CM Punk’s arrival in WWE in 2006 came after the company hadn’t watched any of his matches, according to Paul Heyman. Speaking to Inside The Ropes, Heyman recalled Punk being asked to emulate Jeff Hardy in OVW, and revealed that WWE’s decision to sign the Chicago-Made star was based on online hype alone.
“They said, ‘Do one of those flippy-dippy things like Jeff Hardy.’ He said, ‘I don’t do flippy-dippy things like Jeff Hardy.’ He looked at them and asked, ‘Have you ever watched any of my matches?’ They said, ‘No, We just read about you on the internet, and that’s why we hired you.”
Heyman expressed disbelief at WWE’s approach, calling it “f***ing ridiculous,” but the gamble paid off for both the company and Punk. Within a year of his on-screen debut, Punk had risen to prominence as one of WWE’s top stars, and by 2008, he’d captured the World Heavyweight Championship.
Never-Before-Seen CM Punk Title Revealed After 17 Years
CM Punk and Paul Heyman recently reunited on WWE TV, with Punk aiding the OG Bloodline on the promise of a favor by the WWE Hall of Famer. It remains to be seen what that favor will be, but Punk certainly doesn’t have to worry about WWE not paying attention to his matches anymore.
Stay tuned for the latest on CM Punk, who will compete against Seth Rollins during WWE Raw’s debut on Netflix on January 6.
