CM Punk vs. Ryback (w/Paul Heyman) – Hell in a Cell – 2013
CM Punk’s last Hell in Cell match came about when Paul Heyman, posing as Punk’s advocate during the Money in the Bank ladder match, turned on his client, and subsequently cost him the opportunity for a future WWE Championship match.
What followed was a rivalry which pitted Punk against a number of ‘Paul Heyman Guys’, including Brock Lesnar, Curtis Axel and of course Ryback. After winning a ‘Beat the Clock’ challenge on Raw, Punk was able to pick the stipulation for his and Ryback’s match at Hell in a Cell. Surprisingly Punk added Heyman as Ryback’s partner, and also decided to contest the match inside Hell in a Cell, thus setting up the first 2-on-1 handicap match in the stipulation’s history.
Heyman, who entered on a cherry picker, would ascend to the top of the cell, where he would bark orders at Ryback, and ultimately avoid the match. Unlike all his other Hell in a Cell matches, Punk stared out valiantly with aggressive offence from the bell. Not surprising given the heel-face swap between Punk and Ryback from their previous encounter.
It did not take long for Ryback to overpower Punk , and in doing so, deal out a great deal of punishment. In what was Punk’s most extreme Hell in a Cell match, culminating in Punk driving Ryback through a table with an elbow drop, the determined face ultimately prevailed , with Punk hitting a GTS for the pinfall victory.
In terms of match quality, it was a good decision to find a way for Heyman not be involved in the actual match, and to let Punk and Ryback do the work. Once again, this was a decent match, made more intriguing with the roles reversed and Heyman switching sides from the previous year’s encounter. Seeing Punk get his revenge on Heyman with a kendo stick on top of the cell made for gratifying viewing, and definitely added something more to the match.
When people think of pioneers inside Hell in a Cell, names like Triple H, The Undertaker and Mick Foley often come to mind. However, featuring in the first title change, the first untelevised match, the first triple threat and the first 2-on-1 handicap match, in many ways CM Punk was a pioneer of Hell in a Cell, despite most of his matches leaving more to be desired.
