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Former WWE photographer John Giamundo recently recalled how CM Punk was supposed to be attacked backstage on the day he walked out of the company.
Punk famously quit WWE before the January 27, 2014, episode of RAW. During a heated conversation with Triple H and Vince McMahon, The Best in the World vented his frustrations about ongoing injuries and his storyline direction. He also reacted negatively to finding out he was going to face Triple H at WrestleMania 30.
Giamundo, who left WWE in 2022 after 21 years with the company, appeared on the latest episode of the Cheap Heat Productions Podcast. He disclosed details about WWE's plan for Punk to get beaten up in a behind-the-scenes segment:
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"The next day [after the 2014 Royal Rumble], 'We're gonna destroy your photo studio,'" Giamundo said, recalling a conversation he had with someone backstage. "He [CM Punk] was gonna get beat up by Kane, maybe, I don't even know what it was. I'm like, 'Dude, you're not gonna smash all my equipment. Then what am I supposed to do? There's like thousands of dollars of camera equipment and photo equipment.'" [42:39 – 42:52]
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Claudio Castagnoli, fka Cesaro, revealed in 2022 that the post-Royal Rumble 2014 episode of RAW was also supposed to feature a match between himself and Punk.
John Giamundo on WWE nixing the CM Punk idea
It is well known that WWE's storyline plans can change at short notice, especially during Vince McMahon's 40-year tenure as the company's creative figurehead.
Shortly after being told about the CM Punk backstage segment, John Giamundo found out that the former WWE Champion had walked out:
"An hour later, it was like, 'Yeah, no, they changed everything. He left.' I'm like, 'What do you mean he left?' 'Yeah, he left, he went home.' 'What do you mean he went home?!'" [43:00 – 43:09]
Giamundo compared the situation to the time Jerry Lawler abruptly left WWE in 2001. Lawler quit his job in protest after being told his then-wife Stacy Carter, fka The Kat, had been fired.
What are your memories of CM Punk's WWE exit? Let us know in the comments section below.
Please credit the Cheap Heat Productions Podcast and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription if you use quotes from this article.
