"He's my mom's favorite wrestler" - AEW star opens up about being a massive fan of CM Punk
AEW star Daniel Garcia had one of his dreams come true when he faced CM Punk on AEW Rampage. Garcia recently revealed that he and his mom are big fans of The Best in the World.
CM Punk and Garcia first crossed paths during the former world champion's feud with Darby Allin. Punk and Allin joined forces to fend off Garcia and 2point0 in a brawl. Several weeks later, Punk challenged Garcia to a match on AEW Rampage. Garcia capitalized on this opportunity and, though he lost the bout, he delivered an impressive performance against Punk.
During a recent appearance on the AEW Unrestricted podcast, Garcia looked back on this match. Garcia admitted that he looked up to Punk as a role model, and he learned a lot from the living legend. He then added that The Second City Saint is his mom's favorite wrestler.
"CM Punk is somebody I've watched for 15 years of my life," said Garcia. "I've really looked up to that guy for a very long time, used to be one of my favorite wrestlers, still probably is, he's my mom's favorite wrestler too. When he came in, I was thinking like, 'it'd be cool if I got to wrestle CM Punk, it'd be like a dream come true.'"
"Then, they announced on Dynamite, he just called me out," Garcia continued. "I was sitting backstage, he called me out, and I checked my phone and I was like, 'Oh, I guess I'm wrestling CM Punk on Rampage this week.' I wrestled him and it was a great learning experience for me." (H/T Fightful)
Garcia has been one of the most buzzworthy prospects since he arrived in AEW, and his bout with Punk showed fans that he could hold his own with The Best in the World.
CM Punk made his AEW Dynamite debut this past week
CM Punk's match with Garcia was on AEW Rampage, but the former world champion competed on Dynamite for the first time this week. On Wednesday night, he faced Bobby Fish in what turned out to be an instant classic.
The two men stole the show, and in the end, Punk had the last laugh when he hit the GTS and pinned Fish.
Since his return, CM Punk has elevated some of his opponents by giving them many spots to shine. The likes of Darby Allin and Daniel Garcia had exceptional performances against The Best in the World. As a result, the wrestling world is getting a chance to see how talented AEW's younger wrestlers are.
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