Greatest 21st Century Wrestler - 1st Round D - CM Punk vs. Shinsuke Nakamura

[Samoa Looch]

FIRST ROUND - BLOCK D

#8 CM Punk
VS
#57 Shinsuke Nakamura

Who enters Round 2?
You decide!

Voting is open for at least 7 days
(October 27th)​

 

[Chris]

I went Punk and expected to vote for him for a few rounds but wow I actually had to think here. If I was only rating Shinsuke's NJPW stuff he'd probably take it but the WWE run really hurts him and I think it's def Punk. I don't even think Punk's 7 years out hurt him much for me, he's had two really strong returns and I'm still at worst 50/50 on his good/bad in AEW both are just insane peaks and valleys both ways

 

[Barry Poppins]

Shinsuke Nakamura is the definition of a WWE somehow making a home run hire into a fucking single base hit with how badly they botched the handling of his run.

 

[O-Blaze]

Despite me souring on Punk a little bit after the AEW stuff, I still was a really huge fan of his, and I’ll honestly probably will be again. I already don’t have any ill will towards him. So I voted for Punk.

 

[Lethal]

Punk easily. The summer of Punk, SES, BITW, phenomenal runs that were preceeded by ROH. Shinsuke peaked in NXT after a great NJPW run and hasn't hit those notes on the main roster

 

[Keith]

Punk had a hell of a run from the mid-2000s to about 2013. He's made a decent impact in recent years but has become a bit a shadow of his former self IMO. I'll be honest I haven't seen much of Nakamura's Japan stuff. I actually quite enjoy his WWE run for the most part (that entrance alone is great).

 

[Cwalker]

I hadn’t seen much of Nakamura prior to his debut in NXT so I’m essentially putting his NXT and main roster run up against the seventeen years Punk was active this century.

Nakamura in NXT was special. Same could be said for his first year on the main roster but after that it’s very much mid.

I’m going Punk

 

[Samoa Looch]

This is also quite a tough one.

Now, I'm very critical of Punk, but I don't hate the guy. Far from it, I always liked him and I think he can be one of the greatest on the mic. ...buuut I think Nak had simply more to offer over these last 20 years. I do think he is overall the better in-ring talent of the two and with Phil's long break, I just can't put him before Shinsuke.
It's funny how both of them kinda had a similar run in the WWE, but with the trajectories reversed. While Punk was always kinda held back by creative and booking and only became that big name after years in the company, it's the opposite with Shinsuke. Big and great NXT run and a very promising start in the Main Roster, just to be killed by creative and he's been pretty much floundering about ever since.

TL:dR version... I think they are pretty close and I think their WWE runs are very fascinating, if compared, but overall I think Shinsuke is more of a complete Wrestler.

 

[Samoa Looch]

Another one done...

#8 CM Punk beats #57 Shinsuke Nakamura with 17 - 6