CM Punk Discusses His Attitude At Time Of 2014 WWE Departure

It's no secret that CM Punk wasn't on the best terms with WWE when he departed in 2014, especially after being frustrated with management. However, "The Best In The World" has now revealed another reason for his poor attitude upon leaving the company. In an interview with Sports Illustrated Media, Punk explained feeling burnt out when he left WWE in 2014, noting that he didn't have interest in wrestling for a significant period of time.

"Obviously my attitude 10 years ago was I'm done with wrestling and there's certain people that want to kind of crucify me for that, but the truth is I was just so burnt out ... I was there for 10 years and people don't realize who's the one guy that wrestled the most matches every year in WWE for consecutive years — it was me," he said. "I think the door being open with Vince [McMahon] leaving, I think really kind of almost expedited things [regarding his return], being told that it's a completely different place and kind of having to have blind faith to go back into that is a risk, but now I can tell you I think it's a completely different place." 

Punk previously noted that McMahon's departure illuminated the way for his WWE return, stating that the company culture is healthier these days. Punk also went into detail about his interaction backstage with Jesse "The Body" Ventura, revealing that the former color commentator said that seeing him return to the company at Survivor Series in 2023 made him reconsider visiting WWE for the first time since 2009.  

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Sports Illustrated Media" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.