“I Put Him on a Pedestal”: Seth Rollins Opens Up About Having Respect for CM Punk Amidst Their Ongoing Bitter Rivalry

At the 2023 Survivor Series PLE, CM Punk made a ceremonious return to WWE after almost a decade. While fans were happy to see him back again, one star in particular was not that thrilled. The star in question is Seth Rollins. While many might believe that the hatred Rollins has for Punk is kayfabe. But in fact, it is not. Recently, The Visionary opened up about the respect he had for CM Punk and what made it go away.

Seth Rollins had respect for CM Punk?

During the latest episode of Raw, the current WWE World Heavyweight Champion was asked what Punk might have to do to earn his respect. To this, Rollins replied by saying that it is something that won’t be happening soon. “I don’t know man. We’ve got a long road to get to that point.” He further added that over the past 10 years, the Second City Saint’s antics had caused a dent in his reputation. Rollins added, ” I had a lot of respect for this guy. I put him on a pedestal. In a lot of ways and for me he was the epitome of don’t meet your heroes because they’ll always disappoint you.” This implied that, at some point, Rollins considered CM Punk to be a role model.

The 37-year-old star then stated that the past 10 years have been nothing but disappointment, stealing away any chance Punk had to redeem himself in Rollins’s eyes. While he believes it is “not a Mount Everest to climb,”  the two are still far, far away from developing that mutual respect.

While fans were shocked when the “Cult of Personality” started playing, stars who were in the ring, especially Rollins were left in shock too. In an interview, he stated that he was amongst the many people at the company who were not kept in the loop. This resulted in a moment where Rollins was seen furiously cursing at someone as the curtains closed that night.

Currently, the two have locked horns on only one occasion. On the December 11 episode of Raw, Punk decided to sign with the red brand. This evoked his free-agent status. While he was addressing the crowd, telling them he was at home now, Rollins entered the ring. A furious Rollins warned him to not call this place his home.

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He further went on to say that all Punk has done is burn this place down. In retaliation, Punk declared that he would be participating in the Royal Rumble. The main goal is to take Rollins down. How do you think this rivalry will end?

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