CM Punk has had a number of finishers in his career, but which one ranks top out of them all?
In his wrestling career so far, CM Punk has been an inspiration for many. He led the charge for independent wrestlers in the WWE, leading the way for future stars like Daniel Bryan and Seth Rollins to become stars in the company.
Over the years, he has had a number of finishing moves that have helped him win numerous World Championships.
He won five World Championships in WWE (as well as an ECW Championship amid a host of other titles) and two AEW Championship titles. He is one of the greatest wrestlers of all time, even with missing 7 years of wrestling in his prime after walking out on the WWE.
CM Punk’s finishing moves have changed over his incredible career and are some of the most memorable in the history of wrestling.
In this article, we will look at all of CM Punk’s finishers that he has used over his career and rank which ones are the best and which ones simply don’t cut the mustard. We will also look at the CM Punk’s finisher name and how why they are called what they are.
CM Punk’s Finishers
Pepsi Plunge
Of the three main finishers CM Punk has had in his career, it’s hard to pick the worst. They are all very good finishers and very cool to see pulled off inside the ring.
However, only one will stop you from being able to walk by the time you’re fifty, so third on the list of CM Punk’s best finishers has to be the Pepsi Plunge.
The Pepsi Plunge was the finisher CM Punk used on the independent scene. If you’re looking for the most believable finisher,then look no further than this one. It is identical to Triple H’s famous “Pedigree” finisher, save for one key difference – CM Punk does his from the top rope.
Yes, CM Punk took the pedigree and made it incredible dangerous. I’m sure because he’s so great in the ring that he did it safely every time. However, there is no safe way to jump from the top rope and land directly onto your knees.
Thankfully, Punk was forced to stop this once he joined WWE. Triple H did not want anybody doing his iconic finisher but from the top rope, so he had to steal one from someone else (we’ll get to that later).
CM Punk did pull out this super finisher once in AEW, during his first match with MJF on AEW Dynamite. He hit the top rope Pepsi Plunge onto the young star, but it did not keep the future AEW Champion down for the three count.
Anaconda Vice
Next on the list of CM Punk’s best finishers is his submission finisher. The Anaconda Vice has been used by Punk throughout his career and has helped him win many different matches over a variety of companies.
It is a compression hold and a chokehold, making it a diverse, effective submission manoeuvre. The Anaconda Vice uses CM Punk’s bicep to choke his opponent, but it compresses two other parts of the recipient’s body.
It looks deadly and is a real-life submission move that can be used in an MMA-fight. While CM Punk did not manage to pull it out during his brief, doomed career in the UFC, it still remains one of the best submission finishers right now in AEW.
Go-2-Sleep (GTS)
By far the best of CM Punk’s finishing moves has to be the Go-2-Sleep. Also called the Go To Sleep or GTS, CM Punk was inspired to use this move by Japanese wrestler KENTA, who invented the finishing move. Due to Punk using it, when KENTA did sign for the WWE in 2014 he was unable to use the finisher that he invented.
The move sees CM Punk lift his opponent onto his shoulders in a fireman’s carry position. He then throws them into the air and lifts his knee into the faces. This causes their face to slam down onto the upcoming, sending them flying onto the man and potentially knocking them unconscious.
While it sounds convoluted to set up, it is not at all. CM Punk can hit a snap-GTS is he needed to, or make a dramatic, slow build up to keep the crowd on the edge of their seats. It’s a versatile finisher and one that looks great when executed properly.
The GTS is CM Punk’s Finishing Move that helped him win the most World Championships. He has used it to win World Titles in WWE from the likes of John Cena, Edge and Jeff Hardy, as well as his AEW Championship wins over Jon Moxley and Adam Page.
In my view, it is CM Punk’s best finisher because it looks great, can be executed from almost anywhere and has the ability to look like it killed a man inside the ring.
While CM Punk’s GTS may not be considered the best, he made the finisher iconic in the WWE and now in the WWE.
Which is your favourite of CM Punk’s finishers in wrestling? Let us know down in the comments, or click below to read about the true story behind the CM Punk feud with “Hangman” Adam Page over the AEW World Championship.