WWE Star CM Punk Explains Tribute In His 'No Gimmicks Needed' Tattoo

WWE's CM Punk has discussed the importance of one of his tattoos and detailed how it pays tribute to the late Chris Candido.

In a recent video on WWE's YouTube channel, Punk walked the audience through a number of his tattoos, one of which is the "No Gimmicks Needed" that is emblazoned on his left hand. 

"The No Gimmicks Needed tattoo — and it's very faded now – there's a red rocket behind the lettering, and that is a symbol of a band called Rocket from the Crypt that I'm a huge fan of," he began. "But No Gimmicks Needed was kinda a moniker and a gimmick, if you will, of a wrestler named Chris Candido, who I became close to prior to his death. I just felt the need to memorialize him 'cause he was somebody who fell into the traps that a lot of wrestlers do with the drugs, and the alcohol, and everything, but he had cleaned up, turned his life around. In a lot of ways, he was on the forefront. He laid the groundwork for a guy like me to be able to, when territories dried up, to be able to still go around and be an accomplished traveled wrestler on the Indies. No Gimmicks Needed for my buddy Chris Candido. And also gimmicks, [is] kind of a slang for pills or drugs." 

Punk added that there are a few different meanings for the aforementioned tattoo, stating that his desire to be drug-free was a choice he made to make it as a wrestler, as he had no backup plan. 

Punk, in the video, also talked about a number of his other tattoos, including a tattoo he got the week of SummerSlam 2013, when he was to face Brock Lesnar.