WWE Magazine breaks down the walls to unravel the unknown backstory behind this season’s hottest rising talent, the Straight Edge Superstar, CM Punk.

THE INSPIRATION

“When Rowdy Roddy Piper smashed a coconut on Jimmy ‘Superfly’ Snuka’s head, I knew I wanted to be a wrestler. The moment was gritty and real, and it grabbed me in a way that nothing else could grab me at that age. That Piper’s Pit interview had everything—tension, larger-than-life guys arguing back and forth, an escalation into violence, culminating with produce-smashing. It was intense and romantic and beautiful. Those guys were everything I wanted to be growing up.”

THE TRAINING

“When I got into the business, the Chicago wrestling scene was, pardon my language, ‘The Sh**.’ After I had my first ‘match,’ everyone was raving about it. But I thought it was terrible. I’m so passionate about wrestling, so I knew I had to be trained properly. The most reputable place in Chicago was Windy City Pro Wrestling; however, they wouldn’t let you wrestle anywhere else. You were trained by them and wrestled for them exclusively. But there were a couple of guys who broke away and opened up their own school, called the Steel Domain. They were going everywhere in the Midwest and on the East Coast, and I saw them as my most viable option.”

THE LOOK

“I was a skinny-fat, 18-year-old kid. I wore a studded leather jacket and ripped-up jeans with a white T-shirt or tank top. I didn’t look too far off from Deuce & Domino. Believe it or not, I’ve always been CM Punk.”

THE PUNK ROCK ANTHEM

“My dad listened to a lot of, I guess you would call it, classic rock. He was a big fan of Cream, The Eagles and Eric Clapton. But I had an aunt who’s about 10 years younger than my mother, and any time I would stay in the city, which was often, I’d hang out with her. I could relate to her more than anybody else. She would go to an old-school place in Chicago called Medusa. She would listen to everything from Duran Duran to The Clash. I remember specifically loving The Clash, and then I flipped out for Operation Ivy, and then, later on, for Rancid. The greatest discovery of my young adult life was when, at 15, I learned that Rancid was an offshoot of Operation Ivy.”

THE AWAKENING

“I’ll be honest, the first concert I ever went to was Candlebox. I went with a couple of female friends, and I was only 14 or 15 years old. The Flaming Lips opened for them, so it wasn’t all bad. A week or two later, I went to see The Offspring with the same group of girls. The opening band was a bunch of locals from Chicago, but the second band that played was Rancid. I was completely blown away.”

THE REAL AMERICAN HERO

“There are experiences in my life that I like to call ‘when worlds collide.’ It’s when I discover two things that shouldn’t exist in the same time and place. For instance, Sgt. Slaughter. I first knew of him as a wrestler, then as a G.I. Joe. So when I met him, I wasn’t sure if I should think of this guy as a wrestler or as a G.I. Joe guy? It was weird. I still don’t know what to do. I mean, this is the guy who beat Nemesis Enforcer in G.I. Joe: The Movie. So that means Pat Patterson can beat the crap out of Nemesis Enforcer. Right there, that’s ‘when worlds collide.’ See what I’m talking about?”

THE SCREWJOB

“I didn’t own the G.I. Joe U.S.S. Flagg when I was a child. I wasn’t the wealthiest kid on the block, so I bought it used from a kid named John Cyscon. He thought he was completely ripping me off because I paid him $20 bucks for it. But the joke was on him. It’s a collectible now. I completely ripped him off!”

THE ACCIDENTAL HERO

“I’m not trying to be the face of Straight Edge, but I don’t think there’s anybody else in the public eye. I’m not the nicest guy in the world. I mean, straight edge music isn’t Dave Matthews. When I do autograph signings, there are always little kids with their hands X-ed up. But it’s sometimes the moms who say the most awesome stuff to me, like how their kids weren’t allowed to watch wrestling until they told her I’m drug-free, which then inspired the whole family to watch wrestling. I’m 28 years old, and it was never a dream of mine to inspire little kids, but the fact that I can reach a 10-year-old kid and his mother…it’s cool.”

THE STRAIGHT DOPE

“It’s easy being edge. At this stage in the game peer pressure doesn’t exist for me, plus I don’t put myself in those kinds of situations. My kneejerk reaction always used be, ‘No thanks.’ But I got rid of the ‘Thanks,’ so I just say, ‘No.’ Or I just say, ‘I don’t drink.’ But I’ll hang out with the boys. I’ve closed bars with John Cena and Ric Flair overseas. I’ll go hang out with anybody. I just don’t drink. And half the time I make sure the guys make it back to the hotel OK.”

THE ELIXIR

“The wackier a soda’s name, the greater the chance I’ll drink it. There are a lot of hilarious versions of Dr Pepper out there. There’s Dr. Wham, and just straight up The Doctor.”

THE INSPIRATION, PART #2

“It was a Crosstown Classic at a Chicago Cubs game at Wrigley Field. I was about the age when I thought swearing was the coolest thing ever. About three or four rows in front of me there was a drunk guy wearing a White Sox hat, jersey, everything. He was standing up doing a double-bird salute, screaming, ‘F--- the Cubs!’ He was the only guy chanting, and I just remember thinking, ‘Man, this is the coolest guy ever!’ I remember uncomfortable looks on the faces of parents and grandparents.

We were in the middle of a row, and I remember my father calmly getting up and saying, ‘Excuse me, excuse me.’ He walked down the steps and right up to the guy, who was still chanting ‘F--- the Cubs.’ He socked him right in the face. The guy slumped in his chair, and my dad started walking back to our seats, saying, ‘Excuse me.’ He got a standing ovation.”

THE SUPER POWER

“Invisibility has its merits. As does flying. Too bad Superman is a 100 percent unadulterated pussy. Mind-reading comes with way too much baggage. I
think I’d want to be able to multiply myself, like Madrox the Multiple Man from
X-Factor.”

THE SECRET IDENTITY

“What does ‘CM’ stand for? Have you ever seen me execute a Moonsault? When I do it, it’s awfully crooked. So I have a ‘Crooked Moonsault.’ It stands for that, or for Chuck Mosley.”  

The above article can also be found in the 2007 Fall Preview edition of WWE Magazine. Pick up your copy on newsstands today. Or subscribe to WWE Magazine.