22Diaries #6 - Benefits Of Mending Fences

01/12/2023 - Gift Enyadike

This week, WWE taught me that even the deepest grudges don’t last forever.

On 27 November 2023, CM Punk, the man who once held the WWE Championship for 434 days, made his first appearance on WWE’s flagship weekly show, Monday Night Raw for the first time in nearly 10 years where he cut an emotional promo to the fans in attendance and declared himself “Home”.

The rumours were true, but why does it matter? Wrestlers come and go all the time, either for on-screen/storyline reasons or they were simply let go and went to another company to make themselves more valuable to the E. Punk coming back was thought to be impossible, because of the way he left.?

You need to understand that when Punk, real name Phil Brooks, left, he had so much resentment towards Vince McMahon and the WWE. I could talk about the problems on both sides, but I'll give you this: They fired this man on his WEDDING DAY!?

After he left, Punk went on a tear. Podcasts, TV, radio, he just ranted about every awful thing that he experienced working for them. His most scathing remarks were for McMahon and Triple H in particular.?

After that Punk distanced himself entirely from professional wrestling. He went so far as to cut ties with a lot of wrestlers who were his real-life friends, a notable example being Kofi Kingston, whom Punk had even shared an apartment with in the late 2000s when both were fairly new to WWE. He didn't burn the bridge, he nuked it and the surrounding area suffered fallout.?

He tried his hand at joining the UFC… at age 37. Needless to say, he lost badly, both times… It was sad to watch. He acted in a few low-budget movies and wrote some comics. Those also didn't pan out all that well.?

Eventually, Punk went quiet until 2021, when he joined upstart wrestling company, All Elite Wrestling (AEW). This was a huge deal that helped AEW boost their attendance and profits. Punk quickly became their biggest and would go on to hold the AEW World Championship twice (thrice, but it’s complicated) Sadly, none of those reigns would last long due to real-life injuries, because he had been out of wrestling for a long time and backstage (real) altercations with various AEW talent and even AEW President/CEO, Tony Khan at their All In pay-per-view in Wembley. Punk was fired shortly after.?

Remember when I said “both sides” earlier? Punk has been in the business since 1999 and he's had problems in almost every single promotion he's worked for. Never in isolation and not always his fault, but he is a common denominator. He's a controversial, opinionated and outspoken person. He's a rebel, both with and without a cause. It means when he speaks, people listen because he'll always be as honest as possible, but his confrontational way of talking can rub people the wrong way sometimes.?

Several WWE talent are known to have real-life issues with him due to past history and personal affiliations notably: World Heavyweight Champion, Seth Rollins (this particular beef has bled onto television and is likely going to be used as a storyline in future); WWE Undisputed Universal Champion, Roman Reigns (who is good friends with Rollins behind the scenes) and Kevin Owens (who has several good friends in AEW).?

Several people are glad to have Punk back though: Randy Orton (who was seen waving at Punk when both returned at Survivor Series); Kofi Kingston (the two have renewed their friendship); John Cena (whom Punk has always respected) and Triple H (who mended his relationship with Punk at the beginning of the year and opened the door for his return.)

That last one goes back to the title of my article. There are three major benefits to Punk's WWE return:

1. Vince McMahon is no longer involved in the day-to-day runnings of the company or the storylines, so Punk's main point of contention is essentially out of the way.?
2. Triple H has Vinny Mac's old-school mentality with a more open mind, so Punk can feel heard, but the stuff he pulled in AEW won't be tolerated.
3. Punk is a major draw in an already stacked roster. The company has been doing record numbers and he's sure to add to that.?

From a business standpoint, these are some really good arguments for why we should attempt to mend bridges, but what about personal?

Punk got to reconnect with old friends, let go of the resentment and anger that had been eating him up inside for years, and he gets to perform for the fans who have been chanting his name non-stop since he left in 2014. The company as a whole has changed since then and so has Punk.?

As a WWE fan since childhood, I can't wait to see what the future holds. WrestleMania season is going to be interesting.