CM Punk vs. Umaga
We continue on through the spring of 2009 and it seems like Punk is in a major holding pattern as they weren’t ready yet for him to cash in the briefcase so they have to put him in these random feuds to keep him busy. On the flip side, it’s been a long time since we last saw Umaga as he has been out with an injury and any of the momentum that he had seems to be long gone. He still seemed like a guy that could be a solid hand and putting him with Punk was a fine way to get him back into the swing of things, and after losing the feud to Kane last month at Backlash this seemed like the wrong feud to give to Punk as he needed a big win to get back on track and they still obviously saw something in Umaga to put him in this feud.
On the 5/1 Smackdown, Punk defeated Edge in a non-title match and looked to cash in the briefcase only for Umaga to come out of the crowd and attack him before heading back through the crowd, and on the 5/8 Smackdown Punk again defeated Edge in a non-title match only for Umaga to attack him afterwards and give him the Samoan Spike. On the 5/15 Smackdown, Punk came out after Edge’s match with Chris Jericho and tried to cash in the briefcase again only for Umaga to go after him again though Punk hit him with the briefcase and they brawled around the ring. Again, this seemed like a really random feud for Punk to keep him busy for a while and while it was good to see Umaga back, you did have to wonder how much he had left as a potential top guy.
Punk gets a good pop from the crowd while Umaga still had solid heat as a heel, and this was an interesting choice to have open the show. Punk ducks a shot and kicks at Umaga’s leg to start the match as he gets another kick in and pounds on Umaga, but Umaga shoves Punk to the mat only for Punk to avoid the diving headbutt and he kicks at Umaga repeatedly. Umaga gets a knee in and Punk catches him ducking with a kick only for Umaga to catch him on a springboard, and he hits a spinout sidewalk slam on Punk and stomps on him as he pounds on him in the corner. Punk tries to battle back only for Umaga to hit a back elbow and he kicks Punk in the back before whipping him hard into the corners, and he pounds on Punk and hooks a submission on as Punk fights to his feet only for Umaga to hit a headbutt. He keeps the submission on Punk who reaches the rope to force a break and Umaga slams down on Punk’s arm, and he rams the shoulder into the post and hits a snapmare before going back to the submission on Punk. Punk tries to escape with a series of kicks only for Umaga to hit another headbutt and he continues to grind down on Punk, and Punk fights to his feet only for Umaga to get a knee in and he maintains control before tossing Punk to the mat. He drops a knee on Punk for a two count and Punk rolls out to the apron as Umaga pounds on him, and he hits a big foot that knocks Punk off the apron into the barricade and Punk climbs back onto the apron. He gets a shoulder in twice and attempts a slingshot sunset flip though Umaga holds the ropes to block it before sitting down on Punk, and he hits another sitdown splash on Punk only for Punk to block a third one with a pair of boots to the face. Punk attempts a slam and gets Umaga up only for Umaga to fall on top of him for a two count and he goes back to the submission, and Punk fights to his feet and breaks the hold as he pounds on Umaga who catches him with a shot. He goes up to the middle rope only to miss a diving headbutt and Punk fires up on him until Umaga shoves him away, and he charges only for Punk to pull the top rope down as Umaga tumbles over the top to the floor. Punk hits a slingshot plancha onto Umaga on the floor and both men roll back into the ring as Punk kicks at Umaga repeatedly, and he hits a running kneelift and a dropkick on Umaga who reverses a whip into the corner and Punk catches him with a boot to the face. Punk avoids a charge as Umaga hits his head on the post and Punk hits the running knee only for Umaga to shove him off a bulldog attempt, and he splashes Punk in the corner only for Punk to avoid the running hip slam as he goes up to the middle rope and hits a bulldog on Umaga for a two count. Umaga reverses a whip and sends Punk over the top with Punk landing on the apron and he gets a kick in, and he hits a springboard clothesline on Umaga for a two count though he can’t hoist him onto his shoulders as Umaga hits a Samoan drop for a two count. Punk avoids the Samoan Spike and kicks at Umaga repeatedly before hoisting him onto his shoulders though he hurts his back, and Umaga hits a superkick and the running hip slam in the corner on Punk before hitting the Samoan Spike which gets the three and he wins the match.
The match itself was pretty good as both men worked hard and put on a solid match to open the show. Punk was hitting his stride by this point and while he had been gone for quite a bit, Umaga was still really solid in the ring as he looked like he hasn’t missed a step and they meshed well together for the 12 minutes they got. As random as the feud felt, it was a good feud to get Umaga back into the fold and also to give Punk something to do until he cashes in the briefcase, but it was a bit weird that Punk lost clean as that’s now two months in a row that Punk has lost a match that he probably should’ve won. But unlike the match last month with Kane which was clearly a one-off, it seemed like this feud would continue and Punk would have a chance to get his back while keeping Umaga strong. The crowd was into the match and Punk, but are not happy when Umaga wins. Umaga gets the shocking win over Punk though this issue isn’t over yet.
Final Grade: ***1/4
