CM Punk’s shocking Undisputed WWE Championship victory on Monday’s episode of Raw was reportedly about much more than giving the Chicago crowd a memorable hometown moment.
Punk returned to WWE television for the first time since WrestleMania 42 and stepped into the main event after Cody Rhodes was ruled unable to compete. Earlier in the night, Rhodes was attacked by GUNTHER and later deemed medically unfit to challenge champion Sami Zayn. That opened the door for Punk, who capitalized on the opportunity and defeated Zayn to capture the Undisputed WWE Championship.
While the title change came as a surprise to many fans, a new report from PWInsider Elite indicates that WWE’s creative team has been building toward a major summer program involving Punk for quite some time.
According to the report, the expectation backstage following Raw was that Punk will defend the Undisputed WWE Championship against Rhodes at SummerSlam. The match is said to have been part of WWE’s long-term plans, with the company reportedly considering the showdown for months.
The seeds for the rivalry were planted shortly after WrestleMania 42 when Punk and Rhodes shared a tense face-to-face confrontation on the first episode of Raw following the event. At one point, there were reportedly discussions about saving the match for WrestleMania 43 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. However, WWE ultimately shifted direction and is now expected to present the highly anticipated clash at SummerSlam instead.
Punk’s championship victory also brings a quick end to Sami Zayn’s first world title reign in WWE. Zayn captured the championship just nine days earlier at Night of Champions, achieving one of the biggest milestones of his career before dropping the title to Punk in Chicago.
As SummerSlam approaches, several major matches appear to be taking shape. Along with the expected Punk vs. Rhodes championship bout, Roman Reigns is reportedly set to defend the World Heavyweight Championship against Seth Rollins. Meanwhile, GUNTHER is rumored to be heading into a feud with SmackDown General Manager Nick Aldis.
With the WWE title picture rapidly changing, questions now turn to what’s next for Zayn after his brief reign came to an end and whether he’ll be able to work his way back into championship contention heading into one of WWE’s biggest events of the year.
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