Since Paul “Triple H” Levesque became WWE’s Chief Content Officer, rivalries have become more important on TV than when Vince McMahon was in charge. Due to their intensity, some feuds dominate both RAW and SmackDown.
As 2024 comes to an end, WWE has revealed its top 10 rivalries, which have kept fans excited both in Pay-Per-View events and weekly shows. Fans will be excited to know that the rivalry between CM Punk and Drew McIntyre topped the list.
This past weekend, WWE shared its Top 10 Rivalries of the Year on YouTube, featuring a mix of intense matches, championships, and family feuds. CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre took the top spot, beating rivalries like OG Bloodline vs. New Bloodline and Rhea Ripley vs. Liv Morgan, which came in second and third.
Here is the list:
10. Braun Strowman vs. Bronson Reed
9. Andrade vs. Carmelo Hayes
8. Bayley vs. Damage CTRL
7. LA Knight vs. Logan Paul
6. Damian Priest vs. Finn Balor
5. Sami Zayn vs. GUNTHER
4. Cody Rhodes vs. The Rock
3. Rhea Ripley vs. Liv Morgan
2. OG Bloodline vs. New Bloodline
1. CM Punk vs. Drew McIntyre
Fans respect the choices, as Punk and McIntyre’s rivalry since the Royal Rumble has been impressive. This list showed that they value the community’s opinions.
How CM Punk vs Drew McIntyre became WWE’s top rivalry of 2024
The rivalry between CM Punk and Drew McIntyre wasn’t planned at first. Everyone thought Punk and Seth Rollins would have a big feud after Survivor Series 2023.
But during the 30-man Royal Rumble match in 2024, McIntyre injured Punk with his Future Shock DDT, targeting Punk’s injured triceps, which sidelined “The Best in the World” from WrestleMania.
WWE have ranked the best rivalries of 2024. They've ranked number one as CM Punk vs Drew McIntyre.
— Wrestlelamia.com (@wrestlelamia) December 8, 2024
100% the right call. pic.twitter.com/yxR083jE6a
Therefore, Punk’s actions cost McIntyre the heavyweight championship in WM 40, a title McIntyre had long coveted. This made their feud even bigger. After that, Punk took McIntyre’s mockery of his family very personally.
By that time, their feud heated up at every PLE event. It ended for a while when Punk won in an intense Hell in a Cell match at Bad Blood in October. However, it didn’t fully end because McIntyre attacked the Bloodline while Punk was part of the team at Survivor Series WarGames.
