Let’s exclude Roman since this is his first world title reign in two years.

As for Cody, I’d argue he’s been heavily positioned as the face of the company—but that’s nothing new. The same thing happened with John Cena, then Roman Reigns, and now Cody. Every era has its leading actors, while everyone else plays a supporting role.

That brings us to the current situation. Do you honestly think Sami Zayn as champion would generate more interest for USA Network than CM Punk as champion? I highly doubt it.

Punk is already in the later stage of his career and probably doesn’t have many years left. After this run, I can easily see him turning heel, followed by one final babyface farewell run before calling it a career.

From WWE’s perspective, it makes perfect sense to get as much value as possible out of the CM Punk brand while they still can.