CM Punk Went Off-Script With Vince McMahon Jab on WWE RAW Last Year

CM Punk’s infamous “Say his name” jab at Drew McIntyre — a thinly veiled reference to Vince McMahon — may have stirred more trouble backstage than fans realized. Over a year later, that moment is still being talked about, and now we know why.

During the first Fightful Select Q&A of September 2025, a fan asked about Punk’s March 25, 2024 promo on WWE RAW, where he brought up Vince McMahon during a verbal showdown with McIntyre. Sean Ross Sapp responded with new insight that raised some eyebrows.

“Vince was a no-go in any sense.” Sapp said. “There were very few people that were just no-gos.”

He made it clear that most major promos — especially involving CM Punk or Paul Heyman — are usually scripted to the letter. But this one? That may have been Punk going rogue.

“That line [from Punk] — according to people I talked to — claim it wasn’t [scripted]. They claim it was not scripted. I didn’t see a script for that. So, you know, there’s always a chance they could be lying. But that was not a good one. People weren’t thrilled about that line.”

In other words, Punk may have slipped the line past WWE creative, leaving the company with a live mic moment referencing a man they were trying to distance themselves from entirely.

Drew McIntyre, for his part, stayed composed. Speaking to Metro last year, he explained why he didn’t fire back in the moment.

“What was going through my mind was I could respond right now, and would it be a good look for our company?” he said. “I had a couple of things in mind that would have melted the internet, but potentially hurt us in different ways.”

McIntyre chose to “hold [his] tongue,” thinking about the bigger picture — the company and the roster. But the fallout from Punk’s unscripted reference seems to have rattled more than just his opponent.

With Vince McMahon and Brock Lesnar both reportedly off-limits for WWE television promos at the time, this could go down as one of the last real unscripted moments in the company’s modern era.

Do you think CM Punk crossed the line by going off-script? Or was it a necessary shot that added realism to the feud? Drop your thoughts in the comments and let us know where you stand.

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