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WWE superstar CM Punk will wrestle alongside his wife, AJ Lee, at Wrestlepalooza in Indianapolis.
The sight of CM Punk and AJ Lee wrestling together on a WWE premium live event as they will at Wrestlepalooza was downright unfathomable not long ago.
The wrestling power couple — real names: Phil Brooks and April Mendez — is not just an on-screen duo. They are together in real life, and yes, they are married. The two have been married for more than 10 years after tying the knot on June 13, 2014.
CM Punk, AJ Lee Love Story Began on WWE TV
The two started working together when Lee joined WWE in 2011. Not long after that, they were actually involved in an on-screen love triangle featuring Daniel Bryan.
One memorable interaction came midway through 2012 when the two as part of an on-screen storyline shared a passionate kiss together. In her book, Lee recounted the moment in her book, saying it took her by total surprise.
“‘We’re kissing! We’re not supposed to be kissing’ my brain screamed at my body” she wrote. … It was the best kiss of my entire life. What was supposed to be an unreciprocated peck was now bordering on smut, a hardcore, makeout session, going 20 seconds overtime — live on air. We attempted to stop, and for a moment you can see us begin to pull apart, but hover just a second too long before Phil adds one last tug of my lip. Years later, I let him know that was my favorite part.”
It should come as no surprise that the two started (officially) dating in 2013.
Messy Divorce on Wedding Day
After a brief stint of dating, the two were married in 2014. The couple’s wedding day coincided with some of the darker times of Punk’s career. He was on the way out with WWE, and as he recalled in an infamous interview with former friend and pro wrestler Colt Cabana, the company actually notified Punk of his release on his wedding day.
“The day of my wedding I got a FedEx in the mail. It was my termination papers. I was fired,” Punk said on the podcast, as transcribed by Sporting News. “I was fired, on my wedding day. Very calculated, very deliberate. As much as I chuckled at it and didn’t let it affect my day, I was like once again, you pushed too (expletive) far. You pushed the wrong guy.”
It was the culmination of a very messy and public breakup between the two sides. Former WWE chairman Vince McMahon in an appearance on Steve Austin’s WWE Network interview show apologized to Punk.
“I would like to apologize,” McMahon said. “Sometimes in a big corporation, the legal people don’t necessarily know what the talent relations are doing and (vice versa), and Punk got some severance papers moreover on the day he got married. That was coincidence, so I want to personally apologize for that.”
McMahon also added that he hoped there could be a reconciliation at some point and Punk could return to WWE.
With WWE behind them, Punk and Lee lay low for a while, living their lives in Los Angeles and Chicago with their dog Larry. With Punk gone, Lee remained in the company, and in 2015, she publicly criticized WWE for how it paid its women. That preceded the end of her run with the company, and she eventually retired in 2015, citing a neck injury.
It All Came Full Circle
Punk appeared done with his wrestling career, too. However, he eventually laced up the boots again, this time with AEW. He had a successful albeit controversial run with the promotion that ended in 2023 when he was fired following a backstage fight. Two months later, with Paul “Triple H” Levesque now effectively running creative, Punk made a surprise return to WWE at Survivor Series.
Lee, meanwhile, remained quiet and out of the spotlight behind the scenes. That changed in September of 2025, nearly two years after Punk’s return, when she returned on a Sept. 12 episode of “Smackdown” to shoot an angle alongside her husband with Seth Rollins and Becky Lynch, who are also married in real life.
Lee, presumably with a clean bill of health after the neck injury, reportedly signed a multi-year contract with WWE.
Mike Cole Mike Cole covers golf as well as the Baltimore Ravens and Tennessee Titans for Heavy.com. He previously worked at NESN where he covered Boston sports (and much more) for 15 years. More about Mike Cole
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