Name	Davey Boy Smith
Names	(The) British BulldogDavey Boy SmithYoung DaveyYoung DavidWhite Tiger
Height
Weight
Birth date	November 27, 1962
Birth place	Golborne, Lancashire, England, United Kingdom
Death date	May 18, 2002
Death place	Invermere, British Columbia, Canada
Billed	Leeds, England (1983-1992)Manchester, England (1993-2002)
Trainer	Ted BetleyStu Hart
Debut	1978
Retired	}}

David "Davey" Boy Smith (November 27, 1962 – May 18, 2002) was a British professional wrestler, also known as (The) British Bulldog, who was born in Golborne in North West England, United Kingdom. Smith is known for his appearances with Stampede Wrestling, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) and World Championship Wrestling (WCW). Described by WWE (previously the WWF) as "one of the most physically impressive individuals in WWE history", Smith found success as both a singles and tag competitor, holding every major title in the organization except the WWF Championship. Smith competed in multiple pay-per-view main events in the WWF and WCW, and challenged for the top titles of both promotions.

Smith was trained by Ted Betley in Winwick, England before relocating to Calgary, Alberta, Canada to further his training under Stu Hart. While training with Hart, Smith met Stu and Helen Hart's youngest daughter Diana, whom he married in 1984. They had two children, Harry (born on August 2, 1985) and Georgia (born on September 26, 1987). He and Diana were divorced in 2000.

Professional wrestling career

Early years (1978–1984)

Davey Boy Smith started competing on ITV's World of Sport when he was only 15, wrestling under the name Young David with his slightly older cousin Tom Billington (Dynamite Kid). His first televised match, broadcast September 2, 1978, saw him draw with one pin each between himself and Bernie Wright. He would wrestle there for four and a half years until February 1983 with his final match again being against Wright, this time winning two pinfalls to one. In World of Sport he wrestled, among others, Dave Finlay, Blackjack Mulligan and Marty Jones as well as teaming with Big Daddy. He also had a series of matches with Jim Breaks, from whom he won the British Welterweight Championship in 1979 by two falls to one submission. The belt was held up due to the match's disputed finish.

He was then spotted by Bruce Hart scouting talent in the UK and travelled to Canada to wrestle for Stu Hart with his cousin. Stu Hart and Roy Wood trained Smith further in his "Dungeon" and Smith became a key wrestler in Hart's promotion, Stampede Wrestling. During his time in Stampede, Smith began a feud with the Dynamite Kid, and on July 9, 1982, he [Smith] won his first title when he defeated the Dynamite Kid for the Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight title.

In 1983, Smith debuted in New Japan Pro Wrestling where he became involved in a three-way feud with Dynamite Kid and The Cobra (George Takano) over the NWA Junior Heavyweight Title. On February 7, 1984, a three-way, one-night tournament was held, and Dynamite Kid won the tournament by defeating Smith via count-out, and the Cobra by pinfall. After the tournament, Smith and Dynamite Kid formed a tag team in both New Japan and in Stampede Wrestling known as the British Bulldogs. In 1984, the Bulldogs made a shocking move by jumping to New Japan's rival, All Japan Pro Wrestling just before the start of All Japan's annual Tag Team tournament. The Bulldogs made a nice showing in the tournament, which drew the interest of the World Wrestling Federation.

World Wrestling Federation (1984–1988)

The Bulldogs, along with Smith's brothers-in-law Bret Hart and Jim Neidhart were brought in to World Wrestling Federation (WWF) after Vince McMahon bought out Stampede Wrestling. At first, the Bulldogs were able to tour both WWF and All Japan, but eventually McMahon gained exclusive rights to the Bulldogs. While in the WWF, the Bulldogs began a long running feud with Hart and Neidhart, who were now known as The Hart Foundation.

The Bulldogs also feuded with the Dream Team (Greg Valentine and Brutus Beefcake). At WrestleMania 2, with "Captain" Lou Albano and Ozzy Osbourne in their corner, the Bulldogs defeated the Dream Team for the Tag Team Championship. The Bulldogs held the titles for nearly nine months, feuding with the Dream Team and Nikolai Volkoff and the Iron Sheik.

In January 1987, the Bulldogs lost the titles to the Hart Foundation due to a severe back injury to the Dynamite Kid. After losing the titles, the Bulldogs gained a mascot, an actual bulldog who went by the name Matilda, and feuded with the likes of The Islanders (who, kayfabe, dog-napped Matilda), Demolition, and The Fabulous Rougeau Brothers.

The Bulldogs left the World Wrestling Federation in 1988, in part due to backstage problems between the Bulldogs, specifically the Dynamite Kid, and the Rougeau Brothers over a prank pulled by Curt Hennig. The Bulldogs, noted ribbers (pranksters) in their own right, were blamed for the prank, leading to a series of confrontations which culminated in Jacques Rougeau knocking out four of the Dynamite Kid's teeth with a fist filled with a roll of quarters. Though there are various accounts of this situation, many suggest that Billington drew first blood by bullying Rougeau (among many others including The Honky Tonk Man, whom Dynamite, allegedly, brought to tears) in Miami. While Rougeau was playing cards backstage, from behind, Billington smacked Jacques in the ear and then punched and kicked him in the face several times and also struck Raymond, who was on crutches at the time. It was weeks before Jacques responded. Bret Hart wrote about the incident, in his book ''HITMAN: My Real Life in the Cartoon World of Wrestling'': "At first I was upset, and contemplated getting involved. But the more I thought about it the more I realized that Tom had been asking for this for years and that everyone who'd been bullied by him would rejoice at the news." After no disciplinary action was taken against Jacques, Billington quit the WWF, and Smith followed suit.

Stampede Wrestling and All Japan Pro Wrestling (1988–1990)

After leaving the World Wrestling Federation, the Bulldogs returned to Stampede Wrestling, and also to All Japan Pro Wrestling. Stampede officials were hopeful that the return of the Bulldogs would revive a struggling promotion, but they were unsuccessful. Eventually, the decision was made to split up the Bulldogs, which caused some problems with All Japan owner Giant Baba, who was still promoting the Bulldogs as a tag team. On July 4, 1989, Smith, along with fellow wrestlers Chris Benoit, Ross Hart, and Jason the Terrible, was involved in a serious automobile accident. Smith, who was not wearing a seatbelt at the time, needed 135 stitches after slamming his head through the windshield and being thrown 25 feet onto the pavement. He recovered, and the Bulldogs continued teaming in All-Japan against teams such as Joe and Dean Malenko, Kenta Kobashi and Tsuyoshi Kikuchi, and The Nasty Boys. Personal problems began to surface between Smith and Billington, and Smith later left All Japan to return to the WWF.

World Wrestling Federation (1990–1992)

Smith was pushed as the same character from the British Bulldogs' original WWF run, but this time as a singles star under the name The British Bulldog, and was much bigger in terms of muscle mass than he was in his first WWF run. He was a fairly popular wrestler in the United States, but was a huge attraction to fans in the United Kingdom, due in part to the WWF becoming a ratings hit on Sky Sports, as well as the promotion touring the country holding supercards such as UK Rampage which saw Smith defeat The Warlord at the London Arena in March 1991 and the Battle Royal at the Albert Hall in which Smith won a 20-man battle royal by eliminating Typhoon on October 13, 1991. After entering as the first man in the 1992 Royal Rumble, he eliminated "The Million Dollar Man" Ted DiBiase, Jerry Sags, and Haku before being eliminated by the eventual winner of the match Ric Flair.

Smith again headlined the WWF's European tours at European Rampage again winning a 15-man battle royal by eliminating The Mountie in München, Germany on April 14, 1992 and defeated Irwin R. Schyster in Sheffield, England on April 19, 1992.

In 1992, due to this newfound popularity, the WWF decided to hold its annual SummerSlam pay-per-view in Wembley Stadium in London. The show was main-evented by Smith (led to the ring by the British Heavyweight Boxing champion Lennox Lewis) and Bret Hart in a match for Hart's Intercontinental Championship. Initially, Hart was to lose the title to Shawn Michaels, but Hart suggested that Smith get the win at Summerslam as it would mean big business in England. On August 29, at SummerSlam, in front of 80,355 of his countrymen, Smith won the Intercontinental Title in a match which is regarded by many wrestling experts as the finest in his career. Smith lost the title to Michaels on the November 14 edition of ''Saturday Night's Main Event'' and was later released by the WWF. The reason for Smith's release was that he and The Ultimate Warrior were receiving shipments of Human Growth Hormone from a pharmacy in England. The Warrior was released as well.

World Championship Wrestling (1993)

Smith had a stint with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) in 1993, immediately targeting the main event scene. He engaged in feuds with Sid Vicious and Big Van Vader, whom he challenged for the WCW World Heavyweight Championship at Slamboree, and formed a mildly successful alliance with Sting. He was officially billed as Davey Boy Smith but was referred to as The British Bulldog frequently and interchangeably with Davey Boy Smith. He and Diana had trademarked the British Bulldog name early in his WWF career, which meant he owned the name and gimmick and was free to use it anywhere he went. This was the source of animosity between the Dynamite Kid and Smith.

In July 1993, he was reportedly involved in an altercation with a man at a bar who was making advances towards his wife. As a result of the altercation (and the ensuing legal issues that followed), WCW released him from his contract. His final pay-per-view appearance for WCW came at the Battlebowl pay-per-view. He was teamed with Kole in the first round of the Lethal Lottery; they lost to Road Warrior Hawk and Rip Rogers. Before his firing in November, he was scheduled to feud with Rick Rude over the WCW International World Heavyweight Championship; he was subsequently replaced in the feud by The Boss.

Independent circuit (1994)

In 1994, he worked for some independents in Great Britain before returning to the WWF.

World Wrestling Federation (1994–1997)

1994–1996

Smith returned to the WWF at SummerSlam, as a spectator with the rest of the Hart family. Smith immediately became involved in an ongoing family feud between Bret Hart and his brother, Owen Hart. Smith teamed up with Bret against Owen and Jim Neidhart in a series of tag team matches.

Smith appeared at the 1994 Survivor Series in a 10-man elimination match. His partners were WWF Intercontinental Champion Razor Ramon, 1-2-3 Kid, and The Headshrinkers. They faced Tag Team Champions Shawn Michaels and Diesel, Owen Hart, Jeff Jarrett, and Jim Neidhart. Smith was eventually counted out, but his team won the match after the entire other side was counted out while trying to stop Diesel and Michaels from fighting in the back.

After entering the Royal Rumble as the second entrant, Smith and Shawn Michaels were the final two at the end. Smith tossed Michaels over the ropes and celebrated on the second turnbuckle. However, only one of Michaels feet hit the floor and he was able to reenter the ring, and eliminate Smith from behind, whilst Smith's music was playing and he was celebrating on the turnbuckles. Soon after, Smith began teaming with Lex Luger as the Allied Powers. The team wasn't much of a success and only wrestled on two pay-per-views as a tag team. The first came at WrestleMania XI were they defeated The Blu Brothers. The second came at In Your House 2 were they lost to Tag Team Champions Owen Hart and Yokozuna in July. Afterward the team briefly began feuding with Men on a Mission. During this time, Smith began teasing a heel turn at several live shows where he walked out on Luger during several of their matches together. Another incident saw him antagonize fans for chanting "USA" during their matches together, as they often had done. The normally affable, happy-go-lucky Smith became bitter and spiteful, and would get easily annoyed with the fans and his partner.

On the August 21 episode of ''Monday Night Raw'', the Allied Powers were supposed to face Men on a Mission but Luger (kayfabe) no-showed the match; Smith found a replacement in then-WWF Champion Diesel. During the match, Smith completed his heel turn and attacked Diesel, assisting Men on a Mission in beating down the champion. He left the ring with manager Jim Cornette and joined former adversaries Owen Hart and Yokozuna in Cornette's stable. With a new look and attitude, Smith knocked down challenges from the likes of Bam Bam Bigelow among others, and pinned Diesel in a six-man tag team match on RAW to earn a WWF title shot.

Smith received a WWF Championship shot against Diesel in the main event of In Your House 4 in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Smith won by disqualification after Bret Hart interfered. At the Survivor Series in Landover, Maryland, Smith participated in the Wild Card eight-man elimination match. He teamed with Shawn Michaels, Ahmed Johnson, and Sycho Sid. They faced WWF Intercontinental Champion Razor Ramon, Dean Douglas, Owen Hart, and Yokozuna. Smith, Michaels, and Johnson were the survivors.

In the main event of December's In Your House 5 from Hershey, Pennsylvania, Smith was granted a title shot against new WWF Champion Bret Hart in a rematch from their SummerSlam match back in 1992. They had another well-received match, yet Hart won this time. A notable incident from this match was that Hart bled during the match, which was controversial because WWF outlawed bleeding at the time.

Smith entered the 1996 Royal Rumble, where he made it to the final four before being eliminated by Shawn Michaels. At In Your House 6, he lost to Yokozuna by disqualification after Vader interfered. At WrestleMania XII, he teamed with Vader and Owen Hart to defeat Yokozuna, Ahmed Johnson, and Jake "The Snake" Roberts. At In Your House 7 in April, Smith and Owen Hart defeated Johnson and Roberts after Smith forced Roberts to submit.

1996–1997

In 1996, after Shawn Michaels became WWF Champion, Smith was put in a feud with the new champion. The feud was supposedly based on Smith's wife, Diana, accusing Michaels of hitting on her, which made Smith mad and determined to take the title from Michaels. The two main-evented the In Your House 8 pay-per-view, and their match ended in a double pin when Michaels German suplexed Smith and both their shoulders were counted down by separate referees. A rematch between the two headlined the 1996 King of the Ring pay-per-view. Michaels ended up successfully defending the title. During this time Smith agreed to join WCW where he was to be the fourth member of the nWo. However, the day he was meant to join he instead re-signed for the WWF with a five year contract.

Afterwards, Smith formed a tag team with his brother-in-law, Owen Hart, and the two soon won the Tag Team Titles from The Smoking Gunns. The team defended their titles against teams such as Doug Furnas and Phil LaFon, Vader and Mankind, and The Legion of Doom.

In 1997, the WWF created the European Championship and Smith became the first ever holder of the title, winning a tournament in Germany, which culminated in him defeating his own tag team partner, Owen Hart in the finals, which made Smith a double champion. A match considered one of the best that year. According to Bret Hart's autobiography, the title was awarded to Smith to appease him for unfulfilled promises Vince McMahon had made.

Hart and Smith later joined forces with Bret Hart, Jim Neidhart, and Brian Pillman to re-form the Hart Foundation as a villainous faction which feuded with Stone Cold Steve Austin and other American wrestlers. This created a rift between American fans, who despised the Hart Foundation, and Canadian fans, who revered the Hart Foundation. Smith and Owen dropped the Tag Team Titles to Austin and Michaels, and lost the final match in a tournament for the vacant Tag Team Titles to Austin and Dude Love. Smith then started a feud with Ken Shamrock for the European Title, and eventually lost the European Title to Shawn Michaels in the main event of One Night Only. Smith was booked to successfully defend the belt against Michaels. However, Michaels convinced Vince McMahon that he should win, as it would create build-up not only for his impending rematch with Bret Hart, but also for a rematch against Smith at the next British pay-per-view. Smith reluctantly agreed, and fans at the event, who gave Smith an ovation, voiced their displeasure by booing Michaels and littering the ring with garbage. This marks the only time Smith lost on a WWF card in the United Kingdom, and the third championship Smith has lost to Shawn Michaels. After the events at Survivor Series 1997, Smith, along with Bret Hart and Neidhart, left the WWF for WCW.

World Championship Wrestling (1998)

Smith re-joined WCW as the British Bulldog and immediately began a feud with Steve "Mongo" McMichael, who was complaining about all the wrestlers coming from "Up North". Smith and Neidhart later formed a tag team. They challenged for the World Tag Team Championship on several occasions, but failed to win the titles.

Smith suffered a knee injury in April 1998 that sidelined him for a month. He suffered another injury on September 13, 1998 at Fall Brawl during his match with Neidhart against the Dancing Fools (Disco Inferno and Alex Wright). While taking a bump, Smith landed awkwardly on a trapdoor that had been set in the ring to enable The Warrior to make a dramatic entrance in the night's main event. The result was a spinal infection that nearly paralyzed Smith, hospitalizing him for six months. While recuperating, Smith received a FedEx informing him that his WCW contract had been terminated.

World Wrestling Federation (1999–2000)

Smith returned to the WWF in September 1999 following the death of Owen Hart in an in-ring accident. In keeping with the company's new "Attitude era", Smith began wrestling in jeans instead of his usual Union Flag-adorned tights and his theme music was changed from "Rule, Britannia!" to a remix of that particular theme, and later to rock music (complete with the sounds of a dog barking as the song began) that the WWF used for most of its talent at the time. On the September 7 episode of ''SmackDown!'' in Albany, New York, Smith defeated The Big Boss Man for the Hardcore Championship. Smith forfeited the title giving the belt back to Al Snow because Boss Man had previously (kayfabe) dog-napped Snow's dog Pepper to win the title from him, driving him insane in the process. Smith then began pursuing the WWF Championship, eventually turning into a villain and beginning a feud with The Rock. Smith headlined Unforgiven as part of a six-man WWF Championship Match that was won by Triple H. On October 2, Smith returned to England as a heel at Rebellion, where he defeated X-Pac. He lost to The Rock at No Mercy later that month.

Smith defeated D'Lo Brown for the European Championship on ''SmackDown!'' on October 26. He lost the title to Val Venis in a triple threat match at Armageddon on December 12 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

On May 6, 2000 in London, Smith defeated Crash Holly for the Hardcore Championship. In one of Smith's last televised appearances, Holly regained the title from him in New Haven, Connecticut on the May 11 episode of ''SmackDown!''. His last televised match with the WWF was on ''Sunday Night Heat'' some weeks later, when he burst into Eddie Guerrero and Chyna's locker room, accusing Guerrero (who was the European Champion at the time) of not treating the belt with the respect it deserved. This led to a title match on ''Heat'', in which both men were disqualified.

In early 2000, Smith's wife Diana divorced him, with Smith being given shared custody of their children. At the same time, he entered a drug rehabilitation clinic at the behest and expense of Vince McMahon due to his problems with prescription painkillers though they were not the only drug he was using. He was released from the company shortly thereafter.

Death

Smith died on May 18, 2002, after suffering a heart attack while on vacation in Invermere, British Columbia with his girlfriend. He was 39 years old. An autopsy revealed that past anabolic steroid use may have played a part in his death, however no certain reason was found. It is apparent that stress, serious injuries, and the use of drugs took its toll on the wrestler. Bruce Hart claimed "Davey paid the price with steroid cocktails and human-growth hormones."

Before his death, Smith had been training with the intent of resuming his career, and had wrestled in three tag team matches with his son, Harry Smith the previous weekend.

Media

On April 6, 2010, the WWE released ''Hart & Soul: The Hart Family Anthology'', which is a 3 DVD set featuring a documentary on the Hart wrestling family (including Davey Boy Smith) as well as 12 matches. It is unique in that it also features previously unseen home movies from the Harts as well as candid interviews from surviving family members. On April 28, 2010, the WWE put his wrestling profile on the "WWE Alumni" Page. Smith (along with brother-in-law Bret Hart and former tag partner Lex Luger) is also a downloadable character in ''WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2011.''

In wrestling

Finishing moves

Running powerslam

Signature moves

*Arm drag often followed by a submission hold

*Crucifix

*Camel clutch

Clothesline, sometimes with high impact

Diving crossbody

Dropkick

Hanging vertical suplex

*Headbutt, sometimes in a series while trapping the opponent's arms

*Military press drop

*Running powerbomb

Running shoulder block

Shoot kick to the head of a kneeling or seated opponent

*Surfboard

*Catapult

Managers

*Diana Hart

*Lou Albano

Jim Cornette

*Ozzy Osbourne (at WrestleMania 2)

Entrance themes

*World Wrestling Federation/Entertainment

**"Rule Britannia"

**"Allied Powers" Used While Teaming With Lex Luger

**"Rule Britannia Remix"

**"Rule Britannia Remix 2"

*World Championship Wrestling

**"Road Booster"

**"Hell Raisers"

**"Monster"

Championships and accomplishments

All Japan Pro Wrestling

January 2 Korakuen Hall Heavyweight Battle Royal Winner (1989)

Pro Wrestling Illustrated

*PWI Match of the Year (1992) vs. Bret Hart at SummerSlam

PWI ranked him #15 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 1993

*PWI ranked him #5 of the 100 best tag teams of the PWI Years in 2003 with The Dynamite Kid

PWI ranked him #53 of the top 500 singles wrestlers of the "PWI Years" in 2003

Stampede Wrestling

NWA Stampede International Tag Team Championship ''(Calgary version)'' (2 times) – with Bruce Hart

Stampede British Commonwealth Mid-Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

Stampede Wrestling International Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with The Dynamite Kid

Stampede North American Heavyweight Championship (2 times)

Stampede World Mid-Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

Stampede Wrestling Hall of Fame

World Wide Wrestling Alliance

:*WWWA Intercontinental Championship (1 time)

World Wrestling Federation

WWF European Championship (2 times)

WWF Hardcore Championship (2 times)

WWF Intercontinental Championship (1 time)

WWF World Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with The Dynamite Kid (1) and Owen Hart (1)

*Battle Royal at the Royal Albert Hall Winner

Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards

*Best Wrestling Maneuver (1984) Power clean dropkick

*Feud of the Year (1997) with Bret Hart, Owen Hart, Jim Neidhart, and Brian Pillman vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin

*Tag Team of the Year (1985) with The Dynamite Kid

Notes

References

External links

Accelerator's Wrestling Rollercoaster: The British Bulldog

SLAM! Wrestling Canadian Hall of Fame: The British Bulldog

Davey Boy Smith at Online World of Wrestling

WWE Alumni Profile

Category:1962 births Category:2002 deaths Category:Deaths from myocardial infarction Category:English professional wrestlers Category:People from Golborne Category:The Hart Foundation members

da:Davey Boy Smith de:The British Bulldog es:Davey Boy Smith fr:Davey Boy Smith it:Davey Boy Smith nl:Davey Boy Smith ja:デイビーボーイ・スミス pl:Davey Boy Smith pt:Davey Boy Smith ru:Британский Бульдог simple:Davey Boy Smith th:เดวี บอย สมิธ

Name	CM Punk
Names	CM Punk
Height
Weight
Birth date	October 26, 1978
Birth place	Chicago, Illinois
Resides	Lockport, Illinois
Billed	Chicago, Illinois
Trainer	Ace SteelDanny DominionKevin QuinnDave TaylorFit FinlayWilliam RegalSteel Dominion Wrestling School
Debut	1999
Website	CMPunk.com

Phillip Jack Brooks (born October 26, 1978), better known by his ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler signed to WWE and appearing on its Raw brand as the reigning WWE Champion.

In professional wrestling, Brooks is a seven time World Champion, having held the ROH World Championship and ECW Championship once, the World Heavyweight Championship three times and the WWE Championship twice.

In addition to these championships Punk has also won the World Tag Team Championship (with Kofi Kingston), and the WWE Intercontinental Championship making him the nineteenth WWE Triple Crown Champion and the man to achieve this honor fastest at 203 days. Between WWE and Ring of Honor (where he is also a two-time World Tag Team Champion), Punk has won a total of eleven championships. He was also the winner of the 2008 and 2009 Money in the Bank ladder matches (the only wrestler to win the match twice in a row), and was the 2011 Superstar of the Year Slammy Award winner.

Punk initially came to prominence through his career on the professional wrestling independent circuit, primarily as a member of the ROH roster, where he was the first head trainer of the ROH wrestling school as well as winning both of their championships. In 2005, Punk signed a contract with WWE and was sent to its developmental promotion, Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), where he won every championship available in the promotion. Throughout his career, Punk has consistently used the gimmick of being straight edge, a lifestyle he follows in his actual day-to-day life. Depending on Punk's alignment as a crowd favorite or villain, he emphasizes different aspects of the culture to encourage the desired audience reaction.

Professional wrestling career

Early career

Punk's first venture into wrestling was a stint in a backyard wrestling federation called the Lunatic Wrestling Federation with his friends and brother Mike Brooks in the mid-late 1990s. He first started using the ring name CM Punk when he was put into a tag team named the Chick Magnets with CM Venom after another performer skipped out on the card. Unlike his friends, Punk genuinely wanted to be a wrestler and saw it as more than simple fun. When the promotion started taking off, doing spot shows out of a warehouse in Mokena, Illinois, Punk found out that his brother Mike had embezzled thousands of dollars from the small company, causing them to become estranged. They have not spoken since.

He soon left the federation and enrolled as a student at the "Steel Dominion" wrestling school in Chicago, where he was trained by Ace Steel, Danny Dominion and Kevin Quinn to become a professional wrestler. As part of the training, he wrestled at Steel Domain Wrestling in St. Paul, Minnesota. It was in the Steel Domain that he met Scott Colton, who soon adopted the stage name Colt Cabana. Punk and Cabana became best friends and spent most of their early career together working in the same independent circuit promotions, as opponents or allies. In the independents, Punk, along with fellow Steel Domain graduates Colt Cabana, Chuckee Smooth, Adam Pearce and manager Dave Prazak, formed an alliance named the Gold Bond Mafia.

Independent Wrestling Association: Mid-South (2000–2005)

Punk's home promotion for his early career is usually considered to be Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South (IWA:Mid-South). During Punk's time in IWA:Mid-South, he had high profile feuds with Colt Cabana and Chris Hero while also rising to the top of the roster winning the IWA Mid-South Light Heavyweight Championship twice and the IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Championship on five separate occasions, beating stars like A.J. Styles, Cabana and even Eddie Guerrero for that Championship. Punk's feud with Hero included a 55-minute TLC match, a 93-minute two out of three falls match, and several 60-minute time limit draws.

Punk's matches with Cabana led him to being hired by the Ring of Honor promotion. From February 2003 until May 2004, Punk refused to wrestle for IWA:Mid-South, because he claims that this was in protest to Ian Rotten's mistreatment of Chris Hero in the company. Hero, however, has stated he believes there were other reasons, and Rotten's treatment of him was just an excuse by Punk to stop working for the company. Eventually Punk returned to IWA:Mid-South and continued to perform as a wrestler and commentator for them until 2005 when he was signed to World Wrestling Entertainment. His last appearance in IWA:Mid-South was on July 2, 2005 in which he competed in a 60-minute time limit draw against Delirious.

Ring of Honor and Total Nonstop Action Wrestling

Storylines with Raven (2002–2004)

Initially, Punk joined Ring of Honor (ROH) as a crowd favorite, but quickly became a villain in a feud with Raven that featured numerous variants of no disqualification matches. Their rivalry lasted most of 2003 and was considered one of ROH's top feuds of the year, and was based around Punk's straight-edge lifestyle, with him likening Raven to his alcoholic father. Their rivalry was settled at ''The Conclusion'' in November 2003, where Punk defeated Raven in a Steel Cage match. At the same time, Punk joined the wrestling promotion NWA Total Nonstop Action (TNA), in which he was paired with Julio Dinero as members of Raven's TNA alliance The Gathering. Punk started climbing the ranks of ROH, including coming in second at the ''Second Anniversary Show'' during the tournament to crown the first ROH Pure Champion, losing to A.J. Styles in the finals and winning the ROH Tag Team Championship twice with Colt Cabana as the Second City Saints. Both times Punk and Cabana defeated the Briscoe Brothers to win the championship. Circa October 2003, Punk was hired as the first head trainer of the Ring of Honor wrestling school, having previously been a trainer for the Steel Domain and Primetime Wrestling.

Shortly before a TNA show on February 25, 2004, Punk had a physical scuffle with Teddy Hart outside of a restaurant that was broken up by Sabu. The scuffle reportedly stemmed from an ROH show in which Hart performed three unplanned spots putting several other wrestlers in danger of injury. Around the time of the scuffle, Punk and Dinero stopped appearing on TNA shows, leading to speculation he was fired for the incident. Punk, however, has stated that the scuffle had no bearing on his TNA career. He said the reason he and Dinero stopped appearing on TNA pay-per-views was that TNA officials believed that he and Dinero had not connected with the fans as villains, having turned against the popular Raven and instead formed a villainous tag team managed by James Mitchell. The officials decided that as the teams as villains was not working decided to put the storyline on hold indefinitely, and thus had no work for Punk or Dinero. Punk officially quit TNA in March 2004 during the Rob Feinstein controversy, after having a dispute with the TNA offices over his ability to compete in ROH following a TNA order that their contracted wrestlers were to no longer wrestle in ROH.

Pursuit of the World Championship (2004–2005)

In ROH, Punk faced off against ROH World Champion Samoa Joe for the championship in a three match series. The first match, on June 12, 2004 at ''World Title Classic'' in Dayton, Ohio, resulted in a 60-minute time limit draw when neither Punk nor Joe could pin or cause the other to submit in the 60 minutes. The second match between Punk and Joe was planned for December 4, 2004; however, due to Steve Corino being pulled from a match with Joe by Pro Wrestling ZERO-ONE, the second match was hastily rescheduled on October 11, 2004 for October 16 in Punk's hometown of Chicago. At ''Joe vs. Punk II'' on October 16, they wrestled to a second 60-minute draw. In addition to ''Joe vs. Punk II'' becoming Ring of Honor's best-selling DVD at the time, the match received a five-star rating by Dave Meltzer's ''Wrestling Observer Newsletter''. It was the first match in North America to receive a five-star rating in seven years—the last one being the Hell in a Cell match between Shawn Michaels and The Undertaker at Badd Blood: In Your House in 1997. Joe ended the series by defeating Punk in the third and final match on December 4, 2004 at ''All-Star Extravaganza 2'' in which there was a no time limit stipulation. In June 2005, Punk accepted a deal with World Wrestling Entertainment, after a try-out match against Val Venis on its ''Sunday Night Heat'' show. Even though he had accepted the deal, Punk went on to defeat Austin Aries with his Pepsi Plunge move, winning the ROH World Championship on June 18, 2005 at ''Death Before Dishonor III''. Immediately after the match, Punk proceeded to become a villain and started a storyline where he threatened to bring the ROH World Championship to WWE with him. For weeks, Punk teased the ROH locker room and the ROH fans as well as mocking the championship he possessed, going so far as to sign his WWE contract on it. During the storyline, Mick Foley made several ROH appearances, attempting to convince Punk to do the right thing and defend the title on his way out. On August 12, 2005 in Dayton, Ohio, Punk lost the ROH World Championship to James Gibson in a four corner elimination match consisting of himself, Gibson, Samoa Joe and Christopher Daniels, who re-debuted after a year-and-half absence. Punk's final scheduled match in Ring of Honor took place at ''Punk: The Final Chapter'' on August 13, 2005 against long-time friend Colt Cabana in a two out of three falls match, which he lost. In his last match, Punk was visibly crying and was showered with streamers when he posed in the middle of the ring.

Punk made a special appearance at the ROH show ''Unscripted II'' on February 11, 2006, when the original card had to be scrapped due to Low Ki leaving ROH the week prior. In addition, most of the ROH roster contracted to TNA were pulled from the show because of a snowstorm that TNA officials thought might prevent performers from reaching a pay-per-view scheduled the next day. In the main event, Punk teamed with Bryan Danielson to wrestle and ultimately defeat Jimmy Rave and Adam Pearce in a tag team match.

World Wrestling Entertainment / WWE

Ohio Valley Wrestling (2005–2006)

In September 2005, Punk was assigned to Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW), a WWE developmental territory. He made his debut on September 8, 2005, in a dark match, where he, Nigel McGuinness and Paul Burchill were defeated by Deuce Shade, Elijah Burke and Seth Skyfire. On September 26, 2005 in his OVW television debut, Punk suffered a ruptured eardrum and broken nose after Danny Inferno hit him with an overly stiff right hand. Despite the injury, Punk finished the match and quickly recovered.

On November 9, 2005, Punk became the OVW Television Champion after defeating Ken Doane, which immediately led to a feud between Punk and Brent Albright, who had previously been feuding with Doane for the Television Championship and had lost his chance to wrestle Doane after Punk hit him with a chair so he himself could wrestle Doane. They wrestled in series of matches, including one that ended in overtime with Albright having Punk submit to Albright's finisher, the Crowbar, but Punk was able to keep the championship, as he had not agreed to the extra time. On January 4, 2006, Punk lost the OVW Television Championship during a three way dance among himself, Albright and Doane. Doane was injured halfway through the match and was replaced by Aaron "The Idol" Stevens. Punk submitted to Albright's Crowbar and was eliminated, but he returned later in the match to distract Albright allowing Stevens to pin Albright and become the new OVW Television Champion. The feud continued after a short period in which Albright and Punk were a tag team, but they became opponents again after Albright wanted the respect of Punk, who would never give it to him, and instead proceeded to "punk out" (get the better of) Albright repeatedly. This feud continued for weeks with Punk always getting the better of Albright until a double turn occurred on February 1, 2006 when Albright became a villain during a tag match, allowing the Spirit Squad to beat Punk and, in doing so, making Punk a crowd favorite. During this time, Punk had a minor appearance at WrestleMania 22 on April 2, 2006 as one of the gangsters who rode a 1930s era car to the ring before John Cena's entrance.

After Matt Cappotelli vacated the OVW Heavyweight Championship because of a brain tumor in February 2006, a tournament was held to crown a new champion. The finals were Brent Albright vs. CM Punk with Albright defeating Punk to become the new champion. Punk and Albright continued their feud, with Albright becoming more unstable and paranoid about maintaining his championship after several close call matches against Punk, resulting in acts such as threatening Maria. On May 3, 2006, Punk finally defeated Albright in a strap match to win the OVW Heavyweight Championship. As champion, Punk retained the title in matches against opponents such as Shad Gaspard, Ken Kennedy, Johnny Jeter and Mike "The Miz" Mizanin.

On July 28, 2006, Punk and Seth Skyfire defeated Shad Gaspard and the Neighborhoodie to win the OVW Southern Tag Team Championship at a house show. They lost the Tag Team Championship on August 2, 2006 to Deuce Shade and "Domino" Cliff Compton after an injured Skyfire tagged in an already injured Punk. This altercation led to a feud between Punk and Skyfire after a rematch for the Tag Team Championship on August 7, 2006 in which a healthy Punk purposefully tagged in an injured Skyfire to be beaten by Shade and Compton. On August 30, 2006, a match was scheduled to take place between Punk and Skyfire for the OVW Heavyweight Championship. Prior to the match, however, Skyfire was attacked by Charles "The Hammer" Evans, with whom Skyfire had also been feuding, and was replaced in the match by Chet Jablonski (Chet the Jet) who pinned Punk to win the OVW Heavyweight Championship. As Punk no longer possessed the championship, OVW no longer required him. He was removed from the roster and brought up to the WWE roster full-time. He continued to make sporadic appearances for the company, such as at the 400th episode of OVW on television, up until WWE announced it was ending its developmental territory agreement with OVW on February 7, 2008.

ECW (2006–2008)

On June 24, 2006, Punk made his ECW debut during a house show at the former ECW Arena, defeating Stevie Richards. He made his TV debut on the July 4 episode of ''ECW on Sci Fi'', cutting a brief pre-taped promo about his straight edge lifestyle emphasizing the disciplinary aspects of being drug and alcohol free. Although he had retained the straight edge gimmick, he now had a Muay Thai training background. Punk made his TV wrestling debut on August 1, 2006 at the Hammerstein Ballroom, defeating Justin Credible. CM Punk established himself in ECW by going undefeated, defeating opponents such as Christopher W. Anderson, Stevie Richards and Shannon Moore.

Soon after, Punk began feuding with Mike Knox after Knox's girlfriend, Kelly Kelly, was seen to have feelings for Punk. Punk defeated Knox in their first singles match (qualifying for the Extreme Elimination Chamber at December to Dismember in the process) as well as the rematch, after which Kelly Kelly celebrated CM Punk's victory over her boyfriend. Punk then teamed with D-Generation X and the Hardy Boyz in their Survivor Series match against Rated-RKO, Knox, Johnny Nitro and Gregory Helms, a match in which all the participants on DX's side survived elimination. At December to Dismember, Punk participated in the Elimination Chamber for the ECW World Championship; however, he was the first person eliminated by Rob Van Dam. Following the pay-per-view, Punk entered into a feud with Hardcore Holly, who ended Punk's six-month unbeaten streak in singles competition on January 9, 2007. Punk went on to feud with Matt Striker, who gave him his second singles loss since being in ECW on January 30. Punk then qualified for the Money in the Bank ladder match at WrestleMania 23 by defeating Johnny Nitro. In the final week leading up to WrestleMania 23, Punk made appearances on both ''Raw'' and ''Friday Night SmackDown!'', defeating Kenny Dykstra and former World Heavyweight Champion King Booker, respectively. At WrestleMania 23, Punk competed in, but did not win, the Money in the Bank ladder match, being knocked off the ladder just seconds before the winner, Mr. Kennedy, claimed the briefcase.

On the April 10, 2007 episode of ''ECW on Sci Fi'', Punk briefly became a villain by officially joining the New Breed alliance, after several weeks in which both the New Breed and the ECW Originals had attempted to recruit him. Two weeks later, however, Punk betrayed the New Breed during a four on four elimination match between the New Breed and ECW Originals by kicking New Breed leader Elijah Burke in the back of the head and costing them the match. After the match, Punk proceeded to deliver his finisher, the Go To Sleep, on Burke and sarcastically apologized before leaving the ring alone, becoming a fan favorite again. WWE.com later confirmed that Punk was no longer a member of the New Breed. At Judgment Day, Punk wrestled and defeated Burke in his first singles match on a pay-per-view. Punk then went on to One Night Stand and teamed up with Tommy Dreamer and The Sandman in a tables match to defeat the New Breed.

When ECW World Champion Bobby Lashley was drafted to Raw and stripped of the ECW World Championship, a mini-tournament was announced to declare a new champion among Punk, Elijah Burke, Marcus Cor Von and Chris Benoit. Punk defeated Marcus Cor Von on the June 19, 2007 episode of ''ECW on Sci Fi''. By doing so, CM Punk was meant to face Chris Benoit at Vengeance: Night of Champions for the vacant ECW World Championship. Benoit, however, was hastily replaced by Johnny Nitro when Benoit no-showed the event due to what was described on-air as "personal reasons". Nitro subsequently defeated Punk at Vengeance for the vacant championship. Punk won another shot at the title at The Great American Bash against Nitro, who had changed his moniker to John Morrison by this point; however, Punk was defeated again by Morrison. The next week, Punk challenged Elijah Burke and Tommy Dreamer in a triple threat match to determine the next competitor in Morrison's 15 Minutes of Fame Challenge, in which Punk came out victorious. A week later, Punk defeated Morrison with the Go To Sleep to earn an ECW Championship title match at SummerSlam. At SummerSlam, however, Punk lost the match when Morrison used the ropes for leverage.

At the September 1, 2007 (aired September 4) ''ECW'' taping, in a "last chance" title match, Punk defeated Morrison for the ECW Championship. Punk then went on to have successful title defenses against the likes of Elijah Burke (at Unforgiven), Big Daddy V via disqualification (at No Mercy) and The Miz (at Cyber Sunday). On the November 6, 2007 episode of ''ECW'', Punk retained the ECW Championship in a match against Morrison following The Miz's interference. At Survivor Series, Punk retained his title in a Triple Threat match, beating The Miz and John Morrison. On the January 22, 2008 episode of ''ECW'', Chavo Guerrero defeated CM Punk in a No Disqualification match to win the ECW Championship after Edge, (acting as a guest commentator at ringside) ran in and speared Punk.

Money in the Bank And World Heavyweight Champion (2008–2009)

At WrestleMania XXIV, Punk won the Money in the Bank ladder match, after defeating Chris Jericho, Montel Vontavious Porter, Shelton Benjamin, John Morrison, Mr. Kennedy and Carlito.

On the June 23, 2008 episode of ''Raw'', CM Punk was drafted to the Raw brand during the 2008 WWE Draft. His first night on ''Raw'' came the following week, and he made an immediate impact. After Batista beat down World Heavyweight Champion Edge and left him lying in the ring, Punk and referee Mike Chioda ran to the ring with Punk carrying his Money in the Bank contract. Moments later, as Edge was struggling to get up, Punk hit him with the Go to Sleep and pinned him to win the World Heavyweight Championship. Later that night, Punk won his first defense of the title against JBL, who challenged him shortly after his win. His win over Edge would eventually also earn Punk the Slammy Award for the "Oh my God" Moment of the Year. Punk continued to hold and defend the title until Unforgiven on September 7, 2008. Before the Championship Scramble match, Punk was attacked by an early version of The Legacy (Randy Orton, Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase with Manu). Orton finished the assault by punting Punk in the head. It was announced that Punk could not participate in the match due to the attack and, as a result, he involuntarily forfeited the title. However, Punk was replaced by Chris Jericho, who went on to win the match and the title. He received a rematch eight days later on the September 15 episode of ''Raw'', where he failed to regain the title in a steel cage match against Jericho.

On the October 27, 2008 episode of ''Raw'', Punk and Kofi Kingston defeated Cody Rhodes and Ted DiBiase to win the World Tag Team Championship. The duo were members of Team Batista at Survivor Series, where their team lost to Team Orton. Punk was then entered in an Intercontinental Championship Tournament, in which the winner would get to challenge for the championship in the future. He would defeat Snitsky and John Morrison in the first two rounds. Punk and Kingston lost the World Tag Team Championship to John Morrison and The Miz at a live event on December 13, 2008. The next day Punk defeated Rey Mysterio at Armageddon to win the tournament. On the January 5 episode of ''Raw'', Punk received his title match against William Regal, which ended in a disqualification, when Regal grabbed the referee's jersey. Due to this, Stephanie McMahon awarded Punk a rematch the following week, but this time it was himself that was disqualified. McMahon awarded him another rematch, this time a No Disqualification match on January 19 episode of ''Raw'', Punk won the match and the title. With this win, he became the nineteenth Triple Crown Champion. Also, the victory made him the man to accomplish the Triple Crown in the fastest amount of time, shattering Kevin Nash's old record. Punk lost the title on the March 9 episode of Raw to John "Bradshaw" Layfield. At WrestleMania XXV, Punk won the Money in the Bank ladder match and became the first person to win the match twice.

On April 13, 2009 during the 2009 WWE Draft, Punk was drafted from Raw to SmackDown. In the period after the draft, Punk feuded with Umaga over Umaga's repeated surprise attacks while Punk was attempting to cash in his Money in the Bank Contract. This ultimately resulted in a Samoan strap match at Extreme Rules, which was won by Punk.

At the end of the pay-per-view, Punk cashed in his Money in the Bank contract to defeat Jeff Hardy for the World Heavyweight Championship. Punk retained his title in a Triple Threat match against both Edge and Hardy eight days later on the June 15 episode of ''Raw''. At The Bash in Sacramento, California, Punk lost to Hardy by disqualification after kicking the referee after being afflicted with a storyline eye injury, claiming he could not see the referee, but because titles do not change hands on a disqualification, Punk retained the championship. Hardy called Punk into question about his eye injury, believing he had been feigning it, leading Punk to turn heel, claiming to be the moral superior of those who support Hardy due to his drug-free lifestyle. At Night of Champions, Punk lost the championship to Hardy. Their feud continued through SummerSlam, where Punk regained the title in a Tables, Ladders, and Chairs match; afterward, Punk was attacked by The Undertaker. On the August 28 episode of ''Friday Night SmackDown'', Punk concluded his program with Hardy and achieved his booked goal of excising him from the WWE, defeating Hardy in a steel cage match wherein the loser agreed to leave the company. This act would earn Punk a second Slammy that December as he was named winner for 2009's "Shocker of the Year".

At Breaking Point Punk defeated The Undertaker in a submission match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship. Undertaker originally won the match with his Hell's Gate submission hold. SmackDown General Manager Theodore Long re-started the match after stating that the ban that former General Manager Vickie Guerrero had placed on the move was still in effect. Punk would win the match with his Anaconda Vise when referee Scott Armstrong called for the bell despite Undertaker never submitting (reminiscent to the Montreal Screwjob, which took place in the same venue in 1997). The feud between the two continued and at the Hell in a Cell PPV, Punk lost the World Heavyweight Championship to The Undertaker in a Hell in a Cell match. He lost two subsequent rematches against The Undertaker on Smackdown and in a Fatal Four Way match at Bragging Rights also involving Batista and Rey Mysterio.

Straight Edge Society and New Nexus (2009–2011)

His character took on a more sinister demeanor on the November 27 episode of ''SmackDown'' when he revealed that he had converted Luke Gallows, who had previously been portrayed as the mentally incompetent wrestler Festus, to the straight-edge lifestyle which had rid him of his mental troubles. Continuing to espouse his straight-edge philosophy, Punk began to present himself as a cult-like savior to the crowd, growing the hair on his head, face and chest in an allusion to Jesus. Through January 2010, Punk began to convert planted members of the audience to a straight-edge lifestyle, making them take a pledge of allegiance to him and shaving their head as a sign of renewal and devotion. After converting many people who were not seen again, convert Serena began accompanying Punk and Gallows to form the Straight Edge Society. As well as leading this alliance, Punk was also the mentor of ''WWE NXT'' rookie Darren Young who flirted with the idea of becoming straight-edge before refusing just before his head was to be shaved. Punk continued to show messianic traits, frequently giving sermons including during the annual Royal Rumble match as well as during an Elimination Chamber match at both of the eponymous pay-per-views. In the Chamber match, he was eliminated by Rey Mysterio, whom he had feuding with leading into the PPV. Tensions escalated as Mysterio prevented him from winning a Money in the Bank qualifying match, causing Punk to interrupt Mysterio's celebration of his daughter's ninth birthday. Mysterio challenged Punk to a Street Fight at WrestleMania XXVI but lost to Gallows, meaning Punk picked the stipulation that if Rey lost he would have to join the Society. At WrestleMania, Punk lost to Mysterio sparking a rematch at Extreme Rules where Punk would have to shave his head, like his disciples, if he lost. Punk won this match after interference from a fourth member of the Society who kept his face covered. At Over The Limit, a third and final match was booked with both stipulations reactivated. In the match Punk lost and was subsequently shaved bald.

Embarrassed by being shaved bald as he considered himself always pure unlike his followers, Punk appeared on the following episode of ''SmackDown'', May 29, wearing a mask to hide his baldness. At Fatal 4 Way, Punk challenged for the World Heavyweight Championship against Mysterio, The Big Show and the champion Jack Swagger, but was unsuccessful when he was attacked by Kane, who was accusing various people of attacking The Undertaker. On July 16's ''SmackDown'', Punk was finally unmasked by Big Show while healing from an arm injury. The following week Show also unmasked the anonymous member of the Straight Edge Society who was revealed to be Joey Mercury. This led to a handicap match at SummerSlam where Show defeated the entire Society after Punk abandoned his teammates. Show also beat Punk in a singles match at Night of Champions. Following this Serena was released from WWE while Mercury became injured, severely thinning the Society. Gallows began showing signs of dissension too, and Punk defeated him on ''SmackDown'', airing September 24, ending the group.

Punk was traded back to the Raw brand on October 11 after being swapped with Edge. He took part in the interbrand tag team match at Bragging Rights after injuring Evan Bourne to win a place, but the team lost. It was reported later that he was suffering with a hip injury that would stop him from competing. To keep a presence on television, he began commentating on ''Raw'' from November 22, having already commentated one episode of ''NXT''. During his commentary, he criticized John Cena for his actions against The Nexus. Sometimes he favored heel wrestlers over face wrestlers. At the end of December, Punk left the commentary team after assaulting John Cena on ''Raw'' and ''SmackDown'' with a chair. Punk later revealed that his motives for the attacks were that he had joined and assumed control of The Nexus. He would then use the group to attack Randy Orton, blaming him for prematurely ending Punk's first World Heavyweight Championship reign in 2008; this led to a WrestleMania XXVII match and a Last Man Standing match at Extreme Rules both of which Punk lost.

WWE Champion (2011–present)

In June, after pinning WWE Champion John Cena on ''Raw'', Rey Mysterio at Capitol Punishment and finally Alberto Del Rio again in a contendership match (which included Mysterio) all within one week, Punk revealed his contract would expire at Money in the Bank and vowed to leave the company with the WWE Championship; some of his speeches and mannerisms echoed his final months with Ring of Honor. After making a scathing on-air speech concerning the way in which WWE is run and its owner Vince McMahon, he was given a storyline suspension from televised WWE events but was reinstated the following week on Cena's insistence. Upon his return Punk ceased to appear with the remaining members of Nexus and the group would quietly dissolve the same month. This helped transition him from a villainous character back to being a fan-favorite. Two weeks later, at Money in the Bank, CM Punk defeated John Cena to become the WWE Champion on his final night under contract with WWE.

On July 21, CM Punk made an unannounced appearance at a joint WWE and Mattel panel at the San Diego Comic Con to mock new Chief operating officer Triple H and offer WWE Championship tournament finalist Rey Mysterio a match for Punk's own WWE Championship, as long as it was in Punk's hometown, Chicago. Punk appeared at July 23's All American Wrestling show, showing respect to Gregory Iron, a wrestler with cerebral palsy. Mysterio won the WWE Championship tournament on the July 25 episode of ''Raw'', only to lose it to Cena later that night. After Cena's victory, Punk returned to ''Raw'' and upstaged the new WWE Champion's victory celebration while also entering into a title dispute. Triple H would later uphold both Punk and Cena's claims to the WWE Championship as legitimate and schedule the two to a match at SummerSlam to decide the undisputed WWE Champion. Punk prevailed but immediately lost the title to Alberto Del Rio, who had cashed in his Money in the Bank contract, after being attacked by Kevin Nash.

The night after SummerSlam Punk accused Nash of conspiring with Triple H to keep Punk away from the WWE Championship. After repeated confrontations Nash and Punk demanded to face each other at Night of Champions, to which Triple H acquiesced. However, after CM Punk's repeated verbal attacks towards him and his wife Stephanie McMahon, Triple H booked himself to replace Nash. At Night of Champions Punk lost a No Disqualification match after Nash, The Miz, and R-Truth attacked both men. Miz and Truth also attacked Punk at Hell in a Cell after he lost a WWE Championship Triple Threat match. He attempted to avenge this by teaming with Triple H against Miz and Truth at Vengeance, but lost again due to Nash attacking Triple H. This helped transition Punk's anti-establishment voice from Triple H to John Laurinaitis who became the interim Raw General Manager. CM Punk balked at Laurinaitis' promotion and verbally attacked him as a dull yes man.

On October 31, CM Punk strong-armed his way into a match with Del Rio at Survivor Series, where he regained the WWE Championship by way of submission with the Anaconda Vise. He went on to defend the title through the end of the year, retaining in a rematch with Del Rio on the November 28 episode of ''Raw'' and against both Del Rio and The Miz in a Triple Threat TLC match at TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs. On the December 26 episode of ''Raw'', CM Punk was defeated by Dolph Ziggler in a gauntlet match; as a result Ziggler became #1 contender to the WWE championship. Had he been successful Punk would have earned the right to face Laurinaitis in a match. The following ''Raw'', Punk was defeated by Ziggler via countout following interference from Laurinaitis; retaining the championship as a result. Intermeddling from Laurinaitis caused Punk to lose to Ziggler throughout January which ultimately led to Punk attacking Laurinaitis in retaliation. At the Royal Rumble event, CM Punk successfully defended his title against Ziggler, despite Laurinaitis acting as the outside enforcer.

On the January 30 edition of ''Raw SuperShow'', Chris Jericho attacked Punk and Daniel Bryan during their Champion vs. Champion match, giving Bryan the win. The following week, Jericho explained his actions by dismissing the WWE roster as imitations of himself and singling out Punk for claiming he was the best in the world, a moniker Jericho used the last time he was in WWE. Their rivalry continued through Elimination Chamber where Punk retained the WWE Championship in the namesake structure; while four competitors were eliminated, Jericho was unable to continue the match after being kicked out of the chamber by Punk, causing temporary injury. The following night, Jericho earned a match against Punk at WrestleMania XXVIII, and in a bid to psychologically unsettle him, he revealed Punk's father was an alcoholic and alleged that his sister was a drug addict, asserting that Punk's straight edge philosophy was paranoia to avoid the same vices and vowing to make Punk turn to alcohol by winning the title from him. John Laurinaitis added the stipulation that the WWE Championship could change hands via disqualification, which led to Jericho inciting Punk into using a weapon, but Punk resisted and retained the title. On the April 2 and 9, Punk retained the WWE Championship against Mark Henry after losing to him via count-out and disqualification. Following both matches, Jericho attacked Punk and doused him with alcohol. On the April 16 episode of ''Raw'', Punk pinned Henry in a no disqualification, no countout match to retain his title. At Extreme Rules, Punk defeated Jericho in a Chicago Street Fight to retain the WWE Championship.

Gimmick

Punk has adopted his real-life following of the straight edge movement as his professional wrestling gimmick, but the gimmick uses different elements of Punk's personality and the beliefs of the straight edge movement depending on his alignment. While portraying a crowd favorite, the gimmick tends to be that of Punk's normal personality, largely indifferent to others who drink alcohol, smoke tobacco, partake in recreational drug use or have promiscuous sexual behavior, but emphasizing the social discipline involved with abstinence. Conversely, his villainous personality tends to be that of one who is hardline or militant straight edge, exemplifying the elitist attitudes and superiority complexes—defined by Punk's common mantra during villainous-themed promos that, because he is straight edge, he is "better than you". Punk performs the straight edge symbol of crossing his arms in an X formation while having the letter X written on the back of his hands, usually drawn on his wrist tape.

Originally, the initials CM in his ring name represented the phrase "Chick Magnet", the name of the tag team he was in as a backyard wrestler. Punk, however, later changed CM into an orphan initialism, declaring that it has no meaning, though when asked since he has taken to making up meanings that fit the initials, going so far as to make up long stories to explain the origins that do not match the actual origin story at all. Since beginning this practice, Punk has stated CM stands for "Cookie Monster", "Cookie Master", "Crooked Moonsault", "Chuck Mosley", "Charles Montgomery", "Charles Manson", "Crazy Mariachi", "Chicago Made", among others.

An integral part of Punk's gimmick are the numerous tattoos that adorn his body, some of which have come to become symbols associated with Punk, as well as mantras and declarations that have been integrated into his gimmick. The tattoos as a whole, due to their large quantity and variety, have also become an attribute identifiable to Punk. The most important of the individual tattoos in Punk's character, whether through association, symbol, or mantra, are: A Pepsi Globe logo on his left shoulder that inspired the names of two of his signature moves. It also became a symbol of Punk himself, who wore the logo on his ring gear in the independent circuit, as well as a slightly modified Pepsi logo being used as part of his TitanTron entrance video. Punk, a keen Pepsi drinker, chose to receive a Pepsi tattoo to emphasize his straight edge beliefs. The tattoo is also a reference to former Minor Threat guitarist Brian Baker, who had a Coca-Cola tattoo and explained this by saying "I like Coca-Cola". When people inquire about Punk's Pepsi tattoo, he often replies "I like Pepsi" in a similar fashion. The words "Straight Edge" are spelled out on Punk's stomach. This is one of his oldest tattoos; he has referred to it as his identity. A sleeve tattoo on his left arm that reads "luck is for losers" and features numerous good luck symbols, including a rabbit's foot, four-leaf clover and a horseshoe. The tattoo also features four ace playing cards as a tribute to trainer Ace Steel. A tattoo on the back of his left hand reading "No gimmicks needed", a tribute to deceased wrestler Chris Candido. A tattoo across his knuckles with the words "DRUG FREE" ("DRUG" on his right knuckles and "FREE" on his left). A tattoo of his little sister's jersey number (31) behind his left ear surrounded by stars, each of which also representing his siblings as a way to bond away from home. A tattoo on his right shoulder of the Cobra Command logo, G.I. Joe's enemy. Punk is well-known for his love of comic books, considering them along with jazz and professional wrestling as three of the original arts that America has given to the world. A tattoo of a rose on his left wrist.

Punk's character and gimmick have been parodied by the wrestling federation Chikara who used a mascot character CP Munk, the straight edge chipmunk. The character includes references to Punk, such as X-marked wrist tape, a Pepsi logo on the costume's left shoulder, and a high-pitch version of Punk's best-known independent circuit theme song "Miseria Cantare – The Beginning", by the band AFI. On his website, Punk has said about the character CP Munk, and the people behind it: }}

Punk's entrance was emulated by British darts player Paul Nicholson during the 2011 World Matchplay and the 2011 PDC World Darts Championship.

Other media

Punk made an appearance on the February 16, 2004 episode of ''Monster Garage'', "Box Truck Wrestling Car", performing a short match with Samoa Joe. On October 31, 2006, Punk joined The Atlantic Paranormal Society (TAPS) to shoot the Sci Fi Channel special ''Ghost Hunters Live'', which was a six-hour show broadcast live Halloween night from the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado. Initially skeptical about what he might find, Punk claimed to have heard children giggling and footsteps when there were not any children booked into the hotel.

In 2008, Punk appeared as the Sports Grand Marshal of the nationally-televised McDonald's Thanksgiving Parade in downtown Chicago.

Personal life

While working for Ring of Honor, Punk was romantically linked to professional wrestlers Shannon Spruill and Tracy Brookshaw. After joining Ohio Valley Wrestling Punk began dating Maria Kanellis, who was working there as an interviewer, however they broke up sometime after Punk was moved to World Wrestling Entertainment and started working on the ECW brand. Punk was dating Amy Dumas, however Matt Hardy confirmed in March 2010 that Punk and Dumas were no longer dating. Punk confirmed in an November 2011 ''Maxim Magazine'' interview that he was in a relationship with WWE wrestler Beth Phoenix but revealed in December that he was single again.

In wrestling

WWE

*Finishing moves

*Anaconda vise – 2006–present

*''GTS – Go to Sleep'' (Fireman's carry dropped into a knee lift) – 2007–present

*Signature moves

*Arm trap swinging neckbreaker

*Arm wrench followed by stepping a leg over the wrenched arm and performing a mule kick with the leg below the opponent's face

*Bulldog

*Diving crossbody

*Diving elbow drop – adopted from and used in tribute to Randy Savage

*Double underhook backbreaker

*Hammerlock twisted into a short-range lariat

*Koji clutch

*Leg lariat

*Mongolian chop

*Repeated elbow strikes to an opponent's chest

*Rope hung arm trap can opener

*Roundhouse kick

*Sitout suplex slam

*Slingshot somersault senton

*Snap scoop powerslam

*Springboard clothesline

*Step-up enzuigiri

*Step-up high knee to a cornered opponent followed by a bulldog

*Suicide dive

*Super frankensteiner

*Tilt-a-whirl backbreaker

*Nicknames

*"Mr. Money in the Bank"

*"The Second City Saint / Savior"

*"The Straight-Edge Savior / Superstar"

*"The Voice of The Voiceless"

*"The Best in the World"

*Entrance themes

*"This Fire Burns" by Killswitch Engage (August 1, 2006–July 17, 2011)

*"Cult of Personality" by Living Colour (July 25, 2011–present)

Independent circuit

*Finishing moves

*Anaconda vise or an arm triangle choke

*''Pepsi Plunge'' (Diving double underhook facebuster)

*Shining wizard

*Signature moves

*Arm wrench followed by stepping a leg over the wrenched arm and performing a mule kick with the leg below the opponent's face

*Corkscrew dive transitioned into a diving neckbreaker

*''Crooked Moonsault'' (Split-legged moonsault)

*Delayed vertical suplex

*''Devil Lock DDT'' (Hammerlock legsweep DDT)

*Facewash

*Inverted facelock backbreaker

*Inverted frankensteiner

*''Jackie Chan'' (While sitting in a corner, grasps the top rope with one hand on each side of the turnbuckle and when the opponent attempts to pull him off the ropes by his legs, he performs a back tuck, landing on his feet)

*''Pepsi Twist'' (Jumping hammerlock twisted into a short-range lariat)

*''Punk-Handle Piledriver'' (Pumphandle reverse piledriver)

*Rolling fireman's carry slam

*Slingshot somersault senton

*Springboard corkscrew crossbody

*Suicide dive

*''Welcome to Chicago, Motherfucker'' (Double underhook backbreaker)

*With Julio Dinero

*Double superkick

*''Near Death Experience'' (Diving neckbreaker (Punk) / Powerbomb (Dinero) combination)

*Managers

*Milo Beasley

*Tracy Brooks

*Bobby Heenan

*Alexis Laree / Vicki Adams

*Lucy

*Joshua Masters

*James Mitchell

*Dave Prazak

*Entrance themes

**"Shitlist" by L7

*"South of Heaven" by Slayer

*"A Call for Blood" by Hatebreed

*"Miseria Cantare (The Beginning)" by AFI

*"Cult of Personality" by Living Colour

*"Night Train" by The Bouncing Souls

*"¡Olé!" by The Bouncing Souls

Wrestlers trained

Anthony Blanca

Anthony Franco

Bobby Dempsey

Davey Andrews

Derek Dempsey

Evan Starsmore

Grizzly Redwood

Jay Jensen

Matt Turner

Pelle Primeau

Shane Hagadorn

Smash Bradley

Championships and accomplishments

Independent Wrestling Association Mid-South

IWA Mid-South Heavyweight Championship (5 times)

IWA Mid-South Light Heavyweight Championship (2 times)

International Wrestling Cartel

IWC Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

Mid-American Wrestling

MAW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

NWA Cyberspace

NWA Cyberspace Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Julio Dinero

NWA Revolution

NWA Revolution Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

Ohio Valley Wrestling

OVW Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

OVW Southern Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Seth Skyfire

OVW Television Championship (1 time)

Pro Wrestling Illustrated

Feud of the Year (2011)

Match of the Year (2011)

Most Popular Wrestler of the Year (2011)

Wrestler of the Year (2011)

PWI ranked him #3 of the top 500 singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 2010

'''Revolver

Golden Gods Award for "Most Metal Athlete" (2012)

Ring of Honor

ROH Tag Team Championship (2 times) – with Colt Cabana

ROH World Championship (1 time)

St. Paul Championship Wrestling

SDW Northern States Television Championship (2 times)

SPCW Northern States Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)

World Wrestling Entertainment/WWE

ECW Championship (1 time)

World Heavyweight Championship (3 times)

WWE Championship (2 times, current)

World Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Kofi Kingston

WWE Intercontinental Championship (1 time)

Money in the Bank (2008, 2009)

Nineteenth Triple Crown Champion

Slammy Award for "OMG" Moment of the Year (2008)

Slammy Award for Shocker of the Year (2009)

Slammy Award for Despicable Me (2010)

Slammy Award for Superstar of the Year (2011)

Slammy Award for "Pipe Bomb" of the Year (2011)

Slammy Award for T-Shirt of the Year (2011)

Wrestling Observer Newsletter

Best Gimmick (2009, 2011)

Best on Interviews (2011)

Feud of the Year (2009)

Feud of the Year (2011)

Match of the Year (2011)

1 Punk held the title concurrently with John Cena during his first reign. After defeating him Punk became undisputed champion but was not recognized by WWE as having won the title a second time.

Luchas de Apuestas record

CM Punk

style="background:#e3e3e3; width:5%;"	Wager	Winner	Loser	Location	Date	Notes
Hair	Rey Mysterio	|	Detroit, Michigan		Over the Limit (2010)>Over the Limit.

References

External links

Professional wrestling record for CM Punk from The Internet Wrestling Database

WWE Profile

Category:1978 births Category:American professional wrestlers Category:Living people Category:Masked wrestlers Category:People from Chicago, Illinois Category:Pescetarians Category:Professional wrestling announcers Category:Professional wrestlers from Illinois Category:Straight edge individuals

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Name	William Brenneman
Names	Jerry FlynnJerry Blayman
Height
Weight
Birth date	November 21, 1959
Birth place	Tampa, Florida
Resides	British Columbia
Trainer	Boris Malenko
Debut	1989
Website	}}

William Brenneman (born November 21, 1959) is an American professional wrestler, better known by his ring name Jerry Flynn. Known for his martial arts gimmick and "mullet" hairstyle, he worked in Japanese wrestling promotions and for World Championship Wrestling in the late 1990s.

Professional wrestling

Jerry Flynn's professional wrestling career began with training under Boris Malenko. He made his debut in FMW in 1989. During this time, he befriended fellow student Michael Bollea, later known as Horace Hogan. In 1991, Flynn debuted in the Japanese shoot style wrestling promotion Pro Wrestling Fujiwara Gumi and remained there for a few years. This period also saw Flynn face Masakatsu Funaki on the co-promotional SWS/WWF SuperWrestle card on December 12, 1991.

World Championship Wrestling

By the mid '90s, Flynn had worked as a jobber for the WWF, performing in a few house shows before making his way into WCW with help from Brian Blair, a friend of road agent Paul Orndorff, and Mark Starr, who helped gain Flynn a tryout at Universal Studios Florida for a ''WCW WorldWide'' taping. He began performing regularly on WCW's secondary TV program, ''WCW Saturday Night'', in 1997 and by the following year was gaining numerous wins over low-card performers. Later that same year, he won a match elevating him to ''Monday Nitro'', the company's flagship program. He then became a member of The First Family, a heel stable managed by Jimmy Hart. However, an injury Flynn sustained led to the eventual disestablishment of the group.

Flynn also performed outside of WCW during this time. He wrestled on a tour with New Japan Pro Wrestling in 1999 and claimed to have been well received in the promotion. On September 19, 2000 in Tampa, Florida, he also unsuccessfully faced Mike Rapada in a tournament final for the NWA World Heavyweight Championship.

In time, Flynn became a preliminary WCW wrestler in 1998 and 1999. He had a short-lived feud with Ernest "The Cat" Miller where Flynn defeated Miller and Sonny Onoo in a handicap match at the Uncensored pay-per-view. Later that year, he unsuccessfully participated in the Junkyard Invitational at Bash at the Beach. He then began a feud with mixed martial arts fighter Tank Abbott which Flynn later expressed enthusiasm for. During this time, Flynn's persona emphasized his shootfighting skills including a "shootfight rules" match against The Wall on ''Thunder''. His feud with Abbott culminated at Souled Out 2000 where Abbott defeated him via knock-out in a mere 1:39., Flynn made his final televised appearance on April 17, 2000 episode of WCW Monday Nitro in Eric Bishoff and Vince Russo's office getting berated along with Booker T, Hugh Morrus, Chavo Guerrero Jr, Bam Bam Bigelow, and Lash LeRoux, all besides he and Bigelow form the Misfits In Action a few weeks later

Outside of wrestling

Jerry Flynn is a legitimate black belt in taekwondo, and he briefly owned and operated his own school of martial arts.

Flynn also fought mixed martial arts in the WCC (World Combat Championship) losing to Fred Floyd in an alternate bout.

In wrestling

Finishing moves

Savate kick

Signature moves

Ankle lock

Cross armbreaker

Hook kick

Shoot kick

Spin kick

Managers

Jimmy Hart

Nicknames

"Lightning Foot"

Championships and accomplishments

World Wrestling Council

*WWC Universal Heavyweight Championship(1 time)

Other titles

*SWA Heavyweight Champion (1 time)

*IWF Heavyweight Champion (1 time)

Pro Wrestling Illustrated

*PWI ranked him #242 of the 500 best singles wrestlers of the year in the PWI 500 in 1999

See also

The First Family

References

Category:American professional wrestlers Category:American taekwondo practitioners Category:American mixed martial artists Category:People from Florida Category:Living people Category:1959 births Category:The First Family (professional wrestling) members

da:Jerry Flynn