CM PUNK! CM PUNK! CM PUNK! Those chants reverberated around wrestling arenas at WWE events for an entire ten years not just because they missed CM Punk. They chanted his name as a battle cry to let the WWE executives know that CM Punk’s pipebombs that raised awareness on the glaring issues in the pro wrestling world remained true to this day. They wanted them to know that change was needed for the product to get better and remain in touch with what the fans really wanted to see.
However, ever since Punk came back to WWE in 2023, he has been labeled as a hypocrite by critics and wrestling fans because his actions and corporate alignments upon returning to the company have allegedly contradicted the anti-establishment, moral, and work-ethic stances he built his career on. Now that Punk is at the top of the card as a WrestleMania Main Event Player, is he just like everyone else who sold out? Does he only despise the system until he can get the system to work for him?
Did the culture in WWE really change for the better for the Second City Saint, or did the massive paycheck blind him from the peculiar intricacies of backstage politics that still holds down guys like him in 2026? Also, where are those ice cream bars he promised the fans many years ago? Punk is not the only one with a sweet tooth. The hypocrisy of CM Punk is continuously scrutinized due to the many contradictions in his career. Here is an honest hot take on the nuances around that fan perception.
CM Punk Actually Called WWE “Home”
When CM Punk returned to WWE in 2023, he called WWE “home” after ignoring his history in WWE back in AEW. He ignored that history because he felt that Vince McMahon creatively stifled him in the world of sports entertainment when he wanted to fulfill the world of professional wrestling. Many naysayers need to understand that most of Punk’s frustrations were with Vince McMahon, not with TKO and UFC, with whom he had a good working relationship, despite his 0-1 UFC record.
Granted, many of Vince McMahon’s “yes men,” including Triple H, are still in the company. However, the buck doesn’t stop with them anymore and Punk will still be treated more favorably than in his prior run due to how much of a high commodity and draw he has become over the years. As for the culture, there is still plenty of backstage politicking, but anyone would be remiss to neglect the fact that the atmosphere in the locker room is less cutthroat than it was back in the 2000s and 2010s.
Is it a stretch for CM Punk to call WWE “home” after all of the emotional distress, physical turmoil, and even legal trouble he experienced in this company? Absolutely, but it depends on whether Punk was calling WWE “home” in terms of the administration itself or in terms of being back with the fans who chanted his name for years. If it’s the latter, Punk remains true to his loyal fanbase. If it’s the former, he can sensibly tolerate WWE more now since the culture has improved since 2014 when he left.
Punk also said that he is not here to make friends; he is here to make money. Punk stated that he had an issue with this in WWE back in 2011 when he accused Triple H of continuing Vince McMahon’s corporate stagnation, having a bodybuilder bias, and holding Punk back for six years due to his personal issues with him. He also stated clearly that AEW wasn’t a real business because the EVPs (i.e. The Elite) prioritized personal issues over business issues. Punk always claimed to be a business man.
He never proclaimed himself a high moral, down-to-earth guy, who is not in it for the money. He has proclaimed himself a sociopath who definitely saw money as a big issue in his prior run, in which he felt he was not being paid enough for the stellar work he was putting out on a weekly basis. However, just because he is doing pro wrestling for the money and to make a living doesn’t mean he does not have a passion for what he does and does not mean he sold out for wanting his actual worth.
CM Punk “Sold Out For Blood Money” In Saudi Arabia
Speaking of selling out, many naysayers believe that CM Punk sold out for blood money in Saudi Arabia when he battled John Cena for the WWE Championship at Night of Champions 2025. In 2020, Punk famously told The Miz to “go suck a blood money covered d*** in Saudi Arabia”, heavily criticizing WWE’s business dealings in the Kingdom, and he publicly apologized for his past remarks. Indeed, many critics reasonably viewed this as a 180-degree turn for an easy paycheck.
However, it must be noted that wrestlers no longer have a voluntary choice to go to Saudi Arabia to work WWE shows. TKO has now made it a contractual obligation, which means Punk would have to violate his contract and deal with a pending lawsuit if he defied any orders to go to a Saudi Arabian show. Essentially, he was forced to go or risk losing his job in WWE. Considering that he already burned his bridge in AEW, it would be unwise for him to violate his $10 million dollar contractual deal.
TKO would face severe financial repercussions if they fail to fulfill their contractual dates with Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (GEA), and this would trickle down to the wrestlers who must comply with their standard per-appearance contracts. Henceforth, just like every wrestler on that WWE roster, Punk is forced to sacrifice his safety and morals in Saudi Arabia to do what he loves to do: professional wrestling, even if it happens to be a “buy-one-get-one-free extravaganza”.
CM Punk “Begged On His Knees” For His WrestleMania Main Event
Indeed, WrestleMania 43 is a “buy-one-get-one-free extravaganza” that will be in Saudi Arabia in 2027. CM Punk once mocked WWE’s “buy-one-get-one-free extravaganza” setup for WrestleMania and then proceeded to kneel down in front of Roman Reigns and thank him for his first WrestleMania Main Event. On the surface level, this might seem antithetical to his rebellious, anti-establishment character, but he used a sarcastic tone to express his gratitude in order to send a hidden message.
In fact, he was actually sending the same message Sami Zayn was sending when he was recently talking about executives getting on their knees to thank Roman for ratings, drawing power, and money grabs. Punk was subtly showing the audience how Roman Reigns implements his backstage politicking to make himself look “really, really strong.” And, ironically, Reigns should be on his knees, thanking CM Punk for humbly and gracefully taking him under his wing in The Shield.
Reigns wouldn’t be at his position today without his own hard work, of course, but also the foundational tutelage from Punk. If anything, Punk should have main evented Mania at least once before Reigns main evented the show of shows over 10 times. Furthermore, the fact that Reigns pridefully holds his position at the head of the table as not only the original tribal chief (OTC) but also the original part timer (OPT) while fans still criticize Punk for being a “lazy and selfish” part timer today is baffling.
CM Punk Has Become A “Lazy & Selfish” Part Timer
After a big feud, CM Punk has a proclivity of taking a brief vacation to spend quality time with his wife, AJ Lee. These vacations happen quite rarely throughout the year, and he basically works like a full timer when he is on TV. He participates in main event matches on weekly shows as well as PLEs. In 2026 alone, he has had marquee matches and segments with the likes of Finn Balor, AJ Styles, Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes, Johnny Gargano, Sami Zayn, Grayson Waller, and Kevin Owens.
How is Punk a lazy part timer when he has wrestled so many stars in that span of time? Calling him lazy is eminently hyperbolic, and quite frankly, those bags under his eyes say otherwise. He is always on the road, representing the company in podcasts and interviews, like a true professional. When he is on the microphone and in that ring, he is delivering top tier performances that the fans will fondly remember. And if the critics aren’t calling him lazy, they are calling him selfish, which is deceptive.
Punk spent years criticizing wrestlers like Roman, The Rock, and other returning veterans for not being on the road full-time, taking spots, and walking away. After returning to WWE, he faced similar backlash from fans for stepping away from television for months before returning right into championship angles, like he did with Sami Zayn in Chicago on Raw in July. However, unlike other part-timers, he told a compelling story with Zayn and put him over thereafter on SmackDown in Mexico.
Those same critics felt that CM Punk should not have been in the Money In The Bank Ladder Match when he already won 2 MITBs in his career back in ’08 and ’09. They felt he was taking a spot from a rising star, like other part timers have done in the past. However, there were four rising stars in that match (i.e. Bron Breakker, Je’Von Evans, Penta, & Trick) and the idea was to include a veteran, who can add structure to the match and assure that those rising stars are learning from the best.
CM Punk even went down to NXT to put over Grayson Waller as a top talent and proceeded to put over Kevin Owens on SmackDown within the same week. How could someone of his stature, caliber, and credibility be called lazy and selfish when he is putting so many wrestlers over on an intense schedule like that? Punk cares about his spotlight, like anyone else, but he also cares about helping others. His greatness speaks for itself, and the losses he sustains fails to take away from that.
CM Punk Did Not Bring Back Those Ice Cream Bars
The only thing CM Punk is really a hypocrite about is those ice cream bars. How could he be The Muffin Man at AEW Media Scrums and The Donut Dude at WWE Press Conferences but not give the fans their ice cream bars? Granted, following his wrestling return at AEW Rampage in Chicago, he did personally fund and distribute 15,000 free ice cream bars from the local shop in Chicago to the live crowd as a gesture of appreciation. However, the WWE fans want ice cream bars for every show.
Although this alleged act of hypocrisy is more innocuous than the others, the promise CM Punk made is of paramount importance. It’s more important than anything else because ice cream is objectively delicious. However, is this entirely CM Punk’s fault? Not exactly because WWE controls the narrative and the buck stops with TKO as to whether they want to contribute any money into the supply of these customized ice cream bars that have a delectable taste with the wrestler’s faces on them.
However, WWE is less focused on making their fans happy and more fixated on making a profit. Other than the exorbitant $10,000 tickets, they encourage fans to pay $30/month for ESPN Unlimited to watch “premium” live events with an average of four matches and hours of advertisements. Furthermore, they recently masqueraded Club WWE, which is $100/annual subscription, as fan service by making them believe their votes will actually matter in the upcoming John Cena Classic.
Is CM Punk’s “Hypocrisy” A Work Or A Shoot?
With that being said, Punk is not disingenuous. Punk is not petulant. Punk is not pretentious. Punk only acted seditiously within reason. He did not act obstreperously in reaction to every single edict in the WWE. He actually acquiesced to quite a lot and remained a professional. The only time anything got out of hand is when he felt disrespected. And, if Punk feels disrespected, he has a right to stand up for himself. Punk should find no shame in that, and this idea that Punk “changed” is fallacious.
He is still the same guy he has always been, but he has grown into an actual megastar. Sometimes, that’s a hard pill for CM Punk haters to swallow. Yet, he has been vilified by so many journalists, naysayers, and critics across the board as a so-called hypocrite without an attempt at fully understanding the complexities of his character. In fact, these critiques have become so prevalent that Punk embraced the hypocrisy as a gimmick to blur the lines between a work and a shoot for the marks.
For example, he intentionally wore a T-Shirt during his No Holds Barred Match with Kevin Owen on SmackDown this week after calling out Owens for wearing a T-Shirt during his matches in Ring of Honor. Anyone would jump on that minor contradiction and call him a hypocrite. Clearly, Punk has everyone talking about him in ways that enhances the mystery behind his motives and will keep everyone on their toes. That’s why he’s the “best in the world.” and it has become undeniable.
That’s all for WWE Coverage on CM Punk! If you’re not down with just that and would like even more WWE SmackDown Coverage from Mark Justice, check out more of his articles right here on Let Them Wrestle (LTW), on Last Word on Sports (LWOS), and subscribe to his popular YouTube channel.
Mark Justice is a Cornell University Graduate with a bachelor’s degree (B.S), double majoring in biological and environmental sciences, and a law degree (J.D.), specializing in environmental law and international law. His passion for pro wrestling stems from his very first time watching the WWE in 2009. As a decade-old pro wrestling fan, he continues to fulfill this passion by writing for Let Them Wrestle, where he will cover both WWE and AEW content. You can email Mark Justice at markjustice728@gmail.com, especially if you are a pro wrestling ‘mark’ like him. You can also subscribe to his brand new Youtube Channel at the link below: https://www.youtube.com/@markjustice1327