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Triple H revealed that there were a couple of moments of serious friction between him and CM Punk after his WWE return in 2023. While he didn't specify when it was, he revealed the details behind Punk walking out on him.
In an appearance on the High Performance podcast, Triple H spoke a bit about the importance of creative collaboration with superstars. He gave the example of CM Punk. As you might know, Punk's relationship with Triple H prior to his 2014 WWE departure was bad. It was arguably even worse than his relationship with Vince McMahon.
Since returning to WWE in 2023, things seem to have been fine. However, when detailing an incident from the recent past, Triple H revealed how Punk had "PTSD" and walked out due to a creative disagreement.
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"We've had a couple of moments since his return. They had told him [CM Punk] something creatively, and they told me he does not like this. So I was like, 'Okay, I'll talk to him'. So I went to him and I was like, 'What's going on?' And he was like, 'Eh, it's good, whatever'. I told him, 'I know you don't like it, everybody told me, so let's talk about it.' So he complained about what it was, and I said, 'Ok, let's talk about it and come up with something better. I'm not married to that [idea], it's just a thought and idea.' He was angry and he walked away from me, and a couple of minutes later he came back and said, 'Sorry, I have post-traumatic stress disorder from before. I'm not used to this process. I would love to sit down and be creative.' That sort of...it was like a paradigm shift for us relationship-wise." (42:00-42:55)
You can watch the full video below:
Triple H now has a drastically different view on working with CM Punk
Triple H went as far as to admit that a decade or more ago, he would have dreaded the idea of having to sit in a room with CM Punk for one hour for a creative collaboration. Things couldn't be more different now.
After admitting that there was a paradigm shift in their relationship, Triple H now said that working with CM Punk is one of his favorite things about TV days:
"It's a funny thing for me to even say. Sitting down and being collaborative with CM Punk is one of my favorite things on TV, because he shares a very similar view at the end of the day of the business as I do. So it's fun for me. Ten to twelve years ago, if you told me I had to sit in a room for an hour and collaborate with Punk, I would have been like, 'Oof, rather pull my own teeth out.' Now I'm like, 'Oh, he's going to be here tomorrow, like he's going to sit with us for an hour and do creative? Love it! Phenomenal!' Now riffing ideas is the best." (42:56-43:31)
The change in their relationship seems to be reflected in the backstage videos and interactions that you see between Punk and The Game. The Second City Saint has had a career redemption under Triple H's creative lead and it seems like it was truly a matter of right place and right time.
Punk's contract was reportedly even reworked last year to give him more favorable terms due to his status as one of WWE's biggest superstars.
If you take any quotes from this article, please credit Sportskeeda Wrestling.
