Former Cora Jade Comments On Relationship, History With Ex-WWE Co-Worker CM Punk

Elayna Black's time in "WWE NXT" as Cora Jade may not have worked out entirely as she hoped, given the promotion released her earlier this year. But one positive to come from her time there was that she got to interact a ton with CM Punk. Punk returned to WWE during the middle of Jade's time there, a huge moment for Jade given that she had grown up a huge fan of both Punk and his wife, AJ Lee.

Appearing on "Insight with Chris Van Vleet," Jade revealed just how deep her Punk fandom ran, so much so that Punk himself even knew of her well before the time they met again in "NXT" back in late 2023.

"He was coming to 'NXT,' and that was the first time I had seen him since I was a fan," Jade said. "But he remembered me, because anytime he would do anything in Chicago, because I lived in Chicago and so did he, I would be the first in line for every single thing. Borderline crazy now that I'm thinking about it. I probably scared him. Probably, like, ten times I was there. It got to the point where he would remember me in the line, and he would laugh at me, because I would be first in line, every single time. We laugh about it now. I'm like 'Jesus Christ, I was a little bit crazy back then.'"

The meeting eventually led to Jade and fellow "NXT" star Roxanne Perez developing a close friendship with Punk. But the bond between the three extended back into the squared circle, where Jade says Punk became an important mentor to both her and Perez, even going the extra mile to watch their performances when it was inconvenient for him.

"I just was constantly just asking him for advice, and Roxanne's my best friend, so the three of us just became pretty close," Jade said. "Like, he would just help us. Whether it was with promos, matches, he would just come to our shows for 'NXT,' just to watch us, give us advice, and then leave. And people...he would do that for anyone who would ask. I even saw him doing it with Grayson Waller one day, randomly. Just anyone who asked, he's there. And he'll watch and he'll critique and he'll be there.

"And it's just so cool to see someone of that caliber be so humble and willing to help. Literally, he'd come to one of the 'NXT' shows when he has WrestleMania later in the day. He came to watch me and Roxanne on the pre-show of Stand & Deliver. And he was main eventing WrestleMania later that night. I was like 'You don't have to be here,' and he came to watch us, watch our match, and then he left. I was like...it's ridiculous."

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Insight with Chris Van Vliet" and provide an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription