Famous Drew McIntyre Rivalry Powered By Real Life Heat

Drew McIntyre has opened up about arguably the biggest storyline of his career.

From the moment CM Punk walked back onto WWE television, Drew McIntyre made it clear he didn’t want him there.

Although the initial jabs were just verbal, things went to a whole new level when Punk got injured taking a Future Shock DDT in the 2024 men’s Royal Rumble match. Despite Punk being unable to wrestle for several months, the pair traded increasingly personal insults, and the former AEW man even cost McIntyre the World Championship.

When Punk was finally fit, a trio of matches dominated the summer, ending with a blood-soaked affair at Bad Blood inside Hell In A Cell that September.

Drew McIntyre Might Hate CM Punk, But He’s Still A Professional

During an appearance on the Gorilla Position podcast, McIntyre discussed his famous and often violent rivalry with Punk. After reiterating that the pair genuinely dislikes each other, McIntyre said they proved that if you’re good at your job, that shouldn’t be a barrier to compelling television.

“The thing about this industry is there’s going to be peaks and valleys… during that time, we kind of caught lightning in a bottle, and people could feel that things were a little bit different with punk and AEW. They were very much real. The feelings were real. And we are professionals… The result of a couple of people that really good at their job who genuinely don’t like each other with that level of creativity was what you saw.

When you get people who are at the top of their game, like the two of us, no matter how we feel about each other, you’re gonna get compelling television.”

During one memorable promo exchange, McIntyre tried to goad Punk into saying Vince McMahon’s name on television. Looking back at that moment on Raw, the star contemplated dropping McMahon’s name himself, but he wanted to remain professional.

“It crossed my mind, the conversation in my head, do I do it? And do I say the same person that fired on your wedding day? Which did cross my mind, but again, somebody’s got to be the professional out there.”

During the same interview, Drew McIntyre explained why he walked out of the 2025 Royal Rumble after becoming frustrated with LA Knight.

H/t to WrestlingNews.Co