{"id":258867,"date":"2026-08-21T01:48:56","date_gmt":"2026-08-21T01:48:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/21\/3-clear-signs-cm-punk-is-turning-heel-on-wwe-smackdown\/"},"modified":"2026-08-21T01:48:56","modified_gmt":"2026-08-21T01:48:56","slug":"3-clear-signs-cm-punk-is-turning-heel-on-wwe-smackdown","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/08\/21\/3-clear-signs-cm-punk-is-turning-heel-on-wwe-smackdown\/","title":{"rendered":"3 Clear signs CM Punk is turning heel on WWE SmackDown"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"article-content\" data-postid=\"5207260\" data-slug-id=\"2825339\">\n<div class=\"vidazoo-player-container\">\n<span class=\"vidazoo-close-btn  hidden \"><br \/>\n<img data-lazy=\"\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/cmc-predictor\/v2\/cross-icon.png?w=40\" width=\"20\" height=\"20\" alt=\"close\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><br \/>\n<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>This week, WWE SmackDown will feature CM Punk vs. Kevin Owens for the Undisputed title. The Prizefighter won a No. 1 contender&#8217;s match at SummerSlam this year after making a grand comeback.<\/p>\n<p>As we approach their massive match in Toronto, clear signs are hinting at the Best in the World&#8217;s villainous turn. Since returning to WWE, Punk has mostly played a babyface character and sometimes a tweener.<\/p>\n<p><template id=\"template__newsletter-inline-banner-form-combo-widget\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"wrapper\">\n<p><img id=\"subscribe-img\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\nThanks for the submission!\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<p>This listicle takes a look at three clear signs that CM Punk is turning into a heel star on the blue brand.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h2>#3. Body shaming Kevin Owens on WWE SmackDown<\/h2>\n<p><template id=\"also-read-articles-template\"><\/p>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<p>In the previous episode of SmackDown, Kevin Owens and CM Punk were engaged in a heated war of words. During this conversation, the Second City Saint didn&#8217;t hesitate to mock the Prizefighter&#8217;s body shape and eventually resorted to body-shaming.<\/p>\n<p>Usually, babyface stars don&#8217;t use such tactics to put down their opponents. However, the Undisputed WWE Champion going below the belt could be a sign that he will turn heel soon on Nick Aldis&#8217; show.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h2>#2. Wants to turn heel<\/h2>\n<div class=\"sportskeeda-embed\" data-src=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/wwe\/twitter-embed\">\n<div class=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/wwe\/twitter-embed\">\n<div class=\"profile-card\">\n<p><span><span>\ud83d\udea8 CM Punk reportedly wants to turn heel, though he believes a full heel turn right now would hurt #WWE business, according to Self Made Pro.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>In an update from Self Made Session, Self Made Pro <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/wwe\/news-cm-punk-reportedly-wants-turn-heel?fbclid=IwY2xjawT0KE1wZG9mAWV4dG4DYWVtAjEwAGJyaWQRMUNpR2VLQkN4Z3BxWUpzWHNzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeIY-5SpLQbaodp-olC9CZXGDwTy782HsXm0H5lYLChbGMeboakcjqvhosQzo_aem_YkteKbsALwZtqinxo79TVw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\">revealed<\/a> that the Best in the World wants to turn heel in the Stamford-based promotion and is ready to become the bad guy again.<\/p>\n<p>CM Punk reportedly wanted to turn his character into a full-fledged villainous star, but this appears to be a bad move, given his popularity as a babyface. Also, he is moving a lot of merchandise. However, if Punk convinces the Triple H-led creative regime, it wouldn&#8217;t be a surprise if he turns heel on WWE SmackDown.<\/p>\n<p>His desire to become a villainous star again is another sign of a potential character change on the blue brand.<\/p>\n<hr\/>\n<h2>#1. Been teasing it lately<\/h2>\n<p>Over the past few months, there have been a few instances where a CM Punk heel turn has been subtly teased. When Sami Zayn won the Undisputed title at Night of Champions 2026, Punk ended his title reign in merely nine days, which appears to be part of a heel arc.<\/p>\n<p>Additionally, his recent tweener character towards Kevin Owens also signals his potential heel turn. This entire development also seems to be a major sign hinting at the Second City Saint&#8217;s character switch on SmackDown.<\/p>\n<p>Overall, it will be interesting to see what happens on SmackDown in Toronto when Punk and Owens lock horns in a title feud. It would be a drastic change in WWE&#8217;s landscape if the Prizefighter dethrones Punk and becomes the new Champion.<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-post-rating-widget\">\n<p><template id=\"post-rating-feedback-modal-template\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-feedback-box\">\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-content\">\n<div class=\"post-rating-feedback-data\">\n<p>Why did you not like this content?<\/p>\n<p><textarea id=\"dislike-feedback-text\" rows=\"4\" placeholder=\"Please type your feedback...\"\/>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n<button class=\"close\">Cancel<\/button><br \/>\n<button class=\"submit\">Submit<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/template><\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-widget-parent hidden\">\n<div class=\"rating-parent-container\">\n<div class=\"rating-content-holder\">\n<p>Was this article helpful?<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-rating-action-container\">\n<div class=\"like-container\">\n<button class=\"post-rating-like-button post-rating-button\" data-action=\"like\" title=\"like article\"><br \/>\n<img class=\"post-like-image post-rating-image\" data-lazy=\"\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/like-articles\/upvote-icon-grey.svg\" height=\"20\" width=\"20\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"like selected\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"dislike-container\">\n<button class=\"post-rating-dislike-button post-rating-button\" data-action=\"dislike\" title=\"dislike article\"><br \/>\n<img class=\"post-dis-like-image post-rating-image\" data-lazy=\"\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/like-articles\/upvote-icon-grey.svg\" height=\"20\" width=\"20\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"avatar selected\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\nThank You for feedback\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"bottom-tagline bottom\" data-tab=\"bottom\">\n<p>Get all the hottest wrestling news FIRST by clicking <a href=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/preferences\/source?q=sportskeeda.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" data-is-sponsored=\"false\" class=\"bottom_tagline_link\" data-tab=\"bottom\">here<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"tag-cloud\">\n<div class=\"tags-text\">\n<div class=\"scrollable-content-holder  article-padding\">\n<p class=\"article-p  \">Quick Links<\/p>\n<p><button id=\"pnAdvancerLeft\" class=\"pn-Advancer pn-Advancer_Left \" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n<img style=\"background: none;\" data-lazy=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/skm\/assets\/article\/article-scroll-left.svg\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button><\/p>\n<nav id=\"pnProductNav\" class=\"pn-ProductNav\">\n<\/nav>\n<p><button id=\"pnAdvancerRight\" class=\"pn-Advancer pn-Advancer_Right \" type=\"button\"><br \/>\n<img style=\"background: none;\" data-lazy=\"https:\/\/staticg.sportskeeda.com\/skm\/assets\/article\/article-scroll-right.svg\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><br \/>\n<\/button>\n<\/div>\n<p>More from Sportskeeda<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>\n<span class=\"publisher-name\">Edited by Joseph Schiefelbein<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sportskeeda.com\/wwe\/3-clear-signs-cm-punk-turning-heel-wwe-smackdown\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This week, WWE SmackDown will feature CM Punk vs. Kevin Owens for the Undisputed title. The Prizefighter won a No. 1 contender&#8217;s match at SummerSlam this year after making a grand comeback. As we approach their massive match in Toronto, clear signs are hinting at the Best in the World&#8217;s villainous turn. Since returning to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":258868,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"tdm_status":"","tdm_grid_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6806],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-258867","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-gossip"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=258867"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/258867\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/258868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=258867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=258867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sports.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=258867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}