More details have emerged about how WWE superstars reacted to CM Punk's Undisputed Championship triumph over Sami Zayn on last week's episode of Raw.
After a lengthy 11-week break from television, CM Punk returned on Raw to challenge Zayn for the Undisputed WWE Championship. The 47-year-old defeated Zayn via pinfall, ending the latter's title reign at just nine days.
In this day and age, it's easy for the WWE Universe to speculate on potential backstage heat when a part-time superstar wins a major title.
But in a recent Q&A session, Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful Select (h/t eWrestlingNews) reported that there wasn't any "big uproar" backstage about CM Punk's victory. Sapp noted that most stars work with Punk "amicably" and understand his status as a top superstar:
"It didn’t cause some big uproar like a lot of times it is online," Sapp said. "That’s just it. If it would have come in 2023, immediately upon him arriving, yes, it would have.
"There are still some people with sour feelings to this day, but the large portion of talent just work with him amicably and know he’s going to be a big part of the company. There’s just not a lot to really go off of here. Maybe some eye rolls — nothing too bad."
After Zayn defeated Cody Rhodes at Night of Champions to win the WWE title, it was reported that the backstage reaction was overwhelmingly positive, as the former is highly regarded internally.
Unfortunately for Zayn, WWE creative wasn't willing to give him an extended run with the world title.
WWE Fans Finally Get a CM Punk vs. Cody Rhodes Dream Match
(Photo by Melina Pizano/WWE via Getty Images)
AEW never ran a dream match between Punk and Rhodes during their brief time together. Of course, it likely would have happened if Cody and Brandi Rhodes hadn't unexpectedly departed AEW in 2022.
At any rate, the stage is set for a dream match between the future Hall of Famers. And you won't find a much better stage than a WWE Championship bout at SummerSlam.
from Men's Journal https://ift.tt/fE3Owd4
via IFTTT