What If CM Punk and Daniel Bryan are All Elite?
Photo Credit: Whatculture
I like to keep things as positive as possible.
I like WWE.
I like AEW.
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The best possible feuds/matches for CM Punk and Daniel Bryan.
Disclaimer: This article is based on what are considered to be rumors at this point. I am working under the pretense that these rumors are heavily believed to be true.
This has been a long time coming. The day that many wrestling fans around the world have been waiting for since January of 2014. Where as it is not official as of me writing this, never has it been more real than it is now. CM Punk has apparently come to terms to work with AEW and his return to the world of wrestling is now a reality. If that news isn’t enough to get you hyped, how about Daniel Bryan joining him in AEW? Just months ago, he was headlining Wrestlemania and now his debut on AEW television could happen at any moment.
I’ve never been shy about my love/hate relationship with AEW. I think they do a lot of things really well. But I also think they do a lot of things badly. I have been hesitant to go “All In” with them and dedicate my time to them on a weekly basis. With this news, that changes.
The hiring of Mox and Jericho was a main stream move that helped get the wheels turning. Daniel Bryan and CM Punk brings in an audience that may have been reluctant up until now. The type of fan like myself. These two guys were able to break through the wall set up to prevent guys like them from succeeding in WWE. They have the die hard, pure rasslin’ fans on their side. And when they broke through that wall and climbed and scratched and clawed their ways to the top of that WWE mountain, they earned the respect and love from a lof of the WWE diehards. How big are these names in the wrestling community? Well one of them has been absent for the past 7 years and still has his name chanted in every arena across the United States. The other one? Well he was so over with the fans at one point, they hi-jacked WWE’s plans and forced him in to a Wrestlemania main event victory over 2 of the biggest names from the past 20 years. So they are a pretty big deal and with these two signings, I am officially on the All Elite bandwagon.
These two guys made a difference in a company that handcuffed them, so I am just dying to see what they can do where their creative minds are welcomed and used to benefit not only themselves, but everyone they work with. And that list of people to work with is a big one, so now we’re going to look at the top 3 opponents that must happen for Bryan, then Punk and we’ll finish it up when we look at 3 opponents that both of them must collide with. Up first…
Daniel Bryan vs Orange Cassidy
I won’t lie, I’m one of the people who doesn’t “get” the gimmick of Orange Cassidy. But I understand how important he is with the AEW fanbase, and I’m very well aware of his ability to go in the ring once the glasses come off. Now, does this match happen right away? More than likely not. This match will end up having to be a one off as a sign of respect or contendership match. If we’re looking at traditional feud, this happens way, way down the line. Cassidy is one of the most over guys on the roster and Daniel Bryan is going to be a monster babyface when he arrives. Neither will be playing the heel any time soon.
How this match even happens? I couldn’t tell you but it has to. Imagine the OC Kicks delivered to Daniel, only for him to retaliate with the “Yes” kicks. Cassidy could definitely benefit greatly with a rub from Daniel Bryan, and the with how talented both guys are in the ring, you know it’s gonna be a non stop action packed thrill ride. If we can get a real story thrown in with this match, it could be match of the year contender easily. This might be the one I’m looking forward to the most with Daniel Bryan.
Daniel Bryan vs PAC
To my knowledge, these two have never met in the squared circle. Daniel Bryan was well on his way to superstardom in WWE by the time the Bastard was finding his way to the main roster and that run didn’t last long enough for them to ever get the opportunity. Lucky for us, Pac has emerged in AEW as a contender and with Daniel Bryan coming in, it wouldn’t be crazy to think this could happen very early on. We all know what these guys can do, I don’t need to sell it. And what makes it even more salivating to think about is that if we get a legit feud between the two, it opens the doors for the other members of Death Triangle to have top notch matches with Bryan. If I’m booking things, this is the first feud he’s getting. It either elevates Pac to the main event title picture or establishes Daniel Bryan immediately. Either way, you can’t lose here.
Daniel Bryan vs Hangman Page
The 3 “homegrown” talents that have been pushed the most in AEW since it’s start have been Darby Allin, MJF and Hangman Page. Of those three, Hangman is easily the best in ring competitor. Darby has the spots. MJF has the mic. But it is Hangman that has proven that no matter who he gets in the ring with, he can have a great match. Much like the case with OC, this match would be one that has to be booked for a special reason as both are going to heavily over with the fans, but the match needs to happen. Page has grown tremendously over the last 2 years with his ability to really tell a story in the ring. He could learn a lot working with Daniel Bryan and that kind of tutelage is what catapults Page from really good to great. I’m popping right now just visualizing the Buckshot Lariat getting reveresed in to a LeBell lock.
CM Punk vs Cody Rhodes
Cody Rhodes seems to be the quickest and easiest road to relevency in AEW. You show up, you feud with him, you beat him and then you can move on to bigger and better things. Does CM Punk need relevency? Not at all, hes CM PUNK! But this pairing has more to do with easing Punk back in to things after the long hiatus, and I can’t think of a better opponent to get him there than Cody. Cody can cut one hell of a promo when he stays in his lane. I don’t think he’s good enough to go toe to toe with Punk but he can hang around enough to make it interesting.
As far as in the ring goes, I would say he’s one of the safer in ring guys they have, with a style that doesn’t need to go 100 MPH. That is what Punk is going to need for his first real ring time. A guy that can cover up the sloppiness of ring rust and help Punk make it through until he finds his bearings. This feud could also be a driving force in to a heel turn for Cody if he ever decides that his character can go that way. But if for any reason that is not Phil’s first feud…
CM Punk vs Colt Cabana
Best friends turned enemies. The story is very well known amongst the fans and would make for a very easy blood boiling feud with the two. Some of the best angles in wrestling derive from real life hostility amongst co-workers. And even if they are claiming to be friends these days, the hostility would be very easy to tap in to once the microphones open up and the fists start flying. I know Cabana is nothing to bat an eye at on AEW but Punk has always said his interest has always been in telling the best stories.
They had amazing chemistry during the matches they had early on in their career. It could be another way to ease Punk back in to the ring to shake off the rust, with an opponent that he is familiar with and can keep up with. If it doesn’t happen first, it needs to happen soon.
CM Punk vs Darby Allin
Straight edge vs straight edge. Two very different personalities that are also very much alike. There is a story there and if you have followed CM Punk throughout his career, you know that this is something that would intrigue him. This feud would be nothing more than to put over Darby and solidify him as a top guy. He has been working his way to the top and become one of the biggest draws in AEW. Can you imagine what a victory over Punk would do for him? This feud would work best with Punk playing the heel. And that would have to happen later down the road, because just like Bryan, he is going to be over to the moon when he arrives.
Maybe Darby is in a top spot by that time. Having the quiet skater kid get bullied on the microphone by the loud, obnoxious punk can be a lot of fun. That is the in to this feud, they can fill in the rest. I’m sure Punk would love to work closely with Darby and feed him all the information and knowledge he can. This is a big money feud that is can’t miss.
Now that I’ve tackled three feuds for each individually, we have 3 more that I think both Punk and Bryan need to face during their time in AEW.
CM Punk/Daniel Bryan vs Malakai Black
When talking about these 2 and their potential feuds, there are 2 different reasons for them. With Daniel Bryan, we are going to get great in ring work. With Punk, we are going to have promo work that has people at the edge of their seats. A new-comer to AEW and a guy that hasn’t crossed paths with either guy yet, Black I think has the ability to compete with both. Blacks promo’s offer us something different than what we have become used to over the years. The thought that goes in to each word to tell a story is nothing short of superb and that calm delivery would be a nice contrast to the loud bravado of Punk. And with Daniel Bryan, the style would clash beautifully as Bryan looks to counter the barrage of kicks from Black. Both are can’t miss.
CM Punk/Daniel Bryan vs MJF
Maxwell Jacob Friedman has become one of, if not the best heel in all of wrestling. You will never see him break character and he is absolutely ruthless when it comes to burying fans with his insults. He is very loud on the mic and there are not many that can go toe to toe with him. Insert CM Punk. With a live microphone, there has been nobody better since Rowdy Roddy Piper on the microphone than Punk. He can and will put Max in his place and give him a real challenge that should help elevate him just a bit further. They don’t ever even have to wrestle each other. Just give me those two barking back and forth at each other once a month and I’m happy.
And with Daniel Bryan, he’s the ying to MJF’s yang. The ultimate face vs the ultimate heel. You would be begging for Bryan to kick MJF’s teeth in. Max can just talk down Bryan and belittle him while Daniel takes it in. You can watch the frustration mount in Bryan’s face as his blood boils with every remark out of Max’s mouth. How does Max get any more heat and cement himself higher on the ladder of heels? By beating our babyface of all babyfaces and rubbing it our faces, thats how.
CM Punk/Daniel Bryan vs Kenny Omega
As I stated earlier, Mox and Jericho in my opinion are the draws for AEW from the fan stand point (at least in the beginning). But the draw from a wrestler stand point? It’s easily Kenny Omega. You can ask any wrestler in the world who their dream opponent is, if they haven’t already faced him, it’ll be Kenny bah gawd Omega that comes out of their mouth. So when new favorites come rolling in to AEW, that is the match that the fans want to see and the wrestler wants to have. Do I think it’s the best opponent for each guy? No, but it is a feud/program that would have to happen eventually. If it doesn’t, than really, what is the point?
Sure, there is a lot of young talent that would fun to work with but in the end, we want to see the shiny new big name toys take on the big dog in town. You get a serious match of the year contender with Bryan vs Omega and on the other hand you get Omega getting buried on the microphone before he runs circles around Punk in the ring. These are two big names that will help Kenny’s claim to being the best in the world today be closer to being a reality as they are sure to take him to limits that no current talent in AEW has name to do.
So there you have it, my first and probably last piece on AEW for now. I’m sure if these two guys do in fact end up in AEW, I will find myself more heavily invested in the show and have much more to say about the brand. As far as the choices, do you agree? Disagree? Shoot me a message. As always, I’m not only down to debate wrestling but I look forward to it.
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