CM Punk believes his 2009 rivalry with Jeff Hardy was the moment he truly arrived as a main event player in WWE.
During a recent episode of WWE Break It Down, Punk reflected on the feud that culminated in a “Loser Leaves WWE” cage match. Punk credited Hardy, who was a bigger star at the time, for helping elevate him.
“This was my real first exercise in being able to show people that I can captivate and draw you in emotionally with just my words, and this I think kinda leveled me up a little bit,” Punk said.
Punk also discussed the infamous segment where he dressed as Hardy to mock the fans after Hardy’s departure. He described the moment as “pure evil” and admitted he had to rehearse Hardy’s signature dance moves repeatedly to get it right.
“It was a real son of a bitch moment when people realized that it wasn’t Jeff and it was me,” Punk recalled. “The rib was on me, because I had to rehearse this constantly… I had to all-out dance like Jeff and do this during rehearsal ad nauseum.”
