WWE Rumor Killer: CM Punk Attending NXT TakeOver: Chicago
What’s the story?
WWE’s latest PPV, NXT TakeOver: Chicago took place last night and there was a rumour following a picture posted on twitter that Chicago’s very own CM Punk, who is currently signed with the MMA promotion UFC, might have been in attendance.
The rumour was debunked, however, as it was confirmed the picture in the Twitter post was from a previous UFC event and not NXT TakeOver as was previously assumed.
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In case you didn’t know
CM Punk had a successful career in WWE until his sudden retirement from the promotion in 2014. Since joining WWE, Punk has won quite a few titles including the WWE Championship which he held twice and the WWE World Heavyweight Championship which he won a total of three times.
CM Punk has even won the WWE Tag Team Championship with Kofi Kingston as his partner and is the only two-time Money in the Bank winner in the history of WWE.
Punk left WWE under less than amicable circumstances and after a short stint at illustrating graphic novels for Dark Horse Comics, he found his home among Mixed Martial Arts fighters in UFC.
The heart of the matter
HOLY SHIT CM PUNK IS IN THE CROWD AT NXT TAKEOVER CHICAGO!!! pic.twitter.com/uCANal7Ksw
— Zakk (@ZakkisBatman) May 21, 2017
A convincing image of CM Punk sitting in the audience at what looked like NXT TakeOver: Chicago showed up on Twitter today, around the time the live PPV ended.
CM Punk was not at NXT Takeover Chicago. The photo is a fake from a UFC event. pic.twitter.com/SLL6egPL1z
— Rey del carisma (@Xx_Whatif300_xX) May 21, 2017
It was eventually discovered that the uploader had doctored a previously released image of CM Punk attending an UFC event by adding the NXT TakeOver graphics in a very convincing way, mimicking how WWE themselves would add the name of the personality on video during live edits.
What’s next?
It is very unlikely that CM Punk would attend a WWE show since he left the company on pretty bad terms. Vince McMaon even sent him the papers for his release from the company on his wedding day according to most reports.
We shouldn’t rule out the chances for a comeback though since the fans almost unanimously admit that he is one of the biggest fan favourites to have ever set foot in WWE.
Writer’s take
It was pretty awful to troll the fans like this but these kinds of hoaxes are not new to the internet. I doubt this is the last time someone photoshops the image of Punk into a WWE event photo but I hope it doesn’t become a recurring joke among WWE fans.