Kevin Nash Says He Wishes He Had Faced CM Punk In WWE Before Retiring

WWE Hall of Famer Kevin Nash has opened up about the one match that slipped through his fingers: a one-on-one showdown with CM Punk.

Speaking on a 2023 episode of his podcast Kliq This, Nash looked back on their short-lived but memorable feud in 2011, which generated significant buzz among fans but ultimately never led to a match. Nash had returned to WWE that summer, attacking Punk at SummerSlam and becoming entangled in a storyline involving Triple H and the emerging Authority faction. Despite heated exchanges and storyline momentum, the in-ring payoff never came.

“I never got that match with Punk, I wish I had that,” Nash admitted. “You know what, though, I’ve been blessed, man, I went out for 8 or 9 years of my life and was across a Hall of Famer almost every night, so I don’t have too many regrets.”

At the time, CM Punk was at the height of his popularity, coming off the heels of his famous “pipe bomb” promo and his WWE Championship victory. Nash, who had largely stepped away from regular in-ring competition, was reintroduced as a surprise player in the storyline but was never cleared for a match with Punk.

Over the course of his career, Nash faced many of the industry’s top names, including Shawn Michaels, Goldberg, The Undertaker, and more. Yet the missed opportunity to face Punk remains a lingering “what if” moment in his decorated career.

Still, Nash made clear that he harbours no bitterness over how things turned out.

Why Did Kevin Nash Refuse To Put Over The Ultimate Warrior Before Leaving WWE?

Kevin Nash spoke about why he refused to put over The Ultimate Warrior before he left WWE and said that he’d offered Vince McMahon a favour of putting anyone McMahon wanted over before he left for WCW. However, when McMahon suggested Warrior, Nash refused because he felt that Warrior was not “one of the boys” due to his aloof nature of not changing in the regular locker room and not socialising with the other wrestlers at that time.

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