CM Punk Reflects On 2011 Summer Of Punk, Considered Taking Six-Month Break From WWE Before It Started

A look back at the Summer of Punk.

Guest appearing on the newest episode of What’s Your Story? With Steph McMahon was the newly crowned Undisputed WWE Champion CM Punk.

As the conversation moved along, Punk looked back on the 2011 Summer of Punk, which included his Pipebomb promo and WWE Championship run. He said before the Summer of Punk kicked off, he considered taking a six-month break from WWE.

“Fond memories,” Punk said about the 2011 Summer of Punk. “I remember, I think, feeling like I leveled up. I think that’s the big takeaway, was holy sh*t, now I’m here but also, be careful what you ask for because now the hard work really begins. I feel like I busted my ass in my career to get to that moment where I was finally recognized. But I knew… the rent’s due every day… I was slowing down. I wanted to take a bit of a break. I was on the road for a very, very long time. I was fortunate. I did every house show, every pay-per-view. I was running hard for a very long time, and looking back on it, like 2006 to 2011, it might not sound like a lot of time, but, I mean, the international tours we would do and everything, and because I think I wasn’t creatively or monetarily satisfied with where I was, I was like, okay, well, I can take six months off and then I can come back. ‘Let me take a break. Let me take a break,’ and then, lightning struck with The Pipebomb, and that whole situation, to me, was just magic, and we captured that and it was like, well, okay, I can either go home and squander this or I can ride this lightning bolt, and I rode the lightning bolt and it really made me feel like I had finally leveled up to — in management’s minds — I felt like I leveled up to the level that my ability was always at. I felt like I worked like this top guy and I was finally kind of recognized as that for the first time, and with that came all kinds of other challenges and problems. But, as you level up, you realize there’s more levels to go but that’s the main takeaway. That’s definitely how I felt.”

Punk’s first defense of the Undisputed WWE Championship will be against Cody Rhodes at SummerSlam.

If the quote in this article is used, please credit What’s Your Story? With Steph McMahon with an H/T to Fightful for the transcription.