CM Punk allegedly can’t keep his hands to himself. Following WWE WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas, video surfaced of Punk knocking a phone out the hand of a man that had been harassing Punk’s wife, AJ Lee and Bayley. New audio has surfaced that claims Punk was involved in another fan altercation the same weekend at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Vegas.
According to TMZ Sports, they have audio from a fan who was in the lobby to meet wrestlers. The fan is speaking Spanish in the audio, but spoke with the dispatcher via an interpreter. TMZ says “CM Punk” is clearly named in the audio. In Spanish, the fan claims he was trying to get an autograph from Punk when he was “violently assaulted” by the former World Heavyweight Champion. TMZ does note that the interpreter did not use the term “violently assaulted” when relaying the information. The interpreter did translate the rest of the alleged altercation in which the fan says he was pushed and also shoved in the chest.
The report concludes that the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department responded to the call and spoke to all parties involved. Punk was free to leave after no report was filed. As of this writing, neither Punk or WWE have responded to TMZ’s report.
Reports also came out regarding the lack of security while staying in Vegas. During WrestleMania weekend, TNA Knockout Elayna Black says that she was sexually harassed by a fan during a signing at WrestleCon the same weekend. Punk has been vocal on multiple occasions about fan behavior crossing boundaries.
Opinion: Fan behavior puts talent on edge
There’s a joke in here about it being clobberin’ time or in this case, shovin’ time. Punk has a recent history of putting his hands on others, including former coworkers and allegedly making his former boss feel unsafe. This fact makes it easy for some people to jump to conclusions regarding his alleged behavior towards fans. TMZ Sports painted both recent incidents with fans as scandalous and sensational. After TMZ’s initial report of the first incident, other witnesses came forward to say Punk was protecting his wife along with their good friend from a grown man who had been harassing them. As of now, we only have the fan and interpreter’s version of events since no police report was filed in relation to the second incident. It’s unclear if the second fan incident happened before or after Punk, Lee, and Bayley were being harassed by another fan.
Punk is just one wrestler who has been vocal about aggressive fan behavior. During WrestleMania weekend, Booker T says a fan was filming him in the bathroom. Drew McIntyre tweeted about fans using their kids to guilt them into autographs and pictures. Rhea Ripley and Asuka are among women wrestlers who have publicly spoken about being harassed and stalked by fans. In one of the most extreme cases, a “fan” broke into Daria Rae’s home.
Social media has created parasocial relationships, especially with wrestlers who use it to connect with fans and further storylines. Combined with a lack of security during WrestleMania weekend, it creates the perfect storm for things to escalate between talent and fans. If you’re following someone into the bathroom, you need a reality check. Boundaries and safe guards need to be put into place and talent need better protection, especially at events like meet and greets. No one owes you access to them, especially if they’re not working.
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