During the Super Bowl LX week, CM Punk was asked about one of WWE’s wildest celebrity moments- Rob Gronkowski jumping into the ring at WrestleMania 33.
Back in 2017, Gronkowski was a tight end for the New England Patriots. During the Andre the Giant Memorial Battle Royal, he was sitting in the front row when Jinder Mahal started trash-talking him and threw a drink at him. That triggered Gronk and he jumped the barricade to defend his real-life friend, Mojo Rawley.
But things almost went off track. A security guard, who didn’t know the moment was planned, tried to stop him from getting into the ring. For about 30 seconds, it was really confusing. Once she was told through her earpiece that it was part of the show, Gronk was allowed to continue.
When he got in the ring, he got into a three-point football stance and hit Mahal with a big shoulder block, then stomped him. The distraction helped Mojo eliminate Mahal and Killian Dain to win the trophy.
Gronk Did a Run-in at WM33, But He Competed and Won a Title at WrestleMania 36
During his appearance on the Up & Adams show, CM Punk said his favorite part of the whole thing was how real it felt. He specifically commended the security guard for actually doing her job. He also loved that Gronk stayed true to himself.
The WWE World Heavyweight Champion also appreciated that Gronk didn’t try to act like a trained wrestler. “I love this. Yeah, absolutely well, because you’re a football guy doing football things in a wrestling ring,” he said.
“I think a lot of people come into our business and they’re like, they need to acclimate to what we do, like, ‘Oh, I need to throw chops and I need to suplex somebody and do wrestling moves.’ No, you did what you do on the field. You brought it into the ring. I love that stuff,” Punk added.
When asked jokingly how he would handle a fight with Gronk, the WWE star laughed and said he wouldn’t try to trade punches. “I’d probably just lay down, you know, like pull guard, try to invite him into the spider web. Just try to choke him. I’m not gonna stand toe-to-toe,” he said.
How does CM Punk think Gronk did during his surprise Wrestlemania 33 appearance? ?@CMPunk | @RobGronkowski | @WWE | @heykayadams pic.twitter.com/5fR41o5ZB6
— Up & Adams (@UpAndAdamsShow) February 13, 2026
Gronk later returned to WWE at WrestleMania 36, where he served as host during the pandemic-era show at the Performance Center. He even won the WWE 24/7 Championship.
In Night 1, he tried to pin R-Truth for the title but failed as Mojo Rawley interfered and stole the pin. But in Night 2, while Rawley was being chased by a group of wrestlers near the broadcast area, Gronkowski jumped off a balcony and landed on the pile. After that, he pinned Rawley and won the championship.
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