Drew McIntyre has been very candid about his feelings towards CM Punk, assuring fans that the onscreen hatred between them is very real. The two rivals last clashed one-on-one during 2024's WWE Bad Blood, where they had a brutal Hell in a Cell match that McIntyre believes rivals even the first ever HIAC between The Undertaker and Shawn Michaels.

On "The Joe Vulpis Podcast," McIntyre expressed that he's proud of many of his matches, but believes that the final match with Punk is a true example of his character work at its best. "That's the one that, if it's a new fan, and there's a build-up video prior to that kind of helps tell the story, that they'll see everything they need to see to be like, 'Wow, that's what professional wrestling can be like?' Because that is professional wrestling at its best, is McIntyre-Punk."

Once again acknowledging his dislike of Punk, McIntyre pointed out that they're both professionals and knew they could work together, despite Punk having "Charles Manson-like qualities." He also believes that the two of them share a similar perspective of the industry, which helped elevate the feud.

"That was our Mona Lisa. Like, that was a perfect wrestling program, no matter how we felt about each other and feel about each other."

The wrestler also argued that the Hell in a Cell stipulation had become overused and lost it's mystique, but the final chapter of his feud with Punk became the last resort bout that the stipulation used to be based around.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit "The Joe Vulpis Podcast," and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.