CM Punk on Roman Reigns Choosing Him as WrestleMania 42 Opponent, Being WWE 2K26 Cover Star & More

World Heavyweight Champion CM Punk recently appeared on the Up & Adams Show, where he opened up about Roman Reigns choosing him as his WrestleMania 42 opponent, the difference between headlining Night One and Night Two at The Show of Shows, and being featured as the cover star of WWE 2K26.

Punk and Roman had a sensational promo segment this past Monday night on RAW. The segment ended with Roman stating that he is choosing Punk as his WrestleMania 42 opponent because he hates the World Heavyweight Champion and has always hated him. The Best in the World described his feud with The Tribal Chief as a “dick-measuring contest.” He said that Roman expressing his hate toward him and ultimately choosing him is exactly what he wanted.

Punk explained, “It’s exactly what I wanted. I feel like the little Samoan, like a fiddle, and got exactly what I wanted out of it. I’m the champ; everybody is chasing me. He made the right decision.” He continued, The lore is, we’re two top guys in the industry, so it’s going to be a dick-measuring contest. I don’t hate him at all. But I get that. I’m the guy that gets under people’s skin. I can draw that out of them. I really make people step up and become the best version of themselves because they wanna shut me up, and I love that.” Below are some additional highlights:

CM Punk on headlining Night One as opposed to Night Two at WrestleMania

“This is often debated. I think WrestleMania is so big and our roster is so deep, it’s hard to spotlight all the talented people who deserve those spots. To me, two nights it’s better than one. I don’t really differentiate between Night One and Night Two. I look at it like a Lollapalooza. They’re multiple nights. You got a headliner every single night. Last year, Night One afforded me the ability to be completely stress-free [on] Night Two, and I got to be a fan, and I got to sit and watch the show. So, I love that. I absolutely loved it.”

On what it means to be on the cover of WWE 2K26

“This is the second time that I have been on a cover of a video game, and it is no less exciting. It’s great. To me, it’s an honor. You know, when I was a little kid, you kind of had a bucket list that you didn’t really know you had because you weren’t certain that these things were achievable. That’s why I always tell kids, to anybody really, like, ‘If your dreams don’t scare you, they are not big enough.’ Now, I’m 47 years old, and I want to be on the cover of a video game again. You know what I mean? I want to main-event WrestleMania again. I want to do all these things because it really is truly an honor. I busted my ass to get here. These are kind of, to me, it’s like a proof of concept that my hard work didn’t go unnoticed, and I’m one of the leaders of the industry, and they put me on covers of video games.”

CM Punk on which match he’d love to recreate in WWE 2K26

“I would do CM Punk vs. AJ Lee, and the loser does the dishes. I don’t know if that’s a stipulation in the game. We might have to wait till next year when you put AJ on the cover. I would do CM Punk against Seth Rollins, and the loser must shave his head because I would love to see what he looks like bald.”

Please credit the Up & Adams Show and give an H/T to 411Mania for the transcription if you take quotes from this copy.