Fight For Your RightIt’s not surprising that CM Punk cites the radical “Rowdy” Roddy Piper as a childhood influence. After all, Punk is the embodiment of the anti-establishment, whose skill at igniting verbal “pipe bombs” is rivaled only by “Hot Rod” himself.
Punk even looks the part of rebel with his too-numerous-to-count tattoos and body piercings. Yet, he waxes way more philosophical than his exterior might suggest, and has shown a diverse set of interests that include ghost hunting, G.I. Joe and the “Straight Edge” movement, a subculture that rejects the use of drugs, alcohol and a dependency lifestyle. His in-ring repertoire is an assimilation of fighting styles, all of which were put on full display during his debut in The Land of the Extreme in 2006. Since then, Punk has added many accomplishments to his considerable résumé, including the ECW, WWE, World Heavyweight, World Tag Team and Intercontinental Championships. Today, Punk is headlining pay-per-views — and he’s doing so in spite of the events of 2011, when he assailed Mr. McMahon with his blunt opinions about the business and made a bold promise not to renew his contract with the company. Punk’s criticism struck a nerve with The Chairman who, against his better judgment, granted The Second City Saint a WWE Championship Match at WWE Money in the Bank in the Superstar’s native city, Chicago. Punk not only beat John Cena to win that match, but he also absconded with the WWE Championship as the seconds on his WWE contract ticked down. Fortunately for WWE fans everywhere, Punk agreed to re-sign with WWE weeks later, compelled to return to the ring to prove that he’s the undisputed “Best in the World.” The Voice of the Voiceless advocated on behalf of disenchanted WWE fans who felt the WWE product was in need of a good (roundhouse) kick in the teeth. He became two-time WWE Champion, proving his mettle by defeating the likes of Chris Jericho, Alberto Del Rio, Daniel Bryan and other elite Superstars. As Punk’s WWE Title reign continued to climb, so did his contempt for the WWE Universe and the Superstars in the locker room who failed to show him the proper level of “respect.” Proclaiming himself a “Paul Heyman Guy,” Punk aligned with the innovator of the original ECW and one of his early mentors as his WWE Title reign grew to become the longest of the modern era. But all things would come to an end, and at the 434-day mark, Punk’s title reign was terminated by The Rock at Royal Rumble. After failing to regain the championship the following month at Elimination Chamber, the Windy City warrior set his sights on The Undertaker’s Show of Shows winning streak at WrestleMania 29. In a hellacious bout that saw The Second City Savior deliver an astounding elbow from the top rope to the announce table, The Deadman buried his opponent to remain undefeated on The Grandest Stage of Them All. In July, Heyman turned on his longtime friend, costing Punk a guaranteed WWE Championship opportunity in a Money in the Bank All-Stars Ladder Match. This stunning betrayal set the stage for an absolutely brutal No Disqualification showdown billed as “The Best vs. The Beast.” Unsatisfied after falling to Lesnar in a hard-fought battle, Punk pursued retribution against his former mentor, resulting in a series of clashes with Heyman's new associates, Curtis Axel and, ultimately, Ryback. At WWE Battleground in Buffalo, N.Y., Punk secured a victory over Ryback in a highly physical match. The Straight Edge Superstar then settled his unfinished business with both Heyman and Ryback at WWE Hell in a Cell 2013, where he defeated the brutish Superstar from Sin City and "The Paulrus" in a hotly anticipated handicap bout inside the structure. First, Punk pinned Ryback on the canvas and then climbed to Cell to greet Heyman and deliver a series of vicious kendo stick shots and a GTS high above the ring. Forming a connection with the WWE Universe as strong as his convictions, Punk continues to rank himself high among WWE’s most iconic Superstars. And based on his track record, it remains nearly impossible to disagree with him. Phillip Jack Brooks (born October 26, 1978), better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler who is signed with WWE. He is titled in the company as "the longest-reigning WWE Champion of the modern era": Punk held the title for 434 days from November 20, 2011 to January 27, 2013, and is officially recognized as the sixth-longest reigning champion of all time. In professional wrestling, Punk is a seven-time World Champion, having held the ROH World Championship and ECW Championship once each, WWE's World Heavyweight Championship three times, and the WWE Championship twice. He has also won the World Tag Team Championship (with Kofi Kingston) and the WWE Intercontinental Championship, making him the 19th WWE Triple Crown Champion and the fastest man in WWE history to achieve this record at 203 days. Between WWE and Ring of Honor (where he is a two-time World Tag Team Champion), Punk has won a total of 11 championships. He was also the winner of the 2008 and 2009 Money in the Bank ladder matches (the only wrestler to win the match twice in a row), and was the 2011 Superstar of the Year Slammy Award winner. Punk initially came to prominence through his career on the professional wrestling independent circuit, primarily as a member of the ROH roster. There, he was the first head trainer of the ROH wrestling school. Also while competing in ROH, Punk won both the company's championships. In 2005, Punk signed a contract with WWE and was sent to its developmental promotion, Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), where he won every championship available in that promotion. On June 24, 2006, Punk made his WWE television debut, performing in ECW, which was then a branch of WWE. Throughout his career, Punk has consistently used the gimmick of being an outspoken, sharp-tongued, and straight edge iconoclast. Punk's straight edge principles when in character are based on his actual way of life out of character. Depending on Punk's alignment as a fan favorite or villain, he emphasizes different aspects of the culture to arouse the desired audience reaction. |
CM PunkHeight: 6'2"
Weight: 218 lbs. From: Chicago, Ill. Signature Move: G.T.S. (Go to Sleep); Anaconda Vise Career Highlights: W.I.P The Best Since Day One The Best In The World Did You Know?
The Early LifePunk's first venture into wrestling was a stint in a backyard wrestling federation called the Lunatic Wrestling Federation with his friends and brother Mike Brooks in the mid-late 1990s. He first started using the ring name CM Punk when he was put into a tag team named the Chick Magnets with CM Venom after another performer skipped out on the card. Unlike his friends, Punk genuinely wanted to be a wrestler and saw it as more than simple fun.When the promotion started taking off, doing spot shows out of a warehouse in Mokena, Illinois, Punk found out that his brother Mike had embezzled thousands of dollars from the small company, causing them to become estranged. They have not spoken since.
He soon left the federation and enrolled as a student at the "Steel Dominion" wrestling school in Chicago, where he was trained by Ace Steel,[6] Danny Dominion and Kevin Quinn to become a professional wrestler. As part of the training, he wrestled at Steel Domain Wrestling in St. Paul, Minnesota. It was in the Steel Domain that he met Scott Colton, who soon adopted the stage name Colt Cabana. Punk and Cabana became best friends and spent most of their early career together working in the same independent circuit promotions, as opponents or allies. In the independents, Punk, along with fellow Steel Domain graduates Colt Cabana, Chuckee Smooth, Adam Pearce and manager Dave Prazak, formed an alliance named the Gold Bond Mafia. Independent Wrestling Association: Mid-South (2000–2005)Punk's home promotion for his early career was considered to be Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South (IWA Mid-South). During Punk's time in IWA:Mid-South, he had high profile feuds with Colt Cabana and Chris Hero while also rising to the top of the roster winning the IWA Mid-South Light Heavyweight Championship twice and the IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Championship on five separate occasions, beating stars like A.J. Styles, Cabana and even Eddie Guerrero for that Championship. Punk's feud with Hero included a 55-minute TLC match, a 93-minute two out of three falls match, and several 60-minute time limit draws.
Punk's matches with Cabana led him to being hired by the Ring of Honor promotion. From February 2003 until May 2004, Punk refused to wrestle for IWA: Mid-South, because he claims that this was in protest to Ian Rotten's mistreatment of Chris Hero in the company. Hero, however, has stated he believes there were other reasons, and Rotten's treatment of him was just an excuse by Punk to stop working for the company.Eventually Punk returned to IWA: Mid-South and continued to perform as a wrestler and commentator for them until 2005 when he was signed to World Wrestling Entertainment. His last appearance in IWA: Mid-South was on July 2, 2005 in which he competed in a 60-minute time limit draw against Delirious. Money in the Bank and World Heavyweight Champion (2008–2009)At WrestleMania XXIV, Punk won the Money in the Bank ladder match, after defeating Chris Jericho, Montel Vontavious Porter, Shelton Benjamin, John Morrison, Mr. Kennedy and Carlito.
On the June 23, 2008 Raw, CM Punk was drafted to the Raw brand during the 2008 WWE Draft. His first night on Raw came the following week, and he made an immediate impact. After Batista beat down World Heavyweight Champion Edge and left him lying in the ring, Punk and referee Mike Chioda ran to the ring with Punk carrying his Money in the Bank contract. Moments later, as Edge was struggling to get up, Punk hit him with the Go to Sleep and pinned him to win the World Heavyweight Championship (and later, the Slammy Award for the "Oh my God" Moment of the Year.). Later that night, Punk made his first defense of the title against JBL, who had challenged him shortly after his win.Punk continued to hold and defend the title until Unforgiven on September 7, 2008. Before the Championship Scramble match, Punk was attacked by an early version of The Legacy (Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase with Manu). Orton finished the assault by punting Punk in the head. Punk could not participate in the match due to the attack and so forfeited the title. He was replaced by Chris Jericho, who won the match and the title.He received a rematch eight days later on the September 15 Raw, where he failed to regain the title in a steel cage match against Jericho. CM Punk as World Heavyweight Champion during his first reign at SummerSlam.On the October 27, 2008 Raw, Punk and Kofi Kingston defeated Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase to win the World Tag Team Championship. The duo were members of Team Batista at Survivor Series, where their team lost to Team Orton.Punk then entered in a number one contender Intercontinental Championship Tournament. He defeated Snitsky and John Morrison in the first two rounds. Punk and Kingston lost the World Tag Team Championship to John Morrison and The Miz at a live event on December 13, 2008. The next day Punk defeated Rey Mysterio at Armageddon to win the tournament. On the January 5 Raw, Punk received his title match against William Regal, which ended in a disqualification, when Regal grabbed the referee's jersey. Due to this, Stephanie McMahon awarded Punk a rematch the following week, but this time it was himself that was disqualified. McMahon awarded him another rematch, this time a No Disqualification match on January 19 Raw, Punk won the match and the title. With this win, he became the nineteenth Triple Crown Champion. Also, the victory made him the man to accomplish the Triple Crown in the fastest amount of time, shattering Kevin Nash's old record. Punk lost the title on the March 9 Raw to John "Bradshaw" Layfield. At WrestleMania XXV, Punk won the Money in the Bank ladder match and became the first person to win the match twice.
On April 13, 2009 during the 2009 WWE Draft, Punk was drafted from Raw to SmackDown. In the period after the draft, Punk feuded with Umaga over Umaga's repeated surprise attacks while Punk was attempting to cash in his Money in the Bank Contract. This ultimately resulted in a Samoan strap match at Extreme Rules, which was won by Punk. At the end of the pay-per-view, Punk cashed in his Money in the Bank contract to defeat Jeff Hardy for the World Heavyweight Championship.[94] Punk retained his title in a Triple Threat match against both Edge and Hardy eight days later on the June 15 Raw. At The Bash in Sacramento, California, Punk lost to Hardy by disqualification after kicking the referee after being afflicted with a storyline eye injury, claiming he could not see the referee, but because titles do not change hands on a disqualification, Punk retained the championship. Hardy called Punk into question about his eye injury, believing he had been feigning it, leading Punk to turn heel, claiming to be the moral superior of those who support Hardy due to his drug-free lifestyle. At Night of Champions, Punk lost the championship to Hardy.Their feud continued through SummerSlam, where Punk regained the title in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match; afterward, Punk was attacked by The Undertaker. On the August 28 Friday Night SmackDown, Punk concluded his program with Hardy and achieved his booked goal of excising him from WWE, defeating Hardy in a steel cage match wherein the loser agreed to leave the company.This earned Punk a second Slammy that December, for 2009's "Shocker of the Year". At Breaking Point Punk defeated The Undertaker in a submission match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship. Undertaker originally won the match with his Hell's Gate submission hold. SmackDown general manager Theodore Long restarted the match after stating that the ban that former general manager Vickie Guerrero had placed on the move was still in effect. Punk won the match with his Anaconda Vise when referee Scott Armstrong called for the bell despite Undertaker never submitting (reminiscent to the Montreal Screwjob, which took place in the same venue in 1997). The feud between the two continued and at the Hell in a Cell PPV, Punk lost the World Heavyweight Championship to The Undertaker in a Hell in a Cell match. He lost two subsequent rematches against The Undertaker on Smackdown and in a Fatal Four Way match at Bragging Rights also involving Batista and Rey Mysterio |