Phillip Jack Brooks (born October 26, 1978), better known by the ring name CM Punk, is an American professional wrestler, sports commentator, actor, and retired mixed martial artist currently signed to All Elite Wrestling (AEW). Best known for his time in WWE, Brooks' 434-day reign as WWE Champion stands as the seventh longest in the championship's history.
Brooks began his professional wrestling career in 1999 on the independent circuit, mainly with Ring of Honor (ROH), winning the ROH World Championship once. He signed with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) in 2005 and won the WWE Championship twice, the World Heavyweight Championship three times, and the Intercontinental Championship and the ECW World Heavyweight Championship once each. Brooks also won the World Tag Team Championship, becoming WWE's 19th Triple Crown Champion; the fastest wrestler to do so, in 203 days. He is also the only back-to-back Money in the Bank winner, has headlined several WWE pay-per-view events, won Superstar of the Year at the 2011 Slammy Awards, and was voted Wrestler of the Year in 2011 and 2012 by readers of Pro Wrestling Illustrated. After becoming disillusioned with WWE, Brooks acrimoniously departed the company and retired from professional wrestling in 2014. After much speculation, he joined AEW in 2021 and has since become a two-time AEW World Champion.
Brooks has used the CM Punk moniker for his entire professional wrestling career, and his character has been consistently portrayed as outspoken, confrontational, sharp-tongued, anti-establishment, straight edge, and iconoclastic, most of which are inspired by his real-life views and personality. Depending on his alignment as a hero or villain, Brooks has emphasized different aspects of the straight edge lifestyle to garner the desired audience reaction.
After his initial retirement from professional wrestling, Brooks pursued a career as a mixed martial artist and signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in 2014.