There doesn’t appear to be much question that CM Punk wants to return to wrestling. He’s hinted at it repeatedly during the time that he’s been suspended from AEW following the legendarily infamous post-All Out brawl with The Elite, and FTR’s Dax Harwood, one of Punk’s closer friends on the roster, has said repeatedly that he misses wrestling and the fans.
The hope for many was that while there might be understandable long term grudges held over what happened last year, that everyone involved would out them aside for the sake of making money. Any angle that would see Punk and The Elite face off would figure to draw intense interest even from people who don’t regularly follow AEW, and Harwood has even suggested that Punk and FTR vs. The Elite would be perfect for the company’s upcoming arena show at London’s Wembley Stadium.
Still, there’s another possibility that might also work: What if Punk returns to AEW but is kept away from The Elite altogether?
That prospect was raised in the latest Punk update from Fightful Select (subscription required), which suggests that the wrestler himself would be up for it if that’s what it took.
Punk has also expressed his willingness to return to work for All Elite Wrestling and keep completely separate from the Elite along the way. There were some talent that were of the belief that the rumored upcoming Saturday AEW show could be used to help facilitate that with some separation to the AEW roster, but that’s not something higher ups in AEW have confirmed to us.
AEW has a roster big enough to pull this off, and the Saturday show Fightful alludes to has been rumored to be in the works for some time. Assuming it has a higher profile than Rampage (which currently isn’t that high a bar to clear), it could give both Punk and The Elite room to shine apart from each other. The benefits of getting a proven draw and merchandise mover like Punk back into the mix are pretty clear.
The downsides also seem obvious. Keeping the parties from the All Out brawl apart runs the risk of fracturing the AEW locker room and making wrestlers feel like they are picking a side. Is it worth it to take that chance while simultaneously knowing that the biggest money angle that could come from Punk’s return is off the table?
That’s just one of the facets AEW CEO and GM Tony Khan would have to ponder if he were to seriously entertain the idea. At age 44, Punk is running out of time for one last hurrah in the pro wrestling business. Some of that is his own fault, but now that it appears he wants to make it happen, the question of whether it will be beside the people that inspired him to air such public grievances at All Out remains one of the most intriguing in the industry, and will stay that way until it gets resolved.