CM Punk: Latest News and Buzz Surrounding Former WWE Star for Week of Dec. 8

CM Punk's scathing criticism of WWE points to him never returning. Too bad, because he's set to be an even bigger star after fighting for UFC.

Ironically, the spot in a WrestleMania main event that eluded him for so long would likely be his for the taking if he chose to re-enter the squared circle after a stint in the Octagon. Like Brock Lesnar, he's set to become a special attraction—a crossover star.

He doesn't seem interested in that, though.

After a nasty divorce from WWE, Punk's life is now one of writing about comics, doing signings, enjoying married life and, sometime in 2015, finding out if he can survive several rounds with UFC fighters. His new venture signals a full transition away from pro wrestling.

When he split with the company after the 2014 Royal Rumble, he kept quiet for a long time, keeping fans guessing about his status with the company.

Punk is silent no longer. He tore open the curtain, showing fans WWE's ugly underbelly in a revealing podcast interview. Since then, he's done plenty of talking, but it has been far more about his future with UFC than his past with WWE.

Punk Breaks the Internet

As wrestling fans gathered with their families for Thanksgiving, news of Punk finally explaining his WWE exit broke.

The former WWE champ spoke with long-time friend Colt Cabana on his The Art of Wrestling podcast (h/t Cageside Seats for the transcription, contains NSFW language).

A man known throughout his career as one who made waves with a mic in hand did so again outside of the WWE. Punk told a story of his growing unhappiness over backstage politics and medical neglect.

The biggest takeaways from his interview included numerous instances of the company asking him to work too soon after surgery or following a concussion. He lambasted the WWE medical staff for being lazy and apathetic.

Describing his state after matches at a period when he says he was suffering from concussion symptoms, he said:

"

I'm on all fours after every match and I'm either puking for real or I'm just dry heaving because I don't have anything in my stomach. I have no appetite. I don't know what is up and what is down. I can't sleep.

"

He talked of misdiagnosed staph infections and company doctors overprescribing antibiotics. One of Punk's most damning lines was, "WWE doesn't do anything to protect the wrestlers, they do things to protect themselves." 

The server hosting Cabana's podcast couldn't handle all the traffic, as ProWrestling.net pointed out.

Fans sought closure. Punk's comments were flush with controversy. The buzz it created was no surprise.

Response to Comments

That interview painted a nasty picture of WWE, which inspired the company to defend itself.

It issued a statement (via Yahoo! Sports) that read:

"

WWE takes the health and wellness of its talent very seriously and has a comprehensive Talent Wellness Program that is led by one of the most well-respected physicians in the country, Dr. Joseph Maroon.

"

As one might imagine, the folks in charge at WWE weren't thrilled with Punk's jabs.

On the Figure Four Daily podcast (subscription required, h/t WrestlingInc), Bryan Alvarez said that Vince McMahon was upset but "not fuming." He described Stephanie McMahon and Triple H, meanwhile, as having an "abject hatred" for Punk.

Credit: WWE.com

Punk's peers bristled at his shots at them as well.

He was most harsh on Ryback. Punk claimed that he used steroids, tried to break his ribs on purpose and wrestling him took 20 years off his life.

The Big Guy fired back on Twitter. Per the Baltimore Sun, one of the since-deleted messages read, "For the record if I quit for being fragile and insecure I would make up excuses too."

The Wrestling Observer Newsletter (h/t WrestleZone) reports that many wrestlers feel those comments were cheap and unprofessional. The report goes on to say that very few guys had sympathy for Punk working with all those injuries.

After Punk said that Chris Jericho only contacted him because he had an agenda and wanted to profit off speaking with him, Y2J recorded a video message in response:

Jericho prefaced by saying, "Punk and I are very good friends." He said he was surprised by what Punk said and stated, "I definitely didn't have an agenda."

Former WWE star and now contracted behind-the-scenes employee Road Dogg stood up for WWE. As he reminded fans on Twitter, we were only hearing one side of the story:

Fans would eventually get a taste of the other side. Vince McMahon addressed the Punk situation when he spoke with Steve Austin (subscription required) on a live edition of his podcast. He didn't open up about it much, though.

He said he hoped they could work things out at some point and apologized for the release papers arriving on Punk's wedding day. He contends that it was just a case of miscommunication within the company.

Punk rejects that idea. In a second interview with Cabana (contains NSFW language), "I don't want to hear, 'oh, it's a coincidence.'" 

Side Projects, Other Appearances

Punk's not just sitting at home stewing over how wrong things went with him and WWE, though. He has followed his wrestling career with new ventures and fun gigs.

For example, he had a bit of fun with his Twitter rival, Bailey, the Los Angeles Kings mascot. The two collided in a promotional clip for the team:

The Straight-Edge Superstar has also worked with a T-shirt company to design his own merchandise. As PWInsider reports, "Punk has officially signed a merchandise agreement with ProWrestlingTees.com to produce all of his apparel going forward."

The shirts have been selling extremely well, as the company points out on Twitter:

He's likely to have a number of requests to autograph some of those T-shirts during his first post-WWE signing event. Challengers Comics in Chicago is welcoming Punk on Feb. 28 to promote Thor Annual No. 1, which he penned himself.

He also put pen to paper for The Superior Foes of Spider-Man, this time writing a sendoff for the series, per ComicBooks.com. In his letter, he refers to himself as a "fighter guy" and a "professional procrastinator."

Punk can add cartoon star to that list as well. He is among the many WWE Superstars featured in The Flintstones & WWE: Stone Age SmackDown.

Strangely enough, that's likely the last time we'll see him in a WWE ring. He's moved onto a new battlefield, one in which he is a novice and a star at the same time.

Starting at 0-0

As announced at UFC 181, Punk has signed a multi-fight deal with the company.

He's 36, has no MMA fights under his belt and has to face the same scoffing that Brock Lesnar, Batista and Bobby Lashley faced for coming from the world of "fake" wrestling. 

Fighter John Alessio thinks Punks has little chance of succeeding:

Cody Bollinger is in the same camp as Alessio:

The MMA world does have its Punk supporters, though. UFC featherweight Cole Miller has higher expectations for Punk:

"

I've trained with @CMPunk he will beat guys in the @ufc. All the haters can suck it.

— Cole Miller (@colemillerATT) December 7, 2014"

And Robbie Lawler welcomed him to the fray.

Even when he's forced to build his reputation from scratch, Punk displayed some of the trademark swagger he had with WWE. As he told Kenny Herzog of Rolling Stone: "Once we nail down a fight date and an opponent, I think it's gonna be wonderful if he underestimates me."

However, Punk knows the daunting nature of the challenge ahead. In an interview with Fox Sports Live, he said, "There's a big chance I fall flat on my face on this."

Whether fans are rooting for him to do just that or pulling for him to prove his critics wrong, the one certainty is that a surplus of people will be watching. He's brought a circus-like atmosphere with him. And he seems to welcome the friction he's causing.

Talking with Fox Sports Live, he embraced his role as outsider and attraction, saying: "I'm a polarizing figure. I wouldn't have it any other way."