CM Punk explains why he wrestled at WWE NXT house show
CM Punk had both selfish and altruistic reasons for working a recent WWE NXT house show date.
A few days before NXT ran a live event in Petersburg, Virginia on August 15, it was announced that Punk would be making an appearance at the show. He ended up teaming with Myles Borne & Tavion Heights to win a six-man tag match against Vanity Project (Brad Baylor, Jackson Drake & Ricky Smokes).
WWE has now uploaded a behind-the-scenes vlog from the event. The four-minute video includes Punk explaining why he wanted to make this appearance.
“There’s a very selfish motivation for me being here. I want to stay ready. Yes, I’m the champion. Yes, I wrestle on television. But to me, I don’t wrestle often enough. I need more reps. I think I’m better the more often I wrestle,” Punk said. “There is an element of giving back though, obviously. I have great respect for this business, and I’m just following in the footsteps of the people who came before me. Hopefully somebody watches and learns and observes from me and they can pay it forward when they have the opportunity to do so.”
Backstage interactions between Punk and NXT talent like Kali Armstrong and Sean Legacy are also included in the video. Punk and Armstrong joke about whether he’ll be able to follow the Armstrong vs. Kendal Grey vs. Kelani Jordan semi-main event, while Legacy compliments Punk on his improved physique.
After the show, Punk said he thought it was a tremendous night from top to bottom. He feels the future of WWE is in good hands.
“I had fun,” Punk said. “I will be back.”
Increased WWE house show schedule —
Punk is also getting to wrestle more often with WWE now running a more intensive main roster house show schedule. After his Undisputed WWE Championship defense against Kevin Owens on SmackDown in Toronto last Friday, Punk competed at live events in Edmonton and Calgary. The Edmonton show saw Punk retain his title in a street fight against Cody Rhodes and Gunther. In Calgary, Punk and Rhodes teamed up for a win over Gunther & Ricky Saints.
Joseph Currier
Joseph Currier is the lead editor of F4WOnline.com, directing daily news coverage and writing articles on professional wrestling. He is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts, obtaining a journalism degree in 2016. Joseph joined F4W during his time at UMass and has now been writing about the industry for nearly a decade.
In addition to his work with F4W, Joseph has previously contributed to Sports Illustrated’s wrestling coverage. He lives in Massachusetts and is a diehard fan of the Boston sports teams and Liverpool Football Club.
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