CM Punk brought the WWE Title back home in Chicago, and he wasted no time running it back to one of the most famous moments of his career.
Punk replaced Cody Rhodes in the main event of the July 6 episode of WWE RAW after Cody was taken out by GUNTHER earlier in the night. That left Sami Zayn defending the Undisputed WWE Championship against a mystery opponent, and once the show hit Chicago, everyone knew where this was going.
CM Punk walked out to a monster reaction from his hometown crowd, and Sami Zayn suddenly had a title defense he never saw coming. Zayn fought like hell, but Punk caught him in the end. After Sami missed a Helluva Kick, Punk hit one of his own, followed by the GTS, and pinned him to become the new Undisputed WWE Champion.
After the match, Punk celebrated in front of Chicago with the title back around his waist. He also looked into the camera while heading to the back and sent a message to AJ Lee.
“I’ll be home in twenty minutes, babe.”
That line ended up meaning a lot more once Punk got home. Fifteen years ago, CM Punk beat John Cena at Money in the Bank 2011 in the same building and walked out with the WWE Championship. After that, he famously took the title home and put it in his refrigerator for a photo that became part of wrestling history.
Now, 15 years later, Punk did it again. After winning the Undisputed WWE Championship just minutes from his house, CM Punk recreated the fridge photo with his new title. It was a direct callback to one of the biggest moments of his first WWE run, only this time it came after his return and another hometown title win.
Sami Zayn’s title run ended after just nine days, but Punk’s win instantly changes the road to SummerSlam. Cody Rhodes never got his rematch because of GUNTHER’s attack, and now Punk is standing in the middle of the whole thing with the championship. The Summer of Punk is back, and this time the title is once again sitting in his fridge.
What do you think about CM Punk recreating his famous WWE Title fridge photo 15 years later? Drop your thoughts in the comments and let us know.
