WWE Superstar CM Punk talks gaming, Survivor Series and being ‘straight-edge’
November 18, 2011 | By Anthony Sulla-Heffinger
With the Survivor Series pay-per-view taking place this Sunday and the release of WWE ’12 coming up on Tuesday, it has been a busy time for the wrestling giant.
CM Punk, one of the sports most interesting figures, discussed with The Post his feelings about the new video game, how he has become one of the most popular superstars and how he incorporates his own personal beliefs into his on-screen role.
Punk is featured along with a slew of other WWE superstars in the upcoming game WWE ’12, which is wrestling’s yearly answer to games such as Madden and FIFA. Punk described exactly what it is like seeing himself in a video game, calling the experience “awesome.”
“When I was a little kid and I fell in love with pro wrestling , the prospect of having your own action figure or being in a video game, that was awesome. It’s cool to see,” Punk said.
“I could see that this guy believed in himself. I think that’s the number one thing that leads to success in this business, is that belief in yourself. If you don’t you’re just going to get eaten alive and you’re going to sink… Punk obviously has done the opposite of that, because he’s always known how good he is and how talented he is and he’s never doubted that. He’s always believed that he should be on top, and that’s exactly where he deserves to be. And he’s worked very hard to get to that point.”
Sources: prowrestling.net & newsday.com
Sports Illustrated recently posted an article about Gregory Iron, the wrestler with Cerebral Palsy who was promoted by Punk this past July at an AAW show. Punk is mentioned in the article:
This summer had been rough for Iron. He’d lost his job at a local hardware store after clashing with a new manager who told him to choose between selling handsaws and his dreams. Others pitched in to help, Dwane taking him out for groceries, Klasinski no longer collecting rent. Mike, an assistant manager at a Chipotle, lent his brother $50 to help get him to an All-American Wrestling show he was working July 23 in Berwyn, Ill., a suburb 10 miles west of Chicago. It was there that WWE star CM Punk lent his hand to Iron’s cause.
After Iron wrestled a tag-team match with Colt Cabana, one of the indie circuit’s biggest names and Punk’s real-life best friend, Cabana lauded Iron on the microphone, and then went backstage. When he returned to the ring he was accompanied by the man at the center of the wrestling universe, CM Punk himself. Punk quieted the crowd, which had begun chanting his name, then apologized for his language and turned to tell a weeping Iron, "You’re f—in’ awesome." Punk gave a speech of his own before he and Cabana lifted Iron in the air for a lap around the ring. There was the newborn in the incubator now pointing to a rowdy audience in appreciation, the kid they called a gimp hoisted on the shoulders of greats.
The moment was a YouTube hit, its multiple iterations totaling about 150,000 hits. New fans reached out to him on Facebook, Twitter and however else they could, telling Iron how much his story meant to them. Says Dwane, "The stuff that that guy said about him, it just broke my heart — but it was a positive breaking my heart. I started tearing up. I was very proud of him."
Interview With CM Punk
Published By: Morgan Bates On: Tuesday 8 Nov 2011 7:00 AM
NZGamer recently chatted with WWE wrestler CM Punk
Phillip Brooks was in Australia recently and… wait… you don’t know who he is? He’s a wrestler. Still don’t know? When in the ring, he goes by the name CM Punk. Yeah, now you know who he is.
If you don’t, there’s probably not a lot in this article that’s going to be of any particular interest to you…
Still here? Excellent. Where were we… oh yes, CM Punk. He was in Australia recently, so we thought we’d go a few rounds with the big fella and see who came out on top.
Rounds of questions, people; we’re not stupid.
This is how it played out…
How are you doing?
Hello! I’m good, how are you?
I’m very good, I’m kind of glad you’re hundreds of miles away – you’re a big scary looking guy!
I’m not that big! But I am a little scary…
By: Craig Tello
November 2, 2011
NEW YORK — When Zack Ryder woke up on Saturday morning on Long Island, he and the rest of the northeast must’ve thought, “Are you serious, snow?” But a freak snowstorm didn’t do much more than soggy the shoes of Long Island Iced Z and fellow red-hot Superstars CM Punk and Daniel Bryan, who all crashed into New York City for Ringside Fest 2011. (EVENT PHOTOS)
Hosted by Ringside Collectibles, the eighth annual WWE action figure gala drew together the WWE Universe with key designers at Mattel and, of course, the Superstars themselves. The world champion toymakers proudly displayed all-new, never-before-seen products featuring the squared circle’s biggest and most legendary names – sometimes paired up.
“I’m completely floored by this,” explained The Straight Edge Superstar as he, for the first time, beheld both Randy Savage and Punk figures in near-matching attire. “I certainly didn’t wear the Macho Man gear to get a figure out of it. It was my homage to him after he passed away. I think we have to remember and celebrate our past.”
Examining his own miniature plastic replica in pink tights with white stars, Punk expressed his humble emotions after seeing the two-piece set, which will be available in stores everywhere in 2012.
“I wore this outfit one time on Raw and it’s immortalized forever. It’s pretty gangster,” added a pipe bomb-free Punk. “My Evil Zod widow’s peak is dead-on. The tattoos, especially the chest piece, are uncanny. Mattel’s doing a kickass job making some awesome figures.”
By: Joey Styles
November 1, 2011
What was CM Punk wearing?
The WWE Divas weren’t the only ones wearing Halloween costumes on Raw SuperShow. His guise consisting only of a shirt featuring an illustration of Dr. Fu Manchu, CM Punk walked down to the ring as his childhood hero, Jack Burton. Who? Exactly!
Like everything else about The Second City Savior, Punk’s hero isn’t a mainstream media darling like Superman or Spider-Man. Jack Burton, played by Kurt Russell, was the protagonist in the 1986 film, “Big Trouble in Little China”.
“I can quote the entire movie from start to finish,” Punk told WWE.com. “I wanted to be Jack Burton when I was a kid. He wasn’t a total hero. He seemed more real to me. He was charismatic as hell but a total goof. Sound familiar? [laughing] People have flaws. Nobody is perfect but you can still be awesome.”
For those not familiar, “Big Trouble in Little China” is a 1986 American martial arts comedy about a truck driver (Burton) who found himself as an unlikely hero on a rescue mission in the underworld beneath San Francisco’s Chinatown, where he faced one-eyed monsters, supernatural ninjas and an ancient sorcerer.
A commercial failure that cost $25 million to make but only earned $11 million, John Carpenter’s film has gone on to develop a cult following on home video with its fans feeling that it, and Carpenter, were ahead of their time because Burton was a flawed hero and an overall uncommon character in 1980s Hollywood.
Being WWE World Heavyweight Champion three times, WWE Champion once (perhaps twice after Survivor Series) and leading the crusade to bring back WWE ice cream bars is awesome, indeed. Jack Burton would be proud, Punk.
By: Ryan Murphy | October 25, 2011
Perhaps no single event in sports-entertainment history is as polarizing as “The Montreal Screwjob.” A shocking culmination of the lengthy rivalry that burned between Shawn Michaels and Bret “Hit Man” Hart both in and out of the ring, the incident created a divide between Superstars, sports-entertainment fans and the men who were in the spotlight that night. Fourteen years later, HBK and The Hit Man address that unforgettable turn of events and much more in WWE: Greatest Rivalries – Shawn Michaels vs. Bret Hart — a compelling, in-depth series of unscripted conversations between the two WWE Hall of Famers.
With the DVD stirring up some serious debate in the locker room, WWE.com cornered 15 competitors, including John Cena, Christian and CM Punk, and asked the inflammatory question: “Shawn or Bret — whose side are you on?” What we heard in response was controversial, surprising and always entertaining — just like the rivalry between HBK and The Hit Man.
Who was your childhood hero?
Bret “Hit Man” Hart made his WWE debut on Aug. 24, 1984 in a tag match alongside The Dynamite Kid. Four years later, on July 7, 1988, Shawn Michaels set foot in a WWE ring for the first time. In the decade that followed, their paths crossed in tag bouts, WrestleMania main events and one life-changing night in Montreal, Quebec in November of 1997. Along the way, they inspired an entire generation of young hopefuls to step through the ropes and pursue the impossible dream of becoming a WWE Champion.
CM PUNK: Shawn Michaels definitely grabbed my attention when I was a kid.
Photo by Lee Besford
By Daniel Lane
October 23, 2011
PHIL BROOKS, known to millions of people around the world as wrestler CM Punk – the arch villain of the multibillion-dollar WWE industry – believes the NRL could fine the grapple tackle and other MMA-inspired moves out of existence.
Punk, a native of Chicago, was shocked by some of the vision The Sun-Herald compiled for him of MMA/wrestling-style moves that have been used in rugby league. His response to the sight of players being choked was to suggest the NRL follow the NFL’s lead and fine illegal play out of the game.
”If an NFL player tilts his head, points his helmet at an opponent and then hits him, he can get fined $40,000, while repeat offenders are fined $100,000,” he said. ”I think each rugby league tackle needs to be reviewed separately because there were a few [on the DVD] that looked like accidents while others looked like the guy was deliberately slapping on a rear naked choke [a strangulation technique]. You need to judiciously handle each case separately; in a lot of cases you can tell if someone did something maliciously or if it was an accident and go from there.”
This month’s Maxim magazine has a three-page article/interview with CM Punk. It goes over his infamous shoot promo from this past summer and has reactions from several superstars, including Beth Phoenix and The Miz. He also talks about his parents and being straight edge, and is credited with starting the “reality era” in WWE today.
Source: wrestlinginc.com
How Do Pro Wrestlers Use Twitter?
By Mark Serrels on October 10, 2011
Pro Wrestling might not be the UFC, but the physical entertainment leaves real bruises. And the way they use Twitter is pretty interesting. Mark Serrels, editor of Kotaku Australia, got the chance to chat with pro wrestler CM Punk — and here are his thoughts.
“Hey. Australia,” began the tweet, “Pumpkin Spice Latte. Get on it.”
That was one.
“In Sydney. Who wants to party? Diet sodas for all my friends!”
That was another.
Those tweets could have come from anyone — it could’ve been your friend, or the guy at work who really likes Pepsi, but it didn’t. It came from CM Punk, one of the most famous wrestlers in the world today, and almost certainly the most important.
I follow CM Punk, and a host of other wrestlers, on Twitter and it’s quite the experience. The wrestler Mick Foley tweets about his charity work, The Rock promotes his movies, Rowdy Roddy Piper tweets clumsily — a bit like your dad. CM Punk? Well if it’s not Pumpkin Latte, it’s something — but it’s very rarely wrestling.
Now I’m sitting in front of CM Punk. I’m a huge wrestling fan — and a huge Punk fan for that matter — but all I want to talk about is Twitter.
