CM Punk isn’t backing down when it comes to fans showing up around wrestlers’ hotels.
While speaking with ESPN New York ahead of WWE’s event at Madison Square Garden, Punk was discussing the passion of professional wrestling fans when the conversation suddenly shifted to people tracking talent to hotels and waiting around in lobbies.
Punk initially defended wrestling fans from the stereotypes often thrown at them, explaining that the majority are passionate sports fans who travel across the country—and sometimes the world—to attend shows.
“There are definitely some people who fit the stereotypes, but more often than not, you can’t judge an entire fan base or an entire group of people based on one stereotype. Pro wrestling fans, to me, I’ve always found, can also be hardcore sports fans. They’re very well-traveled, believe it or not.”
One of the hosts quickly joked that some fans may be a little too committed when it comes to following WWE Superstars on the road.
“Often too well-traveled to your hotels and lobbies, it seems like.”
Punk didn’t laugh the comment off or leave any room for confusion. He directly told fans not to approach him at hotels and pointed them toward an official appearance instead.
“Yeah, don’t do that. Please don’t do that. I’ll be at Fanatics Fest on Sunday.”
The host then made Punk’s message even clearer, telling listeners that anyone who wanted to see him should attend the public event rather than trying to hunt him down privately.
“There you go. You want to find him? He’ll be at Fanatics Fest.”
Punk responded with a quick prediction about the fans who have become known for waiting around WWE hotels.
“They will be there.”
The timing of Punk’s comments is impossible to ignore. His warning comes while fans are still arguing over an Instagram Story he posted—and later deleted—after WWE’s live event in Las Cruces. Punk thanked the crowd, discussed his breakfast and then included a direct request for fans to stop following him back to his hotel.
“Ahi for breakfast. Breakfast of champions. Please do not follow me to my hotel. Las Cruces, you were lovely—loud and fun. See you all soon. Albuquerque on deck. Thank you.”
Punk never identified the person or group he believed had followed him. He also never explained what happened before he posted the message.
The situation took another turn when the mother of a six-year-old fan pushed back against the idea that her family had followed Punk. She claimed they arrived at the hotel at roughly the same time as several WWE Superstars and that her children were only hoping Punk might smile or wave after they recognized him. That disagreement opened the floodgates, with fans arguing over where the line should be drawn between a harmless encounter and invading a wrestler’s private space.
YouTuber Smartest Mark Alive later entered the conversation, saying Punk’s post reminded him of an experience he claims took place during WWE’s Elimination Chamber weekend in Perth, Australia, in 2024. Before sharing the story, he stressed that he was not defending anyone who stalks wrestlers, follows them between locations or refuses to respect their privacy.
“This is not about stalking wrestlers, hounding them or getting into their private space. This is a completely different scenario. I don’t know if they hounded him. Nobody really knows that because the video was after.”
According to his version of events, his group was staying at the same hotel as WWE’s roster. That meant they regularly crossed paths with wrestlers throughout the weekend without actively searching for them. He claimed the Punk encounter happened when his group approached an elevator and realized Punk, Bayley, Raquel Rodriguez, Giulia and Roxanne Perez were already inside.
“The elevator door opens. We start to walk in. We lift our heads and quickly see that there are a lot of wrestlers in the elevator. I said, ‘Hey guys, sorry, are you going up or are you going down?’ They said, ‘No, we’re going up,’ which was fine. We get it.”
He said Roxanne Perez stepped out of the elevator before one member of his group asked Punk for a photo. Punk declined, and the group claims they accepted the answer without arguing or asking again.
“Punk, we love you. You’re still the best in the world. Do you mind if we have a photo?’ He just looked at him and said, ‘No. This is a hotel room.’ We said, ‘Okay, yeah, we know. We’re staying here too. We’re not hounding you.’ We literally just asked.”
Smartest Mark Alive said Punk rejecting the photo wasn’t the issue. What bothered him was Punk’s reaction after his friend tried to make it clear that there were no hard feelings.
“CM Punk steps back in, and my friend goes, ‘Punk, it’s all good. You’re still the best in the world. We love you.’ He just looked at him, put his head down and didn’t even say hello. He didn’t acknowledge us. Nothing.”
According to the YouTuber, Bayley eventually broke the awkward silence by joking that she was actually the best in the world.
“Bayley had to step in and say, ‘No, no, no, no. I’m the best in the world.’ She started laughing. We started having a little joke with her, and CM Punk was just standing there with his head down.”
He insisted his group was not waiting in the lobby for wrestlers, chasing Punk around the hotel or repeatedly demanding photos. He described it as a random meeting between people who happened to be staying in the same building.
“We’re literally going into the same elevator on our level. Nobody else is around. My friend asked him for a photo, he said no, and that was it. Other than that, we didn’t ask anyone for photos. We were just saying, ‘Hey, how are you going? How do you like Australia?’ CM Punk didn’t respond to anyone.”
Smartest Mark Alive also made it clear that he had positive interactions with several other WWE names throughout the weekend. He praised Bayley, Raquel Rodriguez, Drew McIntyre, Bron Breakker, The Miz, Grayson Waller, Dominik Mysterio, Tama Tonga, Otis and Cathy Kelley for being friendly whenever their paths crossed.
“Everyone else spoke to us that entire weekend. We weren’t asking or hounding anyone for photos. We were just saying, ‘Hey, how are you going? How do you like Australia?’ That type of thing, and they responded. Raquel Rodriguez is probably the nicest person you will ever meet in the entire world. She was an absolute superstar.”
He argued that wrestlers should never feel obligated to stop for photographs, sign autographs or entertain fans during their personal time. His issue was the difference between refusing a request and completely ignoring someone who says hello during an accidental encounter.
“It’s not hard to say hello to someone. It’s not people getting into your private space or people hounding you. If you’re just saying, ‘Hey mate, how are you going?’ No response. That is the issue here.”
Punk has not addressed the Perth story, and Smartest Mark Alive’s account remains his own version of the interaction. Punk’s new ESPN New York comments also did not include any details about what happened in Las Cruces.
What Punk did make clear is that he does not want fans searching for him at hotels or approaching him in hotel lobbies. His position is simple: meet him at a WWE show, convention or advertised appearance—not where he is staying after the cameras stop rolling.
Please credit Ringside News if you use the above transcript in your publication.
Do you think CM Punk is right to tell fans to stay away from wrestlers’ hotels, or should there be room for polite interactions when fans and talent happen to be staying in the same place? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comment section below.
