Punk and Rhodes in the Royual Rumble (via WWE’s YouTube)

A fan managed to capture a heartbreaking piece of footage featuring CM Punk immediately after his Royal Rumble 2024 loss.

For weeks on end, Punk talked about wanting to win the 2024 Men’s Royal Rumble match and headline WrestleMania for the first time in his career. His dreams were crushed last night when he came incredibly close to winning the free-for-all but fell short in the end. Cody Rhodes eliminated Punk to win his second-straight Royal Rumble match.

As Cody celebrated with the capacity crowd cheering him on, CM Punk silently watched from ringside with a dejected look on his face. The video was shared on social media soon after.

Check it out below:

Will CM Punk find another way to headline ‘Mania?

WWE’s storied history has seen several instances where the one who didn’t win/participate in the Royal Rumble ended up headlining WrestleMania that same year. Case in point: Roman Reigns in 2018, Daniel Bryan in 2014, and John Cena in 2011.

There’s still hope left for CM Punk. World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins has already made it clear that he will compete at WrestleMania 40 this year. The Visionary will need an opponent for The Show of Shows, and there couldn’t be a better rival for him than Punk.

Rollins was angry over Punk’s return to the company at Survivor Series: WarGames 2023. The duo then engaged in a heated promo war on an episode of WWE RAW. Both men have since opened up about their real-life beef, and fans desperately want them to lock horns on The Grandest Stage Of Them All.

Only time will tell if Punk somehow finds another way to insert himself into the main event of WrestleMania after losing the Men’s Royal Rumble match.

Do you believe Punk will still somehow end up in one of the main events of WrestleMania 40? Shoot in the comment section below.