Johnny Gargano: No More Laying Down. SmackDown Was The Beginning, Not The End

Jeremy LambertSeptember 5, 2026, 12:09 pm

Johnny Gargano got up and fought on Friday’s WWE SmackDown, challenging CM Punk for the Undisputed WWE Championship in Cleveland, OH.

Gargano had been planking backstage for months and it was his first match since April.

He posted the following message on Instagram:

Last night was for the people who never gave up on me, even when I gave up on myself.

I went toe to toe with the @WWE Champion in the main event of Smackdown in the arena where I first fell in love with professional wrestling as a child.

Cleveland, I love you.. you had my back against the best in the world. Punk said he now knows what it’s like to wrestle CM Punk in Chicago. All I’ve ever wanted to be was “your guy”, and make all of you proud.

For an indie kid like me.. it was an absolute honor, and dream to finally get in there with @CMPunk (who was the very first indie merch shirt I ever bought in High School)

I’d love to tell you I was at my best, but that’d be a lie. After laying around feeling sorry for myself for 8 months.. Mentally and physically.. I’m a work in progress.. but I guess we all are.

No more laying down. Last night was the beginning.. not the end. It’s time to stand up, be myself and put in the work to become the man I was always meant to be.

For you. For me. For those who still believe in Johnny Wrestling.

(The real Rebel Heart isn’t an option on here for audio, so just play it yourself and scroll through the pictures! 😁)