Jim Cornett is known for speaking his mind, and the chaotic ending of WWE’s recent WWE Championship match clearly frustrated him. On a new episode of Jim Cornett’s Drive-Thru, the legendary wrestling manager criticized the way WWE handled the dramatic finish of the showdown between John Cena and CM Punk. While Cornett applauded the wrestling itself, he felt the final moments went completely off the rails.
Cornett acknowledged, “It was a good match where everything made sense. It was a solid world title match,” even going so far as to call it “probably John Cena’s best match since his particular retirement.” But everything changed when the referee was knocked out and the multiple run-ins began—at that point, Cornett said the match was ruined.
He explained, “I loved this match up to this point. The only acceptable move when a match can’t end on disqualification is to knock out the referee, which I understand. But now the referee bump has turned into a medically induced coma where the referee is down for ten minutes.” The appearance of Seth Rollins, Bron Blaker, Bronson Reed, Penta, and Sami Zayn, who flooded the ring and halted the match, only intensified Cornett’s displeasure.
He criticized the spectacle, saying, “The music played over the speakers while the referee just stood there, seemingly thinking about what to do unless he was completely unconscious.” Cornett, a WWE Hall of Famer, described the entire segment as a completely different match, stating, “For about five minutes, it was like we left the original match and went to the lobby—only to come back after a five-minute break.”
After the referee eventually came to, Cena won the match, seven minutes after taking a shoulder tackle. Yet, Cornett remained unimpressed with WWE’s booking choices, commenting, “It was a really good match until the wrestling was replaced by sports entertainment, and everyone lost the plot.”
Known for being passionate whether he’s praising or criticizing, Cornett isn’t alone in questioning WWE’s direction on this booking decision.
Fan Take: For WWE fans, this critique highlights the ongoing tension between pure wrestling and entertainment drama in the sport. How WWE balances these elements moving forward could shape the company’s credibility and the enjoyment of future championship matches.
