That article, having a quick flick of it, stinks of WWE putting across their spin on the whole WM30 build up. Truth is, had Punk not left it'd have been him v HHH, Sheamus v Bryan and Batista/Orton.
Punk leaving, Batista getting booed at the Rumble etc was the real reason for catapulting Bryan into the main event but tbf, they did it well to make sure the audience was fully invested.