It has been a rough couple of weeks for CM Punk. Following his suspension from AEW, he was fired from the said promotion this weekend, putting an end to his AEW journey. Ever since, speculations have been ongoing on where exactly the star will end up next. While some believe that Punk might go on hiatus, similar to when he left WWE in 2014, others believe that he might just rejoin the rival promotion yet again.
But while this remains speculation, Punk has apparently been an ongoing topic of discussion at his former workplace. Could this indicate that he will be coming back to WWE?
Divided on Punk’s return
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According to Pro Wrestling Insider, Punk’s return has been debated amongst his former colleagues at WWE since his firing from AEW. But, the response has been pretty divided on the star. “There were some who were adamantly against the idea and didn’t believe it could happen,” they said. Considering the fact that Punk is considered a troublemaker by some at WWE, this statement does make sense. But it seems that both pros and cons of getting him back are being weighed in.
“But others who looked at it as a ‘chance to make big money.’ We know of one top-tier star who was all for it, but it wouldn’t be their call,” they said. This implies that at least one of the bigger stars at WWE is vouching to get Punk back in action at WWE. Whether this is because of the chance to make money or whether the star still has friends at WWE is unclear.
The conversation has been sidelined for now, however, as WWE is finalizing its merger with UFC under the two’s parent company Endeavor. The company bought out WWE in April this year for a whopping $ 9.3 Billion dollars. The WWE-UFC is expected to be finalized by September. While Punk has had creative differences with the WWE heads, the decision to bring him back would lie with Endeavor. Considering his history with UFC, his return to WWE seems more likely now than ever before.
Punk’s door to WWE
After his departure from WWE, Punk was with UFC from 2014 to 2018, spanning a four-year career. During his short stint in the octagon, he was said to have had good relations with the top executives at UFC and Endeavor.
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If the merger happens, Punk could make use of his connection as leverage to make his way back to WWE. Although he left WWE on bad terms, he was seen backstage at the same time as when the deal was struck.
Punk was reportedly seen backstage during an April episode of Raw, where he had interacted with some of the WWE stars. While Punk was asked to leave the premises by Vince McMahon himself, this could indicate that things were being smoothed over between Punk and WWE. Especially as the former AEW star had allegedly briefly interacted with Triple H. Now, with all these developments, fans are waiting to know what happens next.
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What are your thoughts on Punk rejoining WWE? Do you think it’s likely?
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