We all knew that WWE management would hear of what CM Punk told the world on Colt Cabana’s Art of Wrestling podcast. We even knew that WWE performers would listen in as well. Colt put up his podcast for free, and most feel that it probably has been downloaded in the millions. The show itself has always been good as Colt, being a pro-wrestler himself, knows the business. He also spent a short time in WWE. However, no guest would be bigger in the world of wrestling today than CM Punk.
CM Punk walked out of the WWE in January, and we didn’t hear from him regarding why until Thanksgiving Day. This was around 10 months after he left the company. Why so long? Multiple reasons it seems, but Punk felt that he owed it a bit to the world to tell them why he left. Oh and he let us know a lot of reasons. Punk has never been one to lie to people, as he has been open even in his promos about how he secretly felt in regards to his issues within the company. We all know of his “Pipe bomb” promo in Las Vegas in 2011 that sent shockwaves through the world of pro-wrestling that, in some ways, is still felt today.
However, it is possible that the biggest pipe bomb he ever laid out was a near two-hour podcast with Colt Cabana on Thanksgiving Day. He held nothing back, and when I say nothing, I literally mean that. He spoke negatively about people such as Triple H and Ryback, but also about WWE medical officers. Punk said that while he left due to a few reasons, though the biggest was his health. Punk actually ended up having MRSA, a staff infection that could have killed him. It was misdiagnosed by WWE. Along with this, he has lingering rib, elbow, and knee problems. On top of it all, he sustained a concussion the night before he left in the Royal Rumble match.
Literally, Punk left WWE as a broken man in a way.
He spoke highly of the boys in the locker room, and was complementary of several WWE talents such as Brock Lesnar, Kane, Big Show, The Shield, and even John Cena. However, his comments regarding Ryback and Triple H were big.
According to Wrestling Observer insider Bryan Alvarez, WWE executive Triple H is said to be furious about Punk’s comments. In Alvarez’s words, he wants to “kill Punk.” Both he and Stephanie are said to personally hate Punk, and did so before he even left WWE. When he did, hate only increased.
So imagine what would happen after this podcast. WWE Chairman Vince McMahon is said to be upset, but not overly. Obviously, he does not like the comments Punk made, but he is seemingly not taking them too personally. Punk didn’t really overly attack McMahon from a personal standpoint. He did speak of how McMahon owed him one a few times when he did things he asked him to do.
However, Punk’s comments were tame regarding McMahon compared to what others have claimed regarding the Chairman. That said, it is doubtful that “Stone Cold” Steve Austin and McMahon will talk about this on the live Austin podcast after RAW this Monday on the WWE Network. One would imagine that it would be the perfect venue for WWE to gain some exposure for the network. However, fans can’t book the company direction, of course. You never know what will happen though, it is live.
Alvarez also claimed that most of the WWE talent thought the podcast was “awesome.” We can assume that they feel similar to how Punk once had? Even those who were not fans of Punk in the locker room were fans of what he said. It should go without saying, but Colt Cabana is said to be on WWE’s “sh**list.” The company is extremely unhappy with him, which is not surprising. That being said, do not expect any WWE affiliated talent to appear on Colt’s podcast any time soon.
While BG James and Ryback did tweet a bit about Punk’s comments, both have since deleted their tweets about it. No other WWE talent has spoken about Punk’s comments on social media either. There could be a company-wide directive to not talk about it online.
It is said that what Punk said called attention to a lot of WWE’s problems. That is why the talent loved it. It could be that what Punk said could change the way things are done. We know WWE has had inner issues, however, the fact that Punk said this and it has made a lot of press means that WWE will certainly address some things. Whether they wanted to or not, they most likely will have to.
If you’d like to download the CM Punk Art of Wrestling podcast, you can go here . Or you can listen to the entire podcast below:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zxHRJnZsinQ
[IMG Credits: WWE.com, Fansided.com]