CM Punk has opened up about headlining WrestleMania 41 and why he found himself getting emotional as Cody Rhodes made his entrance at a WWE live event.
After 11 years away from the event as an active competitor, Punk will make his WrestleMania return on April 19th as he takes on Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins in a triple threat match. To make the return even more historical, Paul Heyman told Punk during the contract signing that he would be closing the show, an accolade he has wanted for years.
While speaking with Sebastian Hackl of WWE Deutschland, Punk first spoke about what headlining WrestleMania means to him and how he still looks to prove that he is the best in the world:
“I’m excited (to main event WrestleMania 41). WrestleMania is two nights now so I think it’s more opportunity for people to experience the rare air of a main event of WrestleMania and Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins are two guys that I helped kind of get here to the main roster many, many moons ago. So, it’s exciting for me to see how long they’ve held it down and how far they’ve come from where they started and it’s gonna be special to show them that, you know, kind of daddy’s back thing. CM Punk’s back so you’re still (right) here, I’m still (up) here.”
CM Punk Looks Back On Getting Emotional During Cody Rhodes Entrance
As part of the European tour, Punk teamed with Cody Rhodes at a live event in Nottingham, England. Footage from the tour was uploaded to social media that shows Punk getting emotional as The American Nightmare made his entrance. Also in the interview, Punk reflected on that moment:
“I’m just an old softy now, you know? I’ve known Cody (Rhodes) for 20 years so, again, seeing how far he’s come and just the perspective I was at. I was sitting on the ring so essentially, I had a fan’s perspective and I see Cody come out and his song and I watch him bounce back and forth from aisle to aisle. Greeting little boys, little girls, grown ass men, grandmas, grandpa. People of all ages.
Everybody who comes out to see WWE and they love him, you know? And he’s high fiving people and he’s kissing babies and to watch the crowd love him the way they love me or they love a Stone Cold or a Bret Hart, it’s just exciting to see. Because I know what that feels like and I want all my friends to succeed. I wanna see that and I didn’t just get to see it, I got to experience it firsthand so it choked me up a little bit.”
In a previous interview, CM Punk explained why WrestleMania 41 will be a full-circle moment for him.
In other news, JBL assessed how well the APA would fare if they debuted in 2025.
H/t to POST Wrestling.