Grayson Waller thinks CM Punk has gone soft. He’s seen firsthand how much Punk does for younger WWE talent behind the scenes, but that’s exactly the version of Punk that Waller has no interest in dealing with.
While speaking on Cheap Heat Live, Waller admitted that Punk’s reputation for helping younger wrestlers is completely legitimate. He’s even seen Punk upstairs at NXT watching tape with talent when there were no cameras around to capture it.
“The one thing I’ll say about Punk is everything you see about him coming back and being this guy who cares and wants to help, it’s all true.”
“I’ve seen the times when it’s not filmed, you know, when there’s no one around and he is upstairs at NXT watching tape with some new kids.”
That’s where the compliment ended. Waller grew up watching a very different CM Punk. He was drawn to the guy who grabbed a microphone, spoke his mind and didn’t care who he pissed off. Watching Punk become the helpful veteran handing out advice to the next generation just doesn’t hit the same way for him.
“For me personally, that’s not the Punk I want. That’s not the Punk I grew up watching. That’s not the Punk that made me want to get into wrestling and wanted me to grab a mic.”
“This new Punk is like—it’s soft.”
Waller certainly doesn’t see himself changing his approach to match Punk’s. What Waller really wants is to find out whether that old CM Punk is still in there somewhere.
“Grayson Waller ain’t soft. Like, I just want to challenge him. I know he’s the best in the world at what he does. He’s not lying about that. I just pray that Punk still exists ’cause we haven’t seen him in a while.”
That explains Waller’s recent attitude toward Punk a little better. Waller previously admitted he was a huge Punk fan before becoming a wrestler himself, but he wasn’t impressed when he saw younger NXT talent lining up backstage to ask Punk about their matches and take photos with him. Waller called the whole thing “sad” and said it actually embarrassed him.
Rather than joining them, Waller confronted Punk himself. In his mind, getting in Punk’s face was a much better tribute to the wrestler he grew up watching than asking him for a selfie. Now Waller is making his problem with Punk even clearer. He believes the guy who once inspired him has gotten soft, and apparently he’d much rather provoke that old CM Punk back into existence than sit down and watch tape with the new one.
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