The wrestling world is buzzing about the abrupt departure of CM Punk from World Wrestling Entertainment. After seven years of being a fixture on WWE television, it appears that following an excellent showing in the 2014 Royal Rumble, Punk has called it quits and headed home for rest, relaxation and whatever else he’d like to do. While the internet collectively loses it’s mind over whether Daniel Bryan is being oppressed and the Kane fans lament that we won’t get to see the Director of Operations Mr. Haggar Pants versus Punk, we’re going to spend a little time reviewing some of the statistics about the CM Punk’s career in WWE.

Officially, CM Punk’s debut in WWE was on the rebooted ECW program in July 2006 (with his actual televised wrestling debut in August 2006). However, those weren’t actually his first televised WWE matches. Rather, a year earlier in 2005, Punk had a pair of matches taped for Sunday Night Heat:

Simon Dean & Maven beat CM Punk & Russell Simpson (4/11/05)

CM Punk lost to Val Venis on Sunday Night Heat (5/9/05)

Since he started, he’s been a real fixture on WWE TV.

Match Stats

With some assistance from the excellent Cagematch.net website, take a look at these monthly match stats:

Really, in over seven years, there’s only two months where Punk didn’t have any matches recorded: November 2010 and May 2013. (You can see a few other periods of reduced activity – largely clustered such as November & December 2010, April & May & June 2013 as well as July 2010 and December 2012.)

On an average year, Punk wrestled at about 148 shows and had about 166 matches.

He did double-duty at about 9% the shows, namely wrestling on TV then again in the dark match after the cameras turned off. This was particularly true in in 2008, 2011 and 2012.

He really was in the upper-echelon for most matches – particularly 2007-2009.

Approximate Most Matches in WWE (2007-2013)

2007: Batista (159), MVP (142), Jeff Hardy (140), Randy Orton (139), Finlay (132), CM Punk (130), Kane (129), Carlito (126)

2008: CM Punk (169), Kane (157), John Morrison (143), Cody Rhodes (142), Kofi Kingston (139), MVP (139), Shelton Benjamin (139), HHH (137)

2009: CM Punk (197), John Cena (181), Kofi Kingston (178), Randy Orton (178), Big Show (170), Chris Jericho (167), Jack Swagger (165), Christian (160)

2010: Kofi Kingston (183), Sheamus (181), The Miz (178), Jack Swagger (178), John Cena (176), The Big Show (174), Randy Orton (174)… CM Punk (108) …

2011: Randy Orton (208), John Cena (200), Alberto Del Rio (197), The Miz (191), Kofi Kingston (187), CM Punk (183), Dolph Ziggler (183), Daniel Bryan (176), Sheamus (175)

2012: Sheamus (218), The Big Show (214), Daniel Bryan (214), Kane (199), Kofi Kingston (197), Dolph Ziggler (193), John Cena (184), Santino Marella (182), CM Punk (177), Cody Rhodes (171)

2013: Daniel Bryan (227), Dean Ambrose (215), Seth Rollins (211), Randy Orton (209), Antonio Cesaro (206), Roman Reigns (201), Ryback (195)… CM Punk (111)

(combination of stats from cagematch, wrestling observer, the history of WWE and personal records)

WWE Opponents

CM Punk Opponents

Name singles tag rumble handicap Total John Cena 62 41 5 108 Rey Mysterio 55 27 5 87 John Morrison 42 29 8 1 80 The Miz 37 32 8 2 79 Kane 46 21 10 1 78 Chris Jericho 50 17 3 1 71 Randy Orton 21 39 5 65 Dolph Ziggler 40 8 7 55 Alberto Del

Rio 44 7 4 55 The Big Show 29 17 6 2 54 Chavo

Guerrero 39 7 5 51 Daniel Bryan 35 11 3 1 50 The

Undertaker 30 14 3 2 49 R-Truth 25 16 7 1 49 Ryback 25 17 2 1 45 Edge 13 21 5 39 Curtis Axel 18 3 3 11 35 Elijah Burke 20 13 2 35 Mark Henry 16 13 5 1 35 William Regal 25 5 3 33 Cody Rhodes 2 22 9 33 Matt Hardy 12 14 6 32 Shelton

Benjamin 14 10 7 31 Mike Knox 28 1 1 30 Kofi Kingston 9 10 11 30 Jeff Hardy 23 1 2 26 Dean Ambrose 2 8 1 14 25 Roman Reigns 1 8 1 14 24 Seth Rollins 1 8 1 14 24 MVP 8 6 8 22 Matt Striker 12 4 2 4 22 Batista 13 4 4 21 Luke Harper 3 13 1 1 18 Big Daddy V 6 5 1 5 17 Christian 7 7 3 17 Jack Swagger 6 4 7 17 JBL 12 2 2 1 17 The Great

Khali 5 3 8 16 Snitsky 11 3 2 16 Triple H 3 8 3 2 16 Erick Rowan 13 1 1 15 Kevin Thorn 11 2 1 14 Sheamus 9 1 3 13 Paul Heyman 12 12 Marcus Cor

Von 5 6 1 12 Hardcore

Holly 9 1 2 12 Stevie

Richards 11 11 Manu 2 9 11 JTG 2 2 7 11 Carlito 5 2 4 11 Ted DiBiase 6 4 10 Umaga 8 1 1 10 Finlay 2 4 4 10 Zack Ryder 3 1 5 9 Chris Masters 1 1 6 8 Chuck Palumbo 7 1 8 Santino

Marella 2 6 8 Tyson Kidd 5 2 7 Tommy Dreamer 4 3 7 Shawn

Michaels 3 3 6 Tyler Reks 1 5 6 Drew McIntyre 6 6 David Otunga 2 4 6 Mr Kennedy 3 1 1 1 6 David Hart

Smith 5 5 Justin

Gabriel 1 4 5 Rob Van Dam 2 3 5 Evan Bourne 2 3 5 Bray Wyatt 3 1 1 5 Rene Dupree 5 5 Vladimir

Kozlov 5 5 Jerry Lawler 2 3 5 Booker T 2 1 2 5

Undoubtedly, an enormous milestone in his WWE run was his electrifying program with John Cena leading into the Money in the Bank PPV held in Punk’s home city of Chicago in 2011. It seems appropriate then that Punk’s most frequent opponent in WWE was also John Cena. However, that’s only if you include every house show, every dark match and every time the two were both in the same royal rumble or battle royal. If you limit yourself to televised encounters, Punk’s most frequent opponent on WWE TV was “Guru of Greatness” John Morrison.

Televised CM Punk Opponents

Name Raw PPV Sm! ECW Other Total John Morrison 6 10 11 17 3 47 The Miz 13 6 2 11 3 35 Rey Mysterio 7 9 11 1 28 Kane 14 4 7 1 1 27 John Cena 17 7 2 0 26 Chris Jericho 13 6 3 1 23 R-Truth 6 5 8 1 0 20 Daniel Bryan 13 4 3 0 20 Randy Orton 10 7 1 1 0 19 Mark Henry 9 4 1 3 2 19 The Big Show 6 8 3 1 18 Edge 5 3 9 1 18 Chavo

Guerrero 2 4 11 0 17 Alberto Del

Rio 10 5 1 1 17 Elijah Burke 3 13 0 16 Matt Hardy 3 1 11 1 16 Shelton Benjamin 3 3 4 5 0 15 Dean Ambrose 6 1 6 0 13 Dolph Ziggler 8 2 2 0 12 Roman Reigns 6 1 5 0 12 Seth Rollins 6 1 5 0 12 Cody Rhodes 8 1 1 1 0 11 Ryback 5 4 1 0 10 William Regal 8 1 1 10 Christian 2 3 3 1 1 10 MVP 1 3 5 1 0 10 The

Undertaker 5 5 0 10 Jeff Hardy 1 5 3 0 9 Curtis Axel 5 1 2 0 8 Big Daddy V 2 1 4 1 8 Sheamus 4 2 1 7 Luke Harper 3 1 1 2 7 Jack Swagger 4 2 1 0 7 Triple H 3 2 2 0 7 JBL 4 1 1 6 Stevie

Richards 6 0 6 Kofi Kingston 2 4 0 6 Batista 2 2 2 0 6 Matt Striker 1 5 0 6 Finlay 1 2 2 1 0 6 Hardcore

Holly 1 5 0 6 Erick Rowan 2 1 1 2 6 Carlito 3 1 1 5 Mike Knox 1 4 0 5 Marcus Cor

Von 1 4 0 5 Mr Kennedy 1 2 1 1 0 5 Ted DiBiase 3 1 1 0 5

(Other includes Tribute to the Troops, Superstars, NXT on SyFy, Sunday Night Heat, Saturday Night’s Main Event and Main Event. Note: This number excludes rumbles.)

Punk’s most common partners for televised bouts were Luke Gallows (16), Kofi Kingston (14), Kane (11), John Cena (10), Daniel Bryan (9), Sheamus (7), Rey Mysterio (7), Cody Rhodes (6), R-Truth (6), Jeff Hardy (6), Dolph Ziggler (5), Matt Hardy (5), Jimmy Uso (4), Jey Uso (4), Tommy Dreamer (4), Goldust (3), Chris Jericho (3), MVP (3), Alberto Del Rio (3), Evan Bourne (3), John Morrison (3), The Miz (3), Drew McIntyre (3) and Randy Orton (3).

Broadening the scope to all events, Punk’s most common partners overall were Luke Gallows (27), The Miz (25), Kofi Kingston (23), Chris Jericho (22), John Cena (18), Daniel Bryan (17), Dolph Ziggler (14), Alberto Del Rio (13), Kane (13), Tommy Dreamer (13), Sheamus (12), Rey Mysterio (11), Batista (9), Jeff Hardy (8), Cody Rhodes (8), R-Truth (8), Shawn Michaels (7), The Big Show (6), John Morrison (6), Matt Hardy (5) and Randy Orton (5).

Frequent Punk Opponents by Year:

2006: Mike Knox, Hardcore Holly, Stevie Richards, Rene Dupree, Shannon Moore, Test

Mike Knox, Hardcore Holly, Stevie Richards, Rene Dupree, Shannon Moore, Test 2007: Elijah Burke, John Morrison, Matt Striker, Big Daddy V, Marcus Cor Von, The Miz, Snitsky, Kevin Thorn

Elijah Burke, John Morrison, Matt Striker, Big Daddy V, Marcus Cor Von, The Miz, Snitsky, Kevin Thorn 2008: Chavo Guerrero Jr, John Morrison, Chris Jericho, Cody Rhodes, Shelton Benjamin, JBL, The Miz

Chavo Guerrero Jr, John Morrison, Chris Jericho, Cody Rhodes, Shelton Benjamin, JBL, The Miz 2009: The Undertaker, Jeff Hardy, William Regal, Kane, Rey Mysterio, Chris Jericho, Matt Hardy

The Undertaker, Jeff Hardy, William Regal, Kane, Rey Mysterio, Chris Jericho, Matt Hardy 2010: Rey Mysterio, The Big Show, Kane, Edge, The Undertaker, R-Truth, John Morrison

Rey Mysterio, The Big Show, Kane, Edge, The Undertaker, R-Truth, John Morrison 2011: John Cena, Alberto Del Rio, Randy Orton, The Miz, R-Truth, Rey Mysterio, Mark Henry

John Cena, Alberto Del Rio, Randy Orton, The Miz, R-Truth, Rey Mysterio, Mark Henry 2012: Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho, Ryback, Kane, The Big Show, The Miz, John Cena

Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Chris Jericho, Ryback, Kane, The Big Show, The Miz, John Cena 2013: Curtis Axel, Ryback, Luke Harper & Erick Rowan, The Shield, John Cena

Curtis Axel, Ryback, Luke Harper & Erick Rowan, The Shield, John Cena 2014: The Shield

It’s especially noteworthy that Punk & Cena faced off 73 times in 2011 alone. Next highest in a single year was the Punk versus Alberto Del Rio in 2011 (47 times) and Punk versus Daniel Bryan in 2012 (46 times) followed by Punk versus Rey Mysterio in 2010 (43 times), Punk versus Chavo Guerrero Jr in 2008 (41 times), Punk versus Dolph Ziggler in 2012 (39 times), Punk versus Randy Orton in 2011 (36 times) and Punk versus The Undertaker in 2009 (34 times).

Not counting rumbles, Punk wrestled in PPV matches against at least 57 wrestlers. Among his frequent opponents, the only ones that he didn’t battle on a pay-per-view were Gene Snitsky, Kevin Thorn, Stevie Richards, Manu, The Great Khali, Chuck Palumbo, Ted DiBiase Jr, DH Smith, Tyson Kidd, Jerry Lawler (though they did wrestle thrice on Raw), and Rene Dupree.

Win-Loss Record

Punk’s WWE Win/Loss Record

2006: 64-2-2 (97.0% win)

2007: 103-28-0 (78.6% win)

2008: 109-54-3 (66.9% win)

2009: 95-89-1 (51.6% win)

2010: 29-82-3 (26.1% win)

2011: 72-104-10 (40.9% win)

2012: 120-48-9 (71.4% win)

2013: 82-26-3 (75.9% win)

2014: 9-4-0 (69.2% win)

Total: 683-437-31 (61.0% win)

If you decide to split out “clean losses” from “loss via DQ” or “loss via count out”, the only year of significant difference is 2012. Punk’s record that year was 118 clean wins, 2 wins by DQ, 2 losses by count out, 31 losses by DQ, 1 loss by reverse decision (w/ Jericho & Bryan vs David Otunga, Dolph Ziggler & Mark Henry on 1/16/12 Raw) and only 14 clean losses in 2012. Only three of those clean losses were singles matches: 5/28/12 Daniel Bryan beat CM Punk, 6/4/12 Kane beat CM Punk and 11/12/12 Cena beat CM Punk (with Foley as the special enforcer). As noted, most of Punk’s losses in 2012 were as a result of a disqualification.

(Green bars represent # of matches each month, blue line is monthly win percentage; red line is the 3 month weighted win percentage. Keep in mind that heels lose a lot, especially at live events.)

OCELOT

Recently, as part of the Dave Meltzer WWF PPV Star Analysis Project, I refreshed my Overly Complicated ELO Theorem (OCELOT) ratings using Cagematch results 1963-2013 with a simplified k-value system.

Astute Observers may be able to correlate specific gains and drops with CM Punk’s heel/face status along with which titles he was competing for.

Great WWE PPV Matches with CM Punk

(Match listing courtesy of Cagematch.net)

4/1/07: WWE WrestleMania 23 – “All Grown Up”

Eight Man Money In The Bank Ladder: Mr. Kennedy defeats CM Punk and Edge and Finlay and Jeff Hardy and King Booker and Matt Hardy and Randy Orton (19:11)

4/5/09: WWE WrestleMania 25

Money In The Bank Ladder: CM Punk defeats Christian and Finlay (w/Hornswoggle) and Kane and Kofi Kingston and Mark Henry (w/Tony Atlas) and Montel Vontavious Porter and Shelton Benjamin (14:24)

8/23/09: WWE SummerSlam 2009

World Heavyweight Title Tables, Ladders & Chairs: CM Punk defeats Jeff Hardy (c) (21:35)

5/23/10: WWE Over The Limit 2010

S.E.S. Pledge vs. Hair: Rey Mysterio defeats CM Punk (13:49)

2/20/11: WWE Elimination Chamber 2011

WWE Heavyweight Title #1 Contendership Elimination Chamber: John Cena defeats CM Punk and John Morrison and King Sheamus and R-Truth and Randy Orton (33:15)

6/19/11: WWE Capitol Punishment 2011

CM Punk defeats Rey Mysterio (14:58)

7/17/11: WWE Money In The Bank 2011

WWE Heavyweight Title: CM Punk defeats John Cena (c) (33:45)

9/18/11: WWE Night Of Champions 2011

No Disqualification: Triple H defeats CM Punk (24:01)

10/2/11: WWE Hell In A Cell 2011

WWE Heavyweight Title Triple Threat Hell In A Cell: Alberto Del Rio defeats CM Punk and John Cena (c) (24:08)

12/18/11: WWE TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs 2011

WWE Heavyweight Title Triple Threat Tables, Ladders & Chairs: CM Punk (c) defeats Alberto Del Rio (w/Ricardo Rodriguez) and The Miz (18:50)

4/1/12: WWE WrestleMania XXVIII

WWE Heavyweight Title: CM Punk (c) defeats Chris Jericho (22:23)

5/20/12: WWE Over The Limit 2012

WWE Heavyweight Title: CM Punk (c) defeats Daniel Bryan (23:58)

7/15/12: WWE Money In The Bank 2012

WWE Heavyweight Title No Disqualification Match (Special Referee: AJ): CM Punk (c) defeats Daniel Bryan (27:47)

9/16/12: WWE Night Of Champions 2012

WWE Heavyweight Title: CM Punk (c) vs. John Cena – Double Pin (26:54)

1/27/13: WWE Royal Rumble 2013

WWE Heavyweight Title: The Rock defeats CM Punk (w/Paul Heyman) (c) (23:17)

4/7/13: WWE WrestleMania XXIX

The Undertaker defeats CM Punk (w/Paul Heyman) (22:07)

6/16/13: WWE Payback 2013

CM Punk (w/Paul Heyman) defeats Chris Jericho (21:20)

7/14/13: WWE Money In The Bank 2013

WWE Heavyweight Title Contract Money In The Bank Ladder: Randy Orton defeats Christian and CM Punk and Daniel Bryan and Rob Van Dam and Sheamus (26:38)

8/18/13: WWE SummerSlam 2013

No Disqualification: Brock Lesnar (w/Paul Heyman) defeats CM Punk (25:19)

I am working on my first book, #Wrestlenomics—a collection of pro-wrestling analytics and statistics. If you’re interested in purchasing a pre-order copy or want to email me for any other reason please do so at [email protected], check out more of my work at indeedwrestling.com and indeedwrestling.blogspot.com