CM Punk on his way to WWE

*** CM PUNK STORY ***

From http://www.livejournal.com/users/cmpunk/

10:09 pm "Heart of the Devil" or "Goodbye Blue and White"

I knew I was gone at the beginning of the year.

I just woke up one day and knew. That's the way I work a lot of the time. I think it's creepy too, but it's really helpful. I honestly knew I'd be history by June.

Come say goodbye on Saturday, I promise to go out with a bang.
Trust me.
XxX

From www.rohwrestling.com

Breaking News: Punk's Last ROH Match On Saturday

CM Punk just informed ROH officials that his last match in Ring Of Honor will be this Saturday, June 18th, in Morristown, New Jersey at the beautiful Mennan Sports Arena. This is a big building so there will be plenty of tickets available at the door. Check ROHwrestling.com for info and directions. The Mennan Sports Arena is an easy drive from all points.

CM Punk wants it made clear to ROH fans that he is more determined than ever to win the ROH World Title from Austin Aries this Saturday. Punk has stated that his independent wrestling career will only be complete if he wins the ROH World Title. Punk says that he will give the ROH fans one last special moment on Saturday.

The first "Death Before Dishonor" featured one of the most emotional moments in ROH history when fans and the entire locker room bid farewell to Paul London, who had just lost a World Title match to Samoa Joe. Anyone in attendance will never forget that moment. There is no telling how emotional the scene will be this Saturday, but Punk is determined to go out a winner.

ROH officials are currently discussing what to do with the World Title if Punk wins it on Saturday. We will have more on this tomorrow at ROHwrestling.com.

From http://www.rohwrestling.com/MessageBoard/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=11889 (from Gabe Sapolsky)

I'm not going to sit here and pretend that CM Punk leaving is just another talent growing and leaving ROH. Life will go on in ROH and I'm sure people will step up and perform on the next level and breath new life into ROH, but no one will fill Punk's shoes.

I remember the first time I saw Punk on tape. ROH had already started. I saw Punk's ring entrance and a fan got in his face. Punk with all the poise and confidence in the world backed that fan down. I was sold right there. I didn't even need to see him wrestle.

I sat here for a couple of hours trying to think of how to write up my thoughts on Punk and what he's accomplished in ROH and meant to this promotion. I tried to narrow it down to a few memories and great moments and write them up here. After thinking about it for a couple of hours I figured it would take me a week or so in order to write a proper piece on Punk and his meaning to ROH.

I can say without doubt that ROH might not be here today without CM Punk. Punk's leadership and in ring work were one of the main things that kept ROH alive in 2004. "World Title Classic" can be considered one of the most important matches in ROH history. It put the emphasis back on wrestling. "**** Anyone That Tries To Stop Us!" Then Punk and Joe topped it with their second one hour draw in what became by far the fastest and largest selling DVD in ROH history. It made our Christmas season. Then they topped it again at "All Star Extravaganza II."

Something that means a lot to me is something that Punk said to me the other day. He felt like his job here was done. He did his part to make this company strong and stable and now he knows he can move on with ROH being in good health. It means so much to me that Punk stayed here as long as he did in order to make this company strong. Punk sacrificed on so many levels to make this company strong and he is definitely leaving a strong company that is ready for its future.

I do have to admit that the future plans we had with Punk were out of this world and it is such a shame they will not happen. In fact it breaks my booker heart that they won't happen, but I understand Punk's need to move on. Punk has done it all and wrestled everyone on the indies. Well he's almost done it all. We'll see on Saturday how the final chapter will be written.

I also have to admit that I will greatly miss working with Punk. In fact, there is a tear in my eye as I write this. If you heard Paul Heyman (not that I'm anywhere close to Heyman's league) talk about his working relationship with Raven and vice versa, that is the same chemistry that Punk and I had.

I'll give you an example. The first FIP weekend Punk cut a promo introducing The New Dawn. I had an idea for the promo where Punk would talk about the saying on the Statue Of Liberty about "bringing us your poor, your hungry...." I forgot to tell Punk my idea for the promo. Next thing I know he was cutting the same exact promo I had in my head without me even mentioning one word of it to him. Raven always likes to use the Scorsese/Deniro comparison when talking about him and Heyman. That is the same analogy I always use with Punk.

Saturday will be a very emotional day for me. I am very confident in ROH's future and we will continue to raise the bar and give you the action you've come to expect from us. Someone (and I'm guessing multiple people) will take the ball and run with it again in the immediate future, but things just won't be the same without Punk.

I really wish I could write more about it and talk about all the great matches Punk has had, all the great promos he's cut and all the great angles he's been a part of. There is no way a post on a message board could sum up what Punk has meant to ROH, its fans, the locker room and the entire company.

Now on Saturday we have one more opportunity to do something special. We plan to make the most of it.

Thanks to Dr. Keith Lipinski
[email protected]

Congratulations to C.M. Punk on signing developmental deal with the WWE.  CM Punk is being featured on the cover of my Wrestling Chatterbox Newsletter this month.