Cora Jade (Elayna Black): CM Punk Helped Me See Past The Emotions Of My Decision To Take A Break From Wrestling

Former WWE NXT Superstar Cora Jade, also known as Elayna Black, discusses her relationship with CM Punk and how she sought his advice when considering a break from wrestling.

Cora Jade grew up a major fan of CM Punk. Serendipitously, she would be a WWE Superstar when he returned to the company in 2023. Punk grew closer to Jade and Roxanne Perez, taking on a mentorship role in their lives and careers. After WWE released Jade, Punk showed his support for her by sharing her post-WWE vignettes on his social media.

Shortly after returning to the independent circuit, the former Cora Jade, who once again started wrestling under the name Elayna Black, announced that she’d be taking a hiatus from professional wrestling until at least early 2026. She cited a desire to rediscover her passion for the industry she had fallen in love with as a child.

On TMZ Sports’ Inside the Ring podcast, Jade discussed her current relationship with CM Punk, mentioning that she turned to him for advice when she was unsure whether to take a break from wrestling.

“He’s another person I go to for anything. He’s one of the people that, honestly, because I told you I was going back and forth for a few weeks — I was just scared. I knew I needed to take a break. I was just scared to do it because I didn’t want to let anybody down. I was scared of the backlash. I was scared of [letting down] promoters who had already booked the show. I just didn’t want to let anybody down, and I was putting everybody else before me. That just tends to be how I am, like I put other people’s feelings ahead of mine. For once, I just had to kind of realize I needed to put my feelings first. But it was so hard. It didn’t matter how many people said that to me and, like, agreed with me and were telling me that, like, all these things, but I, like, broke down one day and we had a conversation, me and him on the phone, because I was like, he ‘Hey, I need your advice,’ because he’s been through it all. He left WWE for 10 years, hated WWE, said crazy things, and nobody ever thought he was coming back.

“Look at him now. He’s found his love for wrestling again. He’s helped me with everything, so I always know that I can go to him. But specifically this thing, I was like, ‘I know he’s going to have good insight for me and give me a good outlook on it,’ and he did,” she continued. “He sat there and listened to me. He’ll always listen to me, which I am very grateful for, because I’m someone who, sometimes, I get very passionate, so sometimes I want to act on emotion. He’s very good at helping me see things from a different side without the emotional aspect of it.”

She kept explaining that CM Punk helped her realize she needs to prioritize herself and doesn’t owe her energy to anything that isn’t benefiting her.

“So many things that he said to me in that conversation really helped me. He told me, like, I don’t owe anybody anything, and I don’t have to stick in something that’s no longer serving me, and that really stuck with me,” Jade admitted. “It’s weird now because we’re friends and, like, we’ll go out to eat and, like, hang out and in groups and talk, and it feels normal now, but then I think I’m like, I was literally standing in line waiting for him for hours when I was 12 years old. It’s really cool to have this person as a friend who I can, laugh and joke with, but also realize that I looked up to this person for so long, for so many reasons, and now I get to ask this person for advice, for the reasons I looked up to them, and they’re giving me advice that really did help me. I don’t want to say, like, ‘having his approval,’ made me finally do it, but just hearing someone who means that much to me, and I respect so much and look up to so much, say, ‘Hey, if it’s not serving you anymore. You don’t owe anybody anything. You are allowed to take care of yourself.’ Hearing that from him, really, was kind of one of the things that made me be like, ‘Okay, you’re right. I’m gonna do it. If you’re saying that to me, if you’re not gonna be mad at me, I’m out.'”

Fans can learn more about Cora Jade’s decision to take a hiatus from wrestling here.

As for CM Punk’s other “wrestling daughter,” Roxanne Perez, recently got to attack CM Punk during a WWE live event, and AJ Lee was a proud mama. Learn more here.

Should you use any portion of the quotes above, transcription credit should go to Fightful with an H/T linking back to this article.