CB’s Slant: CM Punk and The Undertaker Steal the Show at WrestleMania 29

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WrestleMania 29 is now in the books, and plenty of folks right here on Inside Pulse Wrestling have their own viewpoints and recaps and results. And, well, I hope someone checks on my good friend Rey Mundo being that John Cena beat The Rock tonight. And even worse, they embraced like it was no big deal.

Cha-ching.

However, with all of that said, I would like to focus on the one match that I felt lived up to all of the hype and truly stole the show on Sunday night.

Of course, I am talking about The Undertaker vs. CM Punk.

THE STREAK vs. No Disrespect Intended.

The Phenom vs. The Best in the World.

The Deadman vs. The Straightedge Superstar.

First things first, for all of the speculation regarding Undertaker’s banged up condition heading into this match, my friends and I all thought that Taker looked to be in pretty damn good shape from the start of the match.

And, well, Punk was so pumped up from that live Living Colour entrance that you could tell he was just excited for this match to start.

There were just some great elements in this match that made it as compelling as it could be:

–The crowd bought into EVERY single part of this match, starting with the offensive flurry that kicked things off. This wasn’t like all the other matches tonight, where the crowd was DEAD while waiting for something to happen, and that investment by the audience made this stand out even more.

–Punk countering OLD SCHOOL, then going OLD SCHOOL himself later on in the match.

–The tease of the Suicide Dive by Taker that Paul Heyman interrupted. Man, I thought he might do it just one more time, but was glad he didn’t. No need to this year.

–Punk with the Macho Man Elbow drop that just never gets old because it comes from a good place.

–The second Elbow drop onto the announcer’s table that just wouldn’t break, making the move even stiffer for both guys. I was wondering if Taker would even get back to the ring in time for the 10-count to not be slowed up by the ref who was counting pretty fast.

–The Hell’s Gate counter into an interesting pin combination.

–The Anaconda Vice that was countered by sheer will and Taker’s patented SIT UP OF DOOM. The way Punk sold FEAR here was just priceless and was just an amazing nuance to the entire match.

–The first Tombstone kick out, always crazy to see whenever it happens.

–The ref bump. The Urn to Taker’s skull during a Last Ride Attempt. That moment where you really do suspend disbelief just for a couple of seconds: 1 … 2 …….. KICKOUT by Taker at 2 and seven eighths.

–The finish. A second Tombstone that sealed Punk’s fate, leaving THE STREAK intact at 21 and 0.

No, this wasn’t the perfect five-star finish to a four-year saga, but as Punk said in a recent interview, he loves stealing the show, and he doesn’t mind doing it without any extra stipulations like Hell In A Cell or No Disqualifications or No Countouts.

No, Punk prefers to take what is given to him and maximize it to earn, well, RESPECT.

And he did that yet again at WrestleMania 29, in ALL CAPS.

I’m sure The Undertaker would say the same……….

That’s all from me — CB.

CB is an Editor for Pulse Wrestling and an original member of the Inside Pulse writing team covering the spectrum of pop culture including pro wrestling, sports, movies, music, radio and television.