Seth Rollins Slams CM Punk as a ‘Snakeoil Salesman’ Over AEW Exit and WWE Return

Seth Rollins isn’t mincing words about his WrestleMania 41 opponent—he wants the world to know just how deep his real-life disdain for CM Punk runs.

While appearing on Not Just Football with Cam Heyward, Rollins was asked a simple question: Who does he hate more—CM Punk or Roman Reigns? His answer was immediate and scathing.

“That pales in comparison to how I feel about CM Punk,” Rollins said. “This is a guy who is a thief. He’s a scavenger, he’s a fake martyr, he’s a snakeoil salesman, he’s a con artist. He will sell you a false bill of goods at every turn with no apologies, with zero responsibility.”

Rollins then laid out why he believes Punk betrayed not just him, but the business itself.

“He’s a guy who left this place, ghosted all of his friends. If you have your own personal crap to deal with, that’s life, I get it. To then ask people to leave their jobs, leave their security, leave their dreams behind out of loyalty to you, and when they don’t, you start to tear these people down in the media anyway you can.”

He didn’t stop there. Taking direct shots at Punk’s time in AEW, Rollins accused him of turning his back on the industry he claims to love.

“Then you take money from some billionaire’s kid to come back to the business that you’ve forsaken and continue to try to tear down our company until that billionaire’s kid doesn’t want to pay you anymore, and now you want to come back and take our money and wave the flag.”

“I cannot tell you the absolute disgust in my veins that I have for CM Punk. There is no comparison.”

Rollins is, of course, referring to Punk’s 2021 return via AEW and the drama that followed—including a backstage blowup with Jack Perry that got Punk fired in 2023. Now, Punk is back in WWE, and he’s in the same ring as the guy who has zero interest in making peace.

WrestleMania 41’s Saturday main event—a triple threat featuring CM Punk, Roman Reigns, and Seth Rollins—isn’t just storyline heat. There’s very real venom between at least two-thirds of the match, and Rollins just poured gasoline on it.