“I certainly was a schmuck,” CM Punk laments his contentious relationship with Triple H in front of Stephanie McMahon

After years of retrospection, CM Punk has come to terms with the fact that his ill-will with Triple H was just stupid on his part.

“I certainly was a schmuck,” CM Punk laments his contentious relationship with Triple H in front of Stephanie McMahon

Stephanie McMahon, Triple H and CM Punk [via- Fox News]

Former WWE chair Stephanie McMahon‘s brand-new series, Stephanie’s Places, debuted on ESPN with CM Punk as the opening guest. The episode dropped at the stroke of midnight on March 26. One of the excerpts from the conversation, probably the most fulfilling one, is where Punk talks about his relationship with Triple H.

The fans are not foreign to the differences they’ve had in the past. There came a point in their lives when Phil Brooks and Paul Levesque started despising each other, which even translated into their on-screen feud in 2011. The Best in the World, however, admitted to Levesque’s wife in the aforementioned chat that he was certainly a schmuck back then.

YouTube video

Punk once regarded Hunter as Vince McMahon‘s doofus son-in-law during the infamous pipe bomb promo. Over a decade later, the Chicagoan is deeply repentant for the so-called dumb stuff he did. Steph also broached how fans would hijack her promos after Punk walked out of WWE in 2014.

I certainly made mistakes. I certainly did dumb things. I certainly was a schmuck……..

CM Punk via Stephanie’s Places

She’s had a few instances of clapping back at some of the pro-Punk markets, especially Chicago. McMahon also noted that The Second City Saint’s wrestling career was behind him once he left WWE. At the time, the 46-year-old just wanted to break free after years of alleged mistreatment from the company that was headed by Vince.

Punk has been pretty vocal about his dissonance with the 79-year-old. The former AEW star even referenced his scorn for Vinnie Mac in a passionate war of words with Seth Rollins last year. It was McMahon’s ouster only that opened the door for Punk to contemplate a return to his former workplace.

Stephanie McMahon was grinning ear to ear after CM Punk’s SummerSlam match in 2024

Almost a month after making his groundbreaking return to WWE in November 2023, CM Punk tore his triceps. It wasn’t until SummerSlam when The Voice of the Voiceless had his first singles match in WWE since 2014. Even though he couldn’t put away Drew McIntyre in a grudge affair having Seth Rollins as the special guest referee, Punk showed that he still had ample gas left in the tank.

CM Punk and Stephanie McMahon
CM Punk and Stephanie McMahon (via WWE)

After he lost, Punk was embraced by Stephanie McMahon backstage, as clipped in McMahon’s ESPN special. When asked by Steph if he felt that his fortunes turned in Cleveland, Punk whole-heartedly agreed. For the unversed, on January 27, 2014, The Best in the World walked out of WWE before a taping of Raw in Cleveland.

Last year at SummerSlam, he wrestled his first one-on-one match since his previous exit in front of nearly 50,000 fans at the Cleveland Browns Stadium. What better full-circle moment can there be? So what even if he lost. The magnitude of performing for the people he once ditched transcended other variables.

Before walking through the curtains that night, the former world champion thanked Triple H in the gorilla position for letting him have this opportunity. In return, The Cerebral Assassin replied that WWE is lucky to have him back.

CM Punk set for WrestleMania 41 contract signing on SmackDown

This Friday on SmackDown, CM Punk will sign the contract to sanction the beating he’s willing to bestow on Roman Reigns and Seth Rollins at WrestleMania 41. On Raw, The Second City Saint highlighted that both the former Shield members have made it personal with him.

CM Punk, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins
CM Punk, Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins on SmackDown [via- WWE]

The Visionary, on one hand, has been beefing with Punk since the minute he returned. The OTC, also, has seemingly realized that his Wiseman, Paul Heyman, is starting to ooze signs of a double agent. Last week on SmackDown, an all-out brawl broke out between the three.

Hopefully things will play out better when they meet in London. Punk was the one who brought Reigns and Rollins into the business, and he can’t wait to run them out of it. Heyman’s role, as alluded to above, is going to be pivotal. The fans are already speculating that he’s about to dump his Tribal Chief.

Related: 35-year-old star sends one-word message after being appointed as special guest referee for Women’s World Title match