When you’re known as the “Best in the World” and then end up out of the wrestling game for years, it’s only natural that fans are happy to see you come back. That’s been the exact situation that CM Punk has found himself in, as he’s been enthusiastically embraced by crowds everywhere since he returned to pro wrestling last year.
But if you think Punk is right at home in his current, extended run as one of AEW’s top babyfaces, think again. He recently told Screen Rant that he would prefer being a heel because it’s easier, but at the same time, he understands the circumstances that he’s in at the moment and wants to make the most of them.
“I think I have a currency with the audience just having been around for so long, coming from the Indies, going to the old WWF, and you know being around the block,” Punk said to Screen Rant. “Leaving, coming back after seven years, there’s a connection that I have.
“I don’t necessarily enjoy being a good guy. I feel like it’s hard work. It’s a lot easier to get people to dislike you. But I feel you’d be it would be wasteful to, as I said, just discard this currency that I have with the audience because it is, I feel, a special connection.”
Punk’s comments echo those of many wrestlers throughout the years, who have noted that it’s easier to be a heel — or at least comes more naturally. However, it’s rare that a returning talent isn’t cheered when they first reappear, as fans are simply overjoyed to see them back in action.
For someone as popular and gone as long as Punk, it was a no-brainer that he’d be a de facto face upon arrival in AEW, and the best time to turn him heel would have been right away. Now that he, the company and the fans are on this ride together, including Punk winning the AEW World Championship, it makes sense to ride it as far as it can go.
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There’s one caveat: When Punk resumes competition after his current injury, the plan is to have him unify his title with a match against whoever the interim champion is at the time. Currently, that’s Jon Moxley, also a big fan favorite. Face vs. face title matches aren’t uncommon, especially in AEW, but there’s also the potential for someone to turn heel during or right after that kind of title bout.
If it ends up being Punk, at least fans can’t say he didn’t warn them.