Before his surprise departure, CM Punk was either the number two or number three man in the WWE in terms of popularity. He was a much-needed figure in WWE, acting as an antithesis to John Cena, the companys top man. While the WWEs target market had Cena, older fans had Punk, who represented their desires in wrestling more than anyone else. Punk was also in a situation where he could play face or heel perfectly; so good were his skills on the microphone and his abilities to garner a reaction from the crowd. He was, without doubt, a central player in WWE. Recently, CM Punk has revealed his side of the story regarding his departure. He was physically and emotionally drained from wrestling, had to deal with a potentially lethal staph infection, and was overall unhappy with his career. Moreover, he claimed to have been fired on his wedding day, and considered his career a failure since he didnt main event WrestleMania. CM Punk leaving the WWE was one thing, as the WWE adapted their storylines to help push Daniel Bryan to new heights (which succeeded, until he had neck surgery). But his other comments, which were highly critical of WWEs medical staff and Triple H, in particular, were scathing in nature. The last thing WWE needs right now is more media criticism for failure to properly take care of its independent contractors. At this point, any hope that CM Punk will ever set foot in a wrestling ring, never mind a WWE ring, are gone. No matter how zealously his loyal fans cheer his name at WWE shows, no matter how fans try to make the shows about themselves and take attention away from whoever is in the ring, Punk isnt coming back. He is done with pro wrestling, and is considering MMA and comic book writing. It is very unfortunate that both parties couldnt come to an agreement where Punk at least gives a professional farewell to his fans. It wouldve been nice for him to leave on a higher note than the one on which he actually did. Instead, Punks departure, and the subsequent fallout, has left fans of his with a bittersweet taste in their mouths.
Alexander Podgorski is a writer for WhatCulture that has been a fan of professional wrestling since he was 8 years old. He loves all kinds of wrestling, from WWE and sports entertainment, to puroresu in Japan.
He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Queen's University in Political Studies and French, and a Master's Degree in Public Administration. He speaks English, French, Polish, a bit of German, and knows some odd words and phrases in half a dozen other languages.
