CM Punk is still haunted by the past.
Punk opened Monday night’s episode of WWE RAW on Netflix, cutting a promo about Houston’s place in pro wrestling history. During his in-ring promo, Punk alluded to the history that the venue, the Toyota Center, had in pro wrestling history.
“Houston is a wrestling town. That’s right, there’s a lot of pro wrestling history here. This building in particular, I’ve had some pretty great moments in,” Punk explained. “But there’s also ghosts in this very building of things that were supposed to happen that haunt me to this day.”
The latter remark initially went unnoticed, but some fans caught on that CM Punk was referencing Chris Benoit and the match they were supposed to have in 2007.
CM Punk was scheduled to face Chris Benoit at WWE Vengeance: Night of Champions
Benoit was originally scheduled to face CM Punk at WWE Vengeance: Night of Champions 2007 and win the vacant ECW World Championship. However, Benoit did not show up at the building and he was replaced by Johnny Nitro in the match. Nitro won the match and the title, but the gruesome reason for Benoit’s absence was revealed days later.
Benoit did not show up in Houston that weekend because he had murdered his wife and son before committing suicide at his home in Atlanta. The incident continues to haunt the pro wrestling world and those who were closest to Benoit. It’s also clear that the incident still affects Punk, who felt strongly enough to allude to it on Monday night.
While the situation surrounding the Vengeance match is a dark topic, CM Punk has enjoyed some career highlights in Houston. Punk won the Money in the Bank ladder match at Houston’s NRG Stadium (fka Reliant Stadium) at WrestleMania 25.
His last match in Houston, at WWE TLC 2013, saw him defeat The Shield in a three-on-one handicap match.
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