Black Widow
08-06-2008, 06:33 PM
The suggestion for CM Punk to win the World Heavyweight Championship initially did not go over very well with most WWE officials, but arguments were made that since the company was pushing a new youth movement that Punk was the guy to put the most focus on. Interestingly enough, since decisions like this have been made, ratings have seen a jump across the board for all three shows, with more movement being seen on Raw and ECW. It had been clear while he was on ECW that Punk was very over with the crowd, and his merchandise sales were much higher than others in a similar spot on the roster. When Vince McMahon green lighted the move to make Punk the new champion, sources noted that everyone in creative were 100% behind the decision to put Punk over. It should be noted that the agents were very quiet when they were told of the decision as many reportedly don't think highly of Punk's work, but none argued against Vince's direction since they were afraid of losing their jobs.
It's no secret that Triple H has never been a big supporter of Punk behind the scenes dating back to his arrival in the company. One source has indicated that Triple H was overheard joking that they needed to turn Shawn Michaels heel so Punk had someone who could actually work him through what a World Title match should look like. The current direction of Punk's character coming off as the underdog was Vince's idea as he feels Punk as a babyface who is always "clinging to the belt" against guys who are looked at as stronger will work out in the end with the fans getting behind him. This was roughly the same idea Vince had with Rey Mysterio as champion on Smackdown, although many felt he was never truly behind Mysterio to begin with, looking at him as a transitional champion at the time.
It's no secret that Triple H has never been a big supporter of Punk behind the scenes dating back to his arrival in the company. One source has indicated that Triple H was overheard joking that they needed to turn Shawn Michaels heel so Punk had someone who could actually work him through what a World Title match should look like. The current direction of Punk's character coming off as the underdog was Vince's idea as he feels Punk as a babyface who is always "clinging to the belt" against guys who are looked at as stronger will work out in the end with the fans getting behind him. This was roughly the same idea Vince had with Rey Mysterio as champion on Smackdown, although many felt he was never truly behind Mysterio to begin with, looking at him as a transitional champion at the time.