Rey Mysterio still owns a rather unusual souvenir from his memorable WWE rivalry with CM Punk more than 16 years ago.
During a recent interview with MuscleManMalcolm, the WWE Hall of Famer reflected on working with Punk and their 2010 rivalry, which ultimately resulted in Mysterio shaving Punk’s head following their match at WWE Over the Limit.
Their history together actually stretches back further than WWE. Before Mysterio returned to the company in 2002, he shared the ring with Punk and Eddie Guerrero in a three-way match on the independent scene.
Looking back at how much Punk had developed by the time they eventually worked together in WWE, Mysterio had nothing but praise for his longtime rival.
“It was awesome, man,” Mysterio said of later working with Punk in WWE. “The fact that I was able to work with CM Punk and to see how much he had come so far when we worked at that point.”
Mysterio added that Punk’s ability made him someone he always enjoyed sharing the ring with.
“He’s so damn good, man, and I enjoy stepping in the ring with him every time,” Mysterio said.
The conversation then turned to the memorable conclusion of their Over the Limit match, where Mysterio earned the right to shave Punk’s head.
Mysterio revealed that he didn’t simply discard Punk’s hair afterward. Instead, he kept some of it as a memento and still has it today.
“It was very fun being able to shave his hair,” Mysterio said. “I actually still have part of his hair in a little Ziploc bag with the date on it, which is what we would do back in Mexico.”
Mysterio explained that the practice comes from the tradition surrounding Lucha de Apuestas matches in Mexico, where a wrestler who wins an opponent’s mask or hair may preserve it as a keepsake.
It was a tradition Mysterio said he learned from his late uncle.
“If you won a mask or you won a hair versus another opponent, you would save it,” he explained. “At least, I learned this from my uncle, rest in peace. I would put the hair in a little Ziploc bag, put tape over it, and then I would put the date of the match, who I wrestled, and it’s there.”
When asked where the unusual piece of wrestling history is now, Mysterio revealed that Punk’s hair remains stored inside a photo album alongside his other keepsakes.
Mysterio defeated Punk at WWE Over the Limit on May 23, 2010. Under the match stipulation, the loss resulted in Punk having his head shaved, creating one of the lasting images from their rivalry — and, apparently, a souvenir Mysterio has kept ever since.
