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WWE CCO Triple H listened to the fans and brought back CM Punk. The rapturous reception in Chicago made the moment so memorable.
For those unaware, The Straight Edge Superstar kickstarted his WWE career as part of the ECW roster in 2006. During this time, Rob Van Dam was at the peak of his career as he held both the WWE and ECW Heavyweight Championship.
Speaking about his former colleague on the 1 Of A Kind podcast, Van Dam compared Punk to how he used to be before. The Hall of Famer claimed that the latter had a chip on his shoulder all those years, but now, things have changed. Moreover, the legend credited the returning superstar for the ability to captivate audiences in the last decade while also praising Triple H for the decision:
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"[Triple H] said, 'If you're the same person you were 10 years ago, you're doing something wrong, because we're all growing,' and I thought, 'Wow, man. It's cool to know that he gets it,'" Van Dam said. "We all learn from every experience."
The ECW legend continued:
"I wouldn't be surprised if CM Punk was a lot easier to get along with," Van Dam added. "Compared to before, [when] he had an overly prevalent chip on his shoulder. It's awesome that CM Punk [has been] able to captivate the interest of the fans for so long," Van Dam said of Punk's return. [H/T: Wrestling Inc.]
Many news outlets have noted that Punk is ready to play ball, and WWE tested the waters with his first promo. Unusually, he did not drop a pipebomb, which led to a section of the fans questioning the heart of the promo.
CM Punk's former rival on his first promo back in WWE
Kevin Nash also commented on the November 27 edition of RAW's main event promo featuring CM Punk. On his podcast Kliq This, the Hall of Famer stated that he felt it was "contrived" and was very much not like him:
"I thought the glad-handing on the way to the ring was not him. I just thought that, for somebody that is so 'Pipebomb,' it just felt very contrived. And then at the end, 'Oh s**t, I better slip this in so I have some credibility: I'm not here to make friends, I'm here to make money.' I've heard that before."
During the Summer of Punk in 2011, CM Punk and Kevin Nash got involved in a heated rivalry. However, the feud fizzled out and segued into another between the Voice of the Voiceless and Triple H. By the end of the year, Nash faced The Game at the TLC premium live event.
The King of Kings scored a pinfall victory over the former at Night of Champions 2011. On the podcast, Nash also disclosed that Triple H was behind the change in creative, as he wanted to defeat CM Punk himself. Check out the details here.
