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CM Punk Makes Surprise Appearance Amid WWE Absence

By Monika Thapa • Published May 17, 2026 07:02 EDT
CM Punk WWE
CM Punk – Raw, Nov. 24, 2025 - Source: WWE.com

CM Punk made a surprising appearance at a major event amid his absence from WWE.

The Second City Saint lost his World Heavyweight Championship to the Original Tribal Chief Roman Reigns at Night 2 of WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas on April 19. He then appeared on the Raw after WrestleMania show, where he had a tense in-ring exchange with Cody Rhodes.

Since then, Punk has been missing from WWE television. He was also removed from recent promotional materials for Monday Night Raw episodes and the upcoming European tour.

Amid his absence from the Stamford-based promotion, the former World Heavyweight Champion showed up at Netflix’s special MMA event, MVP 1, to support former WWE Superstar Ronda Rousey.

CM Punk Was Team Ronda Rousey All Along

CM Punk was caught live on camera just before the main event between Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano took place. He was briefly interviewed and was asked to share his thoughts on the main event match between the two legendary female icons.

The Best in the World stated that he had full confidence in Ronda Rousey and believed that she would come out victorious in the fight.

I would be remiss to not go with Ronda Rousey. I think she’s gonna do what she always did. She’s gonna march forward. She’s gonna clinch, and she’s gonna throw, and she’s gonna armbar. My opinion.”

Just like CM Punk predicted, Rousey marched forward, clinched, and threw her opponent onto the mat before locking in her famous armbar submission to win the match in only 17 seconds.

Following the fight, Ronda Rousey and Gina Carano shared an emotional moment as the fans saw the two embrace each other in a heartfelt display of respect. Both legends were then interviewed by Ariel Helwani, where they expressed their gratitude towards one another.

Ronda called Gina her hero and thanked her for the opportunity to fight her. In return, Gina Carano also thanked Ronda Rousey for motivating her to lose 100 pounds and return to the cage.

This was Ronda’s first fight in 10 years and Gina’s first fight in 17 years.

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