WWE Champion CM Punk, not surprisingly, had a lot to say during my recent interview with him. Here are the parts that didn’t make my Punk feature in Tuesday’s Chicago Tribune, including the Lockport native’s thoughts on The Rock, Chris Brown, wrestling websites and a potential movie career.
Vince McMahon: “(We) have a lot more one-on-one conversations. I wont say he takes the time to talk to me now, because he always did, but I think he views me differently now. He used to view me as maybe talking to a boy. Now he thinks he’s talking to a man after I stood up and did everything I did over the summer. I always thought I was a main event player. The difference is now he knows I’m a main event player.”
The Rock: “I don’t think I have a realtionship with The Rock. Over the past few weeks, it’s been better. Probably because I’ve been outspoken (about him) in the media. Of course, everything gets sensationalized and twisted. I don’t hate The Rock or fault him for coming back. I just think heaping credit on The Rock for ratings, buyrates – that’s where I get offended. It’s a team effort 365 days a year. Me and the entire locker room bust our (butts) and all our super stoked. Give credit where credit is due. Wrestlemania had a huge buyrate last year, not because of one guy. The numbers out there prove he hasn’t done much else, like the Survivor Series buyrate.”
John Cena: “I think the general consensus is that me and Cena don’t get along. While I definitely agree that we don’t see eye to eye, we coexist and get along just fine. I don’t get why people love to hate John Cena. But as long as he gets a reaction that’s positive or negative, he’s doing his job.”
Chris Brown: “I’ve gotten nothing but pats on the back: ‘Good job.’ I said what I said, the video is out there. He obviously erased his tweets and hopes this disappears. It is what it is. I meant what I said. It’s not a publicity stunt. I don’t want to work with him at Wrestlemania. Some day karma will get a hold of Chris Brown, and me along with 99 percent of the world will sit back and say I told you so.”
Beth Phoenix: “I have no problem being friends with anybody. If me and Beth have friendship issues, it’s not me.”
Wrestling websites: “I think you have to (read them). Anybody who dismisses it — that’s (crap). You have to have your fingers on the pulse of everything. You have to read it.”
CM Punk DVD: “I think they wanted to do a ‘Road to Wrestlemania’ DVD. I was like ‘Who gives a (crap).’ The pay per view after Wrestlemania is in Chicago. That was a no brainer to me – coming home. The last day of filming will probably be the pay per view. I’ll get my sisters in there and (Colt) Cabana.”
Movie career: “(WWE) offered me a movie when I first told them I wasn’t re-signing. I immedialy turned it down. They probably figured I would jump at a movie because I’m not a movie star. That’s not to say that if the right thing doesn’t come along, I won’t do it. That’s not my priority. … I think WWE films signed on three new movies. I’m sure one of them is probably slated to be a CM Punk vehicle. I haven’t heard anything yet. Nothing is set in stone. Take that for what it’s worth. I think I would love to do a movie if it’s the right project. I’m not going to be in ‘The Marine 3’ just because they offered it to me. If it’s something good, I’ll do it. I’d love to do it – as long as it doesn’t interfere with my wrestling schedule.”
Friends: “I’m an excellent judge of character. I can tell people who want something from me or if they’re actually buddies. Kofi (Kingston is a friend). Guys like Evan Bourne, Daniel Bryan I’ve known for a decade wrestling on the indies.”
Family: “I don’t believe you have to be blood to be family, so I have a lot of family members. I have two sisters and a brother by blood. I talk to my sisters but haven’t talked to my brother in like 10 years. … I think I have always had to outsource for support or anything I want to do. The people who were willing to accept me with open arms weren’t blood related to me. To me, that’s what family is. Family supports you. So like my Mom, my Dad, my brother – the only thing my brother ever did to me was steal a (crap) load of money from me.”
Ratings: “I don’t know what I can or can’t do to make it better. It doesn’t necessarily fall on one person’s shoulder, but I shoulder a lot of the blame from other people, so I might as well shoulder it myself.”
Promos: “What people need to realize is I’m not just watching promos on wrestling. The reporter on CNN interviewing Joe Paterno is a promo to me. I listen to the inflection in people’s voice, their body language, what they do with their hands, fidgety, how many times they touch their face — depending in what situation they’re being interviewed for. If they’re on the spot or they’re guilty of something, emotional, nervous, joyful, just won the Super Bowl. I watch people’s eyes mostly: How to convey certain emotions, rage, happiness, sadness.”
Good guy vs. bad guy: “I’m certainly not a baby kissing, hand slapping, rah rah good guy. I definitely think there’s more of an edge to my character. … I’m way better at (playing a heel). When you’re a bad guy, you are in control. You’re the boss. I’m still waiting for that bad guy to come around and tell me to shut my mouth.”
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