revenue thing) By Mike Johnson on 2014-01-29 02:10:09 Former WWE and World champion CM Punk has been pulled from all advertising of WWE live events going forward after a meeting with WWE management yesterday at the Raw taping in Cleveland, Ohio. We have been working on details for the last 24 hours (as Dave Scherer and I noted on our respective Elite audios earlier today), but the belief among those who are willing to talk about the situation is that Punk is no longer factored into company plans. Punk is under contract to WWE through July. Punk was slated to face Triple H at Wrestlemania 30. This past Monday's Raw instead began teasing Daniel Bryan vs. HHH down the line, possibly for Wrestlemania. We have heard from several sources that the original script for yesterday's Raw called for Punk to wrestle Antonio Cesaro and lose after Kane interfered, allowing Cesaro to qualify for the Elimination Chamber. It should be noted that another source has denied that and claimed that Punk was never booked to wrestle last night and was only booked to do a promo that would follow up on Kane causing Punk's elimination from the Rumble. But, Punk was originally slated to be on Raw and those segments were yanked. He was not backstage during the taping and was not backstage at Smackdown. It is believed that when Vince McMahon had the writers re-write Raw late yesterday (6 PM for a taping that was scheduled to start at 7:45 PM), it was because Punk had informed the company he was going home and wouldn't be back. While we cannot 100% confirm why, the belief among wrestlers backstage is that Punk leaving was not an injury issue. It was described to us as more likely a case of burnout and unhappiness with the overall direction of the company. Punk had been very vocal in the past about the usage of returning and "part time" stars being pushed beyond wrestlers who were working full-time for the company. In his interview with Ariel Helwani last week, Punk talked about the crazy schedule he's held up working for the company over the last decade. Punk said that he's been doing it ten years and doesn't know anyone else who can say that. He said that he's only taken time off for injuries and that when he took two months off in 2013, it may not have been long enough. Punk, who worked about 50 minutes in the Royal Rumble match was described as "pissy" after the PPV, although that wouldn't be an unusual description of Punk's demeanor backstage. One source believed that since Punk's last goal was to work a Wrestlemania main event, it may also be a situation where Punk realized it wasn't going to happen this year and with his WWE deal expiring in July, that may have weighed down upon him because he was so goal driven and this was one he couldn't accomplish because of elements that were outside of his control. In the interview with Helwani, Punk was asked about WWE killing his momentum at times and why such things happen. Punk responded that he'd like to think they don't make those decisions on purpose and it's more they wanted to go in another decision. He claimed it's a different era and different time and it can't be looked at the same way he did when he was a kid. Yesterday, Punk wrote on Twitter, "Thanks for all the support. Keep being you guys, it's pretty cool." Depending on how you read the statement, it could be taken as a cryptic farewell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bustronaut Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Could he be giving up his spot so Bryan (the natural opponent for Hunter) gets the chance Punk thinks he deserves? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
madsplash Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Selflessness? No, that's not how the wrestling industry works. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bustronaut Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Look at how many undeserving opportunities he's gotten Cabana over the years! He's altruistic to a fault. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt D Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 I was kind of looking forward to Kane vs Punk. They build it well. Ah well. Apparently this makes Christian an upper midcarder by default. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RIPPA Posted January 29, 2014 Author Share Posted January 29, 2014 Cody Rhodes @CodyRhodesWWE 25m Guy at TSA just asked me "did ya' find Clem..?" This really happened. That is making me laugh more than I probably should admit 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Maybe Vince and Triple H need to look seriously at why all his top stars except Cena seemingly have a nervous breakdown, leave, and can only stand to be there part-time. Lesnar, Batista, Punk, Jericho, Austin (though that was mostly injury-related), I guess even Lashley...Vince has been a workaholic for decades. So in his POV, they're the ones with the problem, not himBut the schedule these days is Raw, Smackdown, two days off, three house shows from Friday to Sunday. That seems ripe for improvement as I've noted before. Move SD tapings off of Tuesday to make it 4 on/3 off I'm not a "fuck Vince" guy at all, but he really needs to retire and the company needs a top-to-bottom overhaul. It'll never happen, but I've always wondered if they could do a Japanese-style schedule. Like 3 straight weeks on the road, then 2 weeks off or whatever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Fresh Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 They could keep going year round if they gave each guy like 2 months off a year, just constantly rotating who's active and who's on break. It would probably be good for keeping guys fresh too. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brandonr4s Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Don't blame him. Batista is gone for years, has a small role in a movie and gets the big push, fuck that. New network deal might cut into your pay, fuck that. Working on the road over 300 days a year, fuck that. I never blame any wrestler for "taking their ball and going home." It's a brutal, shitty industry. 17 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_MJ_ Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Anyone else worry that Batista isn't going to deliver the "took his ball and went home" promo next Monday as well as Rock's? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
odessasteps Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 I wonder happens if/when dave gets hurt before winning the belt. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Territorial Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 The Mike Johnson version is similar to Meltzer's version (though it doesn't specifically mention the PPV revenue thing) Punk had been very vocal in the past about the usage of returning and "part time" stars being pushed beyond wrestlers who were working full-time for the company. I've been wondering about the part-time situation for awhile. 1) As a fan, why should I buy a b-PPV with, say, Del Rio vs. Cena headlining the card when Vince obviously has no confidence in most of the full-timers ability to sell the major PPV's? I imagine him looking over the roster in the fall, saying to himself "We can't do a good buyrate for WrestleMania with these tomato cans. Quick, Find me someone who was over 10 years ago. That's the ticket. New Age Outlaws draw better than Del Rio" 2) As a worker, why should I put myself through the wringer for the company when, come Wrestlemania or Summer Slam season, the company is going to go out and sign big-name part-timers, give them a big push, pay them better, and ask them to work 1/10 of the the schedule (if that)? Oh, and the end result of the part-timer's push will probably be to push me down the card and make me job to the part-timers. I'd prefer to see WrestleMania used to push full-timers even higher up the card. There's not a lot of long-term benefit to putting, say, Batista over Del Rio or Orton since Batista won't be around long-term. In most cases, outsiders should be putting over the full-timers. But, Del Rio going over Batista won't pop the tv rating on Monday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MushroomJones Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Cody Rhodes @CodyRhodesWWE 25m Guy at TSA just asked me "did ya' find Clem..?" This really happened. That is making me laugh more than I probably should admit The "Clem Layfield" sign front and center at the PPV killed me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fat Spanish Waiter Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnnyJ Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 Punks the 2nd or 3rd top face on the roster and has been in a vague go nowhere feud with the authority for what seems like 6 months. Throw in the asinine booking at the rumble of him anf Bryan. For gods sakes, Punk was in the rumble forever to be eliminated by an already elimimated Kane. Factor in the crazy schedule and the WWE allowing part timers to leapfrog over full time more over talent for high profile big payday feuds and its not hard to understand why he's pissed. If Punk showed up as a part timer he would be a much bigger deal and the effect on his pay would prob be small. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LooseCannon Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 They could keep going year round if they gave each guy like 2 months off a year, just constantly rotating who's active and who's on break. It would probably be good for keeping guys fresh too. Isn't that what they do in TNA? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonteCarl Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 They say Vince really takes notice and starts to care about somebody when they show they don't need him anymore. Punk can walk away now, take a year off, heal up, and be a huge surprise entrant in next year's Rumble, winning the thing and going on to get that Main Event match at Mania he's been wanting. Then, after that, he can get the Jericho schedule where he comes back for a few months then takes a few months off and do that until he decides to fully retire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
w. josh Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 If PPV bonus money was really a factor in his decision, I'm pretty astounded that the WWE hasn't already addressed that issue with their top guys. The main event-level guys get a significant amount of income from those bonuses. I just can't imagine Vince saying, "Hey, that money's just going right into my pocket now, so, you know, sell more t-shirts or whatever." Actually, I can absolutely imagine that. I don't know what the solution would be - maybe promise guys a cut based on Network subscribers, or a larger percentage of merchandise sales. But they cannot have just said, "Sorry guys, SOL" and not expected a backlash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jrag Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 I'd bet that is the deciding factor in all of this. His initial reaction when asked about the Network was the most telling part of that 30 minute interview. Punk seemed pretty baffled by the whole thing and you would think he would be in the know by now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChesterCopperpot Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 I feel I have a responsibility to the younger wrestlers on roster, the ones who aren’t signed yet and the future of pro-wrestling as a whole to help make this place better and to change this place. I certainly can’t change it by sitting on my couch in Chicago. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Fresh Posted January 29, 2014 Share Posted January 29, 2014 It is kinda funny that getting chokeslammed through a table by Kane may be Punk's big send-off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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