WWE.com and Pat McAfee Show contributor Mark Kaboly takes a look at who might be the black-hooded mystery person that attacked CM Punk in the Men’s WarGames Match at Survivor Series.
THE SETUP
The internet has been on fire with speculation ever since the person dressed in all black scaled the cage during the WarGames Match and clobbered World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk with a superkick and Stomp that allowed The Vision’s Bron Breakker to get the win for Team Heyman. Instantly, the possibility of it being Seth Rollins came into question. But that’s way too easy of an explanation. Or is it? The identity of the masked person has yet to be revealed, and who knows when it will? For this to occur during the main event of the final PLE of the year, with such a talented collection of performers in one match, this person has to be quite significant.
THE SUSPECTS (Ranked most likely to least likely)
1) Randy Orton: It’s been a while, but Orton historically has no love lost for Punk. It makes a ton of sense that the masked man is The Viper. Orton and Punk have had issues and some classic matches, including WrestleMania 27. Who can forget Orton’s return in November of 2023 being somewhat overshadowed by Punk’s return to the company for the first time in a decade, which couldn’t have gone over well with Orton? Orton has been off TV for a while, which has put him out of mind, out of sight, which is perfect for a surprising return. Before disappearing, Orton was flirting with turning to the dark side, so it all makes sense.
2) Austin Theory: If that wasn’t Theory dressed all in black, then I think we are kidding ourselves. The body build itself suggests it was him, but it makes all the sense in the world to be linked to Paul Heyman and The Vision. But as Triple H said during the critically acclaimed "Unreal" documentary, “Sometimes the logical road becomes predictable. If it becomes predictable, you need to pivot.” Theory may be too predictable, so it might be one of those pivot points Triple H was talking about. Nobody would be shocked if it was him, but I’m not expecting it.
3) Seth Rollins: Maybe we are all thinking about this too much. They want us to believe it is Rollins, so maybe it is Rollins. Even if Rollins is still currently injured and isn’t part of The Vision anymore, never count out The Visionary. He fooled us not long ago, so why not again? He sure is making his rounds on various television programs, so he can’t be that hurt, right? Rollins' animosity for Punk and vice versa makes Rollins a good opportunity to be the mystery man.
4) John Cena: In what might be the longest of long shots, and really doesn’t make much sense at all, Cena could be setting up a swerve during or after his finale at Saturday Night’s Main Event, and you can’t ignore the history between Cena and Punk. Yeah, they met at WWE Elimination Chamber and Night of Champions earlier in the year, but the rivalry they had from 2011-12 was unrivaled.
5) LA Knight: Knight has been screwed for the better part of this year and could be fed up with not getting an opportunity at a title and isn’t about to worry about putting all his eggs into a possible final match against Cena. Knight wants a title match, and Punk could provide that.
6) Becky Lynch: The Man is so unhinged right now that you can’t put anything past what she might do. That could mean targeting Seth Rollins' arch nemesis while he’s out, then becoming the leader of The Vision until Rollins reclaims that role. Mind you, Lynch tapped out to Punk’s wife, AJ Lee, earlier in the night, which at least makes you wonder a little bit.
7) Sami Zayn: Heyman has always accepted Zayn as part of The Bloodline, and Zayn could be a nice replacement for Logan Paul, who may not be in this faction for the long haul. But is all this mystery over a piece of The Vision worth interrupting WarGames?
8) AJ Styles: Yet another guy that Punk hasn’t always gotten along with. Now, they did meet in June on Raw, but with Styles pushing toward the end of his career, there are worse things than him getting a chance at a title run.
