Pro wrestling is always full of surprises, but this will turn everyone’s head.
According to PW Insider, CM Punk was backstage for a time before Monday’s episode of WWE Raw. The show is at the Allstate Center just outside Chicago, his hometown.
The report doesn’t indicate why Punk visited, but he briefly saw Paul “Triple H” Levesque, which would make it the first time they interacted in person since Punk’s WWE departure.
According to Fightful Select (subscription required but recommended), Punk spoke with The Miz among other WWE talents. WWE’s head of security, Jim Kelly eventually asked him to exit the arena, with PW Insider’s report mentioning it was Vince McMahon’s call for the wrestling star to leave.
Fightful Select also reported that several AEW talents were “in disbelief” that Punk was backstage at Raw. Other WWE talent also felt it was a publicity stunt for his AEW return.
Punk has been heavily linked to an AEW return for its long-awaited Saturday show that’s potentially being built around him. So AEW talents being distraught about this, when there have been numerous issues between Punk and the company’s wrestlers already, lines up.
If it was a publicity stunt, it worked. Punk’s name makes headlines with a wrestling company he’s not returning to, weeks before his likely AEW return. It makes fans and the industry talk, and it could put more eyes on his comeback later this year.
From the walkout to his fight with The Elite in 2022, the social media barbs with AEW talent only weeks ago, and his surprisingly likely AEW return alone, controversy has followed Punk this past year. If a full-time run in AEW is in the cards, chances are more unpredictable events will occur. In that case, it’s anyone’s guess what Punk will do next or where he’ll be.