The fall-out from this weekend’s events is still very much at the forefront of today’s headlines.
This past Saturday’s Survivor Series saw CM Punk make his shocking return to WWE in his hometown following the termination of his AEW contract back in September. His arrival brought to an end weeks of speculation about his future, although the attention now turns towards how talent within both WWE and AEW have been reacting to the news.
Fightful Select have now provided additional insight into the response from WWE talent, reporting that many within the company expect to speak to higher-ups to gain assurance on Punk’s usage moving forward.
“We’re told that many WWE talent expect to speak with higher ups and gain some assurances about Punk and how he will be in the company moving forward.”
-Fightful Select
As for the AEW side of things, the report notes that the company largely appears to be more concerned with the situation regarding Katsuyori Shibata heading back to Japan.
In terms of the talent themselves, the majority of reaction Fightful came across people asking about how the reaction within WWE has been. Answering those questions, the report notes that despite previously claiming otherwise, no one from WWE is yet to request their release in relation to Punk’s arrival, as was the case when Punk returned to AEW following his suspension.
“The answer to that is much more tepid than originally expected, just as was the case when Punk came back to AEW for Collision. In both WWE and AEW, there had been people that had said they didn’t want to work with him and would consider leaving, but we heard of no release requests from people in AEW and now WWE connected to it.”
-Fightful Select
Prior to his WWE return, many fans believed Punk was about to make a return to AEW as The Devil, who has recently been involved in MJF’s ongoing feuds. This appears to have extended as far as the WWE lockeroom, as Fightful revealed that top WWE talent had asked some of AEW’s talent whether this was the case, although the report then noted that this was never in the plans.
Following the return, fans quickly took to social media to label the moment one of the best kept secrets in wrestling history. However, whilst the number of those clued in on what was about to happen was incredibly slim, Punk allegedly had told or at least hinted to a couple of close friends that it was happening, per the report.
Despite the reported secrecy, WWE’s immediate rollout of content suggested that the company was fully prepared for that day’s events. Fightful mentioned that they’d asked a source at Peacock about the playlist of Punk content that was added following the return and were told that takes relatively no time to put together.
Throughout the night, and at several shows in the weeks leading up to Survivor Series, CM Punk chants grew louder and louder, with fans making their voice heard on their stance as reports claimed that WWE would not stand in the way should the WWE Universe demand Punk’s return.
Regarding how WWE handled these instances, Fightful noted that there were some guidelines given on how to address Punk chants, which was to ignore them as best possible.
Our very own Ibou (AKA BackupHangman) recently reported that he’d heard from those within Punk’s camp that IMPACT/TNA had made a serious offer to secure the Chicago-native’s services.
This has now been corroborated by Fightful Select’s report, adding that some friends of Punk’s believed it to be a real possibility.
“Fightful spoke to several associated with the company this weekend that said he was well liked during his visits there, and we’re told the door remains open. There had been some friends of Punk’s that thought that was a real possibility before talks with Triple H started. Those close to him fully believed he would wrestle again, and when it looked like the door wasn’t open for a return, it seemed like an option if Punk wanted it.”
-Fightful Select
In terms of what’s next, Punk is set to featured on tonight’s episode of RAW from Nashville, Tennessee, with the first hour of the show advertised to be commercial free.
As always, we’ll aim to provide any further updates on CM Punk’s WWE return as soon as we hear more.
