Why CM Punk Is Not Walking Though That Door Till After July

 There is a lot of interesting stuff going on in WWE and not a lot of it has do with what is going on in the ring of late. More than a few people on the talent side of this company are not all that happy with the money that is coming their way. They have a right to be upset but technically the WWE isn’t doing anything wrong. So for those still holding out hope for C.M Punk to return prior to his contract coming due in July it isn’t happening and here is why. In my view, it is not that his body is too beat up to compete. This is a man that once made a return from a fractured skull ahead of time required to heal. It is not about being constantly harassed by fans which if that were a problem he would have been gone long before he was. I think without knowing anything personally, this is about Punk getting his fair share and in the end money. I am not saying Punk is greedy, I actually think he is taking a stand and setting the agenda or precedent for all contracts in the WWE for talent in the post WWE Network era. More about the morals of the whole thing and taking a stand.

To understand what is going on do you remember the Hollywood writers strike that got rid of all your favourite shows?  It was a dispute largely based on the right to compensation for writers that had their work used for digital content. The writers in their contracts did not have any rights to profit from it and hence were paid nothing extra based on that. They felt this was wrong and had a strike and walked out. Writers are part of a union and wrestlers are not. Jessie Ventura a large part of his issues with Hulk Hogan is based on Hogan killing an attempt at union Ventura was trying to create back in the 1980’s. Still in 2014 many feel a union will never be part of professional wrestling industry.

So the WWE Network unlike traditional PPV is digital content and as such wrestler’s payoffs for PPV’s have been drastically reduced. It is only common sense with two major cable providers dropping their PPV’s in the U.S. There has been other talk about video game payoffs being reduced as well but that might have been not of the WWE’s doing. THQ the makers of their video game series up until WWE 13 went bankrupt. It is safe to assume in the hurry to make sure the WWE video game came out on a time a rather quick deal was cut to ensure a game would be made. The WWE likely didn’t do so well on that deal based on being up against the clock. No, this is primarily a war over digital content and the future of how the company will be handled.

Punk had stated in his interview with Ariel Helwani that the WWE had not yet met with talent to explain how the WWE Network would affect their pay. This was the weekend prior to Punk leaving back in January of this year. It has been reported by several respected wrestling journalists and publications that to the best of their knowledge that meeting for talent has still not taken place in the middle of May.

The recent issues with Batista recently being reported likely have more to do with money promised than the promise of a run with WWE World Championship. Everybody really does have a price and that is a shoot as far as wrestling goes. WWE has not been meeting his to levels they had promised.

So that is why Punk likely is not back until later that his contract set to expire in July. If it was a shoot that he signed his contract the night of defeating John Cena at Money in the Bank that would make it July 17th 2014. Many say it simply goes to end of June. In any case for any Ring of Honor fans expecting CM Punk to show up in Nashville, Tennessee it is not going happen just based on the fact the contract will not be done with WWE. Also from all the reports that I have heard Punk is still being paid and their may be an understanding between the two that if he remains quiet that will continue.

I mean think about if Punk was retired why would someone known for being so outspoken have not taken to any forum open to him and speak is mind.

So in the end, C.M Punk maybe doing everyone in WWE a favour by sitting at home waiting for his contract to end, time will tell.  He may be just a greedy, smart and at the end of the day shrewd business man. At the end of the day a guy who in wrestling likes to have power could make himself the most powerful free agent in wrestling if he irons out a new contract that deals with the digital content and compensation issues. While Punk will likely not share that info with the public, I am sure he would to people he consider friends in the company.

At that point when the cat is out of the bag the WWE may have to look at re-working all the talents contracts.  This is something the WWE is trying very hard to avoid at all costs. It should be made clear that Vince McMahon is the biggest advocate to get Punk back. So it all makes for an interesting plot to sort out for the WWE. They still have yet to have a confirmation on where their T.V deal is at as well. While the product in the ring has been rocky with highs and lows since Wrestlemania the business side of things has become even crazier.

CM Punk may be the guy that sets the rules for the new world of WWE Contracts. If Batista doesn’t comeback after his break to promote his movie and Punk is not talking with them in July after his contract expires it might be reason to raise eyebrows assuming no one else causes a fuss prior to that. Funny how John Cena the face of the company is not all that concerned about things least not that anyone has said.  I guess when you are on that level they pay you enough to earn your silence.

This will be a year that will drastically impact on the future of the WWE for perhaps a generation to come and very little of it will be happening in a squared circle.