WWE History: What happened when CM Punk last faced Seth Rollins?

The backstory

Ever since CM Punk was introduced as an analyst on FOX show WWE Backstage, Seth Rollins has repeatedly aimed digs at the former WWE Champion in an attempt to entice him back into the squared circle.

This week’s WWE Backstage featured an appearance from Rollins, who said he has “exhausted his energy” on Punk and he does not expect the two men to meet in a WWE ring in the near future.

Despite Rollins’ change of heart, it seems clear that if Punk does indeed decide to compete again, his likely opponent would be the former Shield member.

What happened in the last CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins match?

CM Punk joined forces with Billy Gunn and Road Dogg in various matches against The Shield in January 2014.

Shortly before aligning with The New Age Outlaws, Punk planted the seeds for a Shield break-up on the December 30, 2013 episode of RAW when he said he would face the “best” member of the villainous faction in a one-on-one match.

This sparked some dissension amongst Seth Rollins, Roman Reigns and Dean Ambrose before Rollins eventually declared himself the “best”, setting up what would turn out to be the final singles match on WWE television between “The Architect” and “The Best In The World”.

It looked as though Rollins could win the 17-minute encounter after he executed his former finisher – a standing shiranui, aka Skywalker – but Ambrose inadvertently caused a distraction, meaning the referee could not count the 1-2-3.

In the end, Rollins tried to leap back into the ring after being thrown onto his fellow Shield members at ringside. However, Punk was able to counter by hitting the GTS on his opponent to pick up the victory.

The aftermath

One day after the match, a fan took to Twitter to congratulate CM Punk on his performance against Seth Rollins.

Punk, who would go on to leave WWE just four weeks later, simply replied by stating that he thought the match was “garbage”.

“@RMB316: @CMPunk IM sure you hear this a lot. Good match on #Raw really enjoyed it. Keep it up all the best in 2014” it was garbage.

— CM Pumpkinpie (@CMPunk) December 31, 2013