10 WWE Wrestlers Who Retired In Their Prime

10. CM Punk

Only in wrestling could a retirement be all but confirmed by an instantly memeable red carpet rant, but CM Punk's "NEVER EVER EVER" wail when asked in 2014 if he'd be returning to WWE several months after his acrimonious departure reflected yet another significance severance of a once-financially fruitful relationship.

A podcast with Colt Cabana controversial enough to land both in hot water legally in the months that followed drove into the details, but his follow-on pursuit of UFC glory was halted by two damaging defeats in his maiden efforts. 'The Voice Of The Voiceless' was gone from the two large arms of combat sports/Sports Entertainment.

Until now.

CM Punk: WWE Superstar really does appear retired for good, but that says nothing about the future of CM Punk: Pro Wrestler in the wake of the hugely successful All Elite Wrestling launch show Double Or Nothing. Their soft launch ALL IN hailed from Chicago, with Punk appearing for one signing the day before, but rumours haven't subsided about his involvement, not least if they want a Lex Luger moment for the debut edition of their live weekly show.

Authored by Michael Hamflett

Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation for nearly 10 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. Within the podcasting space, he also co-hosts Benno & Hamflett, In Your House! and Podcast Horseman: The BoJack Horseman Podcast. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, Fightful, POST Wrestling, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett

First Posted On: 6th Jun 2019

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