5 Superstars who left WWE fans stunned by joining a faction

#4 Former WWE Superstar CM Punk joins The Nexus

In late 2010, CM Punk hinted that he was going to attack John Cena with a steel chair on an episode of WWE RAW. But then he proceeded to sit on the chair and pick up The Nexus armband lying in the ring. To a huge pop, Punk wore the armband, thus making it clear that he was now a part of Nexus. While Wade Barrett started a new group named Corre on WWE SmackDown, Punk became the leader of The New Nexus, and the stable began targeting Randy Orton on the road to WWE WrestleMania 27.

Punk had a valid reason for targeting Orton. The Viper had punted Punk back in 2008, thus prematurely ending his World title run. As WrestleMania approached near, Orton punted all members of Nexus, leaving Punk to fend for himself. At The Show of Shows, Orton and Punk met in the ring, with Orton picking up a major win over the Nexus leader. Punk would soon turn face by delivering the legendary Pipebomb promo, and kicking off what is now famously dubbed "The Summer of Punk".

About the author

Abhilash Mendhe is a pro wrestling journalist at Sportskeeda with nearly five years of experience. He completed his MBA from the Symbiosis Institute of Telecom Management in 2016 and worked with multiple banking institutions, including Tech Mahindra. While he started writing WWE articles for Sportskeeda in 2019 as a hobby, it eventually became a significant part of his professional journey.

Abhilash checks his articles thrice before sending them to the editing team, ensuring his work is highly accurate and reliable.

He has interviewed prominent pro wrestling personalities like Noam Dar, Angry Miz Girl, Brendan Cobbina, and Jesse Lambert. Abhilash is a big fan of AEW star Orange Cassidy, as he believes the former International Champion’s on-screen gimmick of an extremely lazy guy resonates with him.

Given the opportunity to script WWE’s next big storyline, Abhilash would treat fans to the second installment of The Bloodline Civil War. He would book Roman Reigns to re-form The Bloodline with The Usos and Sami Zayn upon his comeback. The angle would see The Tribal Chief-led group go head-to-head with The Rock, Solo Sikoa, Tama Tonga, and Jacob Fatu in a blockbuster family feud.

When not reporting on pro wrestling, Abhilash likes to work out, go on walks, read, and explore new eateries.

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Edited by Kaushik Das