"He's the pretty guy" - When CM Punk revealed his true feelings about Roman Reigns

CM Punk and Roman Reigns will arguably go down as two of the biggest WWE Superstars ever. The two veteran grapplers have done battle and teamed up over the years, and their apparent real-life dynamic has played out in the media. Punk once shared his thoughts on a young Roman during a controversial appearance.

The Voice of the Voiceless infamously quit WWE in 2014. After the controversial exit, Punk shocked the wrestling world by airing his grievances on the Art of Wrestling podcast with former longtime friend Colt Cabana. The future AEW World Champion shocked the wrestling world by revealing why he left the way he did. It's been said that the podcast fueled real-life issues between Punk and Reigns more than anything else.

Punk told one story about how he was set to defeat The Shield in a 3-on-1 Handicap Match at WWE TLC, but it was stressed to him how important it was to make Roman look strong. A related story had to do with how Punk came up with the idea for The Shield. WWE wanted to put a stable with Punk for his heel turn, featuring Big Show and Daniel Bryan, plus "a guy from FCW," with Seth Rollins mentioned at one point.

Punk was willing to do the heel faction, but he didn't like this idea and suggested they choose three ready guys from developmental. He recalled to Cabana how Triple H and Vince McMahon agreed with the idea. The Chicagoan suggested Rollins, Dean Ambrose, and Kassius Ohno, but they wanted Roman Leakee, the future Roman Reigns.

"Vince was immediately like, 'Who do you have in mind?' And I said, '[Dean] Ambrose, Rollins, Chris Hero, or Kassius Ohno.' Hunter shot down Hero. They wanted Roman Reigns. They came to me and were like, 'What about Leakee?' I didn't... it wasn't my hill to die on. I said 'sure' because it made sense to me. Oh, they want their guy in, he's the pretty guy, but that's good because this guy can learn from working under me," CM Punk said.

Punk continued:

"The idea was they were supposed to be my group. Things f**king change. They like to take other people's ideas, make it their own, then tout how awesome they are. So it then became Hunter's idea and up until the PPV they were like, 'Oh, we were told we might not be with you.' And I was like, 'This whole entire time you're supposed to be with me,' because the idea was [they're with me x 3]... I go on to fight Undertaker, then I have these three guys to work with after WrestleMania," CM Punk said.

CM Punk and Roman Reigns have since praised each other in media interviews, with Punk publicly changing his tune long before he returned to WWE. The multi-time champions recently teamed up at Survivor Series as The OG Bloodline and Punk defeated The New Bloodline and Bronson Reed inside WarGames.

CM Punk and Roman Reigns set for WWE Royal Rumble

CM Punk and Roman Reigns are among the top WWE Superstars already confirmed for the 38th annual Royal Rumble PLE, which airs live on Saturday, February 1, from Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Below is the updated lineup:

• Women's Royal Rumble Match: Nia Jax, Bayley, and 28 participants TBA
• Men's Royal Rumble Match: Sami Zayn, Rey Mysterio, Seth Rollins, Drew McIntyre, LA Knight, CM Punk, Jey Uso, John Cena, Roman Reigns, and 21 other participants TBA
• Ladder Match for the Undisputed Championship: Cody Rhodes (c) vs. Kevin Owens (The main title and the Winged Eagle belt will both be hanging above the ring)

CM Punk will be working his eighth Royal Rumble next month, but he has never won the annual bout. Roman Reigns will be entering The Rumble for the seventh time. He won in 2015 and dropped the World Heavyweight Championship in the 2016 match to Triple H.