8. He Allegedly Aggravated The Authority For Real
WWE.comA pretty iron-clad story that came out of Punks departure was that, prior to leaving, he was being set up for a feud with The Authority, Triple H and Stephanie McMahon, leading into a match at Wrestlemania XXX: The Best versus The Game. He had been involved in the beginnings of a feud with Corporate Kane, The Authoritys middle management, firstly by having their attack dogs The Shield unleashed upon him (back when they were heel henchmen for the boss), then by having Kane eliminate him from the Royal Rumble. The implication, as ever with Kane and The Shields actions at that time, was that Triple H and Stephanie were behind it. Much has been made of the rumour that Punk considered a grudge match with part time legend Triple H beneath him. Well never know the truth of how Punk felt about the prospect of wrestling the boss at Wrestlemania, or what booking plans were in place and who was most likely to go over, but Paul Levesque is a proud man, and that cant have sat well with him. His wife Stephanie, on the other hand, has made very few bones about her dislike of CM Punk. However, speculation has it that Brooks had been burned out and desperate to leave the company and potentially, professional wrestling itself for months. If Paul Heyman is to be believed, hed been talking about it every other day for a year. In the meantime, his collection of nagging injuries has been mounting up for a while now. Two years after his 2010 elbow operation Punk said, I never want to have another surgery as long as I live the most un-fun thing Ive ever had in my entire life. Maybe that has to do with me refusing any and all painkillers, but its nothing I ever want to do I dont wanna cough up anesthesia again for three days. And for what? To make a comeback and get back in the ring? It seems unlikely that one set of booking plans alone would have pushed him over the edge. Heyman seems to think that he simply turned up to work one day and couldnt think of a single reason why he should be there a culmination of a year or more of dissatisfaction, injuries, overwork and fatigue combining to burn the man out completely. We doubt Triple H needs to feel aggrieved about it.