CM Punk has no interest in the old-school “I suffered, so you should too” mentality.
While speaking with Stephanie McMahon on What’s Your Story?, Punk made it clear he doesn’t want the next generation of wrestlers grinding through the same schedule he did just to earn a paycheck. If anything, he hopes they have it easier.
“I want the next generation to work less and get paid more than I did.”
For Punk, that shouldn’t even be a controversial opinion. He said too many people act like younger talent need to go through the exact same struggles as the wrestlers who came before them. In his mind, veterans should be rooting for the opposite.
“That’s what you should want. That’s what you should want in any business.”
To explain what he meant, Punk pointed to the NHL. He said several of his friends who played in the league love seeing today’s young stars cash in with bigger contracts than they ever received instead of complaining about it.
“I talk to a lot of my friends in the NHL, and they’re stoked that the young kids are making more money than they ever did. They’re like, ‘This is great. These young kids are making more money than we ever did. This is great.'”
Punk thinks wrestling should have the same mindset. Instead of expecting younger wrestlers to work themselves into the ground because “that’s how it’s always been,” he’d rather see them make more money, work fewer dates and enjoy a better career than the generation before them: “I want that for wrestlers.”
The comments come after Punk praised how much WWE has changed compared to years ago, saying today’s system gives young talent a much better chance to succeed than the environment he came up in. As far as he’s concerned, that’s exactly how the business should keep moving forward—not backward.
Do you agree with CM Punk that the next generation of wrestlers should have it better than the last one? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
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