10 Best "Everything You Know Is A Lie" Moments In Wrestling

3. CM Punk Drops A Bomb

The Bloodline
WWE

'The Voice Of The Voiceless' seemingly only spoke for himself when he blew up everything in All Elite Wrestling at the post-All Out 2022 press conference, but 11 years earlier, CM Punk's truth-to-power sermon genuinely seemed more for others' benefit than his own. Perhaps the fact that he was due to leave the company a few weeks later made it easier to speak so freely.

Making himself the hottest performer in mainstream pro wrestling right on the verge of his contract expiring was exhilarating gamesmanship, in hindsight, but blowing the doors off an organisation that badly badly needed it made the "pipe bomb" far more powerful and profound than a typical farewell storyline.

The end result wasn't a complete shift in the narrative for WWE, even if it felt like the world could never be the same again. But Punk's words weren't for nought - the devastating glass ceiling was cracked if not smashed, and he'd eventually make good on that with a 434-day WWE Title reign that reframed contemporary expectations for champions.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 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. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, 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