Who was the first woman to punch CM Punk after his WWE return in 2023? Footage hasn't aired on TV!

CM Punk’s first match after returning to WWE was against Dominik Mysterio at a live event at Madison Square Garden. He defeated Dirty Dom, scoring his first victory in WWE in a almost a decade.

However, Dominik Mysterio tried his best to dominate The Second City Saint, and he even got some assistance from Rhea Ripley. In fact, Ripley didn’t just distract Punk, but also assaulted him.

It so happened that The Eradicator was ringside during the match. At one point in the match, Punk was on the ropes and the referee was turned away from him. Rhea Ripley used that opportunity to punch The Second City Saint, becoming the first woman to punch him.

Of course, the referee understood what happened, but he didn’t actually catch Ripley red-handed. Since the live event wasn’t aired on WWE TV, here’s a video of the same from a fan sitting ringside.

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WWE Hall of Famer discussed Dominik Mysterio with CM Punk

CM Punk is a veteran in the industry, and has done well for himself. Even though he had a controversial exit from WWE in 2014, his comeback has been well-received by the fans.

WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio revealed that he maintained a friendship with Punk via texts, and they would speak about Dominik Mysterio’s meteoric rise in WWE.

"I was texting Punk back and forth every now and then. We would say hi and what's up. [We've] always been, not super close, but connected. [Friendly acquaintance] Of course. Him, like just watching Dominik's career take off, we would constantly shoot each other texts."

CM Punk and Rey Mysterio had previously worked together as rivals. In fact, Dominik Mysterio even played a role in that storyline, and Punk mentioned how much he wanted to “punch” eight year old Dominik Mysterio during the build-up to his fight at Madison Square Garden.