Triple H was instrumental in bringing CM Punk back to WWE in late 2023. The fans wanted it, and the Chief Content Officer heard the message loud and clear. Ahead of Survivor Series in November, after much buzz heading into the Thanksgiving event, The Game buried the hatchet with his former on-screen rival, someone with whom he could not get along in the past.
According to Triple H, people inevitably change over a decade, or else something major has gone wrong somewhere. Hunter later revealed that these days, working things out with The Second City Saint was one of his favorite things to do. However, back in the day, they did not see eye to eye.
Interestingly, some time before CM Punk made his long awaited comeback at Survivor Series: WarGames 2023, when there were talks of a return to the sports entertainment capital, the CCO had hesitated.
Triple H Was Not Convinced That CM Punk Was A Changed Man For A WWE Return
On Netflix’s new docuseries, WWE: Unreal, the relationship between Paul Levesque (aka Triple H) and CM Punk has been well documented.
Triple H revealed that there was a time prior to Survivor Series: WarGames 2023 when Punk almost returned, but he was not convinced. He felt The Second City Saint was the same person from when they were colleagues before, and was not too keen on collaborating with the controversial star.
But then he felt a difference when they discussed a WWE return for The Best in the World in late 2023. In mere days, Punk signed a new contract and showed up at Survivor Series: WarGames. He is currently one of the biggest merchandise movers and remains one of the most beloved veterans of the company today.
I felt like how he communicated with others needed to change,” Triple H said.
“One time when he and I met, after he had left — this was years later — when there was a conversation about him coming back, I said–,” Triple H shook his head in disapproval, before stating, “Still the same dude, won’t work.”
The WWE CCO continued, “The last time we met and talked with him, I felt like he honestly was different. It seemed almost like, in the phone call [in late 2023], we both realized, ‘Oh, he’s different. Oh, I’m different. Let’s give it a shot.'”
It was also revealed in WWE: Unreal that Triple H wanted CM Punk to win his first WrestleMania main event in April 2025. But then the Seth Rollins victory and alliance with Paul Heyman was proposed, which turned out to be a richer story, as the former Wiseman had history with both Punk and Roman Reigns, so betraying them would be shocking.
Heading into SummerSlam this year, The Best in the World has Rollins looming in the background as Mr. Money in the Bank when CM Punk locks horns with World Heavyweight Champion Gunther. As for The Oracle, he has a certain Tribal Chief after him. The OTC and Jey Uso will wrestle Bron Breakker and Bronson Reed, led by Paul Heyman, at The Biggest Party of the Summer.