Matt Riddle Compared to CM Punk for Being “Misunderstood”

Bruce Prichard is drawing a surprising comparison between two of wrestling’s most polarizing names: Matt Riddle and CM Punk.

Speaking on Something to Wrestle, the longtime WWE executive said both men have something in common—not attitude, not background, but how misunderstood they are by fans and colleagues alike.

“I actually compared him a lot to CM Punk in terms of being misunderstood and people not really getting who Matt Riddle was. I didn’t get the whole ‘bro’ thing at first. But after talking to him, I got it.”

Prichard recalled a time when he had a one-on-one conversation with Riddle outside the ring—away from the cameras and the “bro” gimmick.

“Look, from meeting Matt Riddle—Matt was one of those guys that I think people really didn’t understand. I sat at the pool one night with him, drank a bunch of beers, and just talked. That’s when I started to figure him out.”

He added that getting to know someone like Riddle takes time—and that quick judgments, especially in the wrestling business, rarely tell the full story.

“You have to spend time with someone like that. It takes time to really understand who they are.”

This comes after Matt Riddle went after CM Punk earlier this year. In a September 2025 interview on Inside the Ring, Riddle went after Punk directly, questioning his presence around younger talent in NXT.

“I think he’s fake and I think he’s a creep. I don’t know. I feel like he’s just lingering around the NXT locker room a little too much… He has like Cora Jade as his daughter and everything. And everybody he kind of oversees.”

The King of Bros also didn’t hold back when discussing how Punk would fare in a real fight against him, making it clear Punk could never beat him in real life.

“Let’s be honest. Did I lie? CM Punk’s a p****y. He can’t beat me in a fight. If he wants to step up, he can meet me in a bare knuckle boxing fight. He can meet me in an MMA cage. Whatever, dude.”

As 2025 comes to an end, Bruce Prichard’s words are a reminder that both Riddle and Punk operate on their own terms—and aren’t easily understood by the wrestling world around them.

Do you think Bruce Prichard is right—are CM Punk and Matt Riddle cut from the same misunderstood cloth? Or are they just oil and water? Drop your thoughts below and let us know where you stand.

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