The question about CM Punk returning to wrestling has always refused to go away.
Ever since the former WWE champion left the company in 2014, wrestling fans have refused to believe he was really gone.
Once Punk signed with UFC and embarked on a pretty brief and unsuccessful career in the octagon – going 0-2 – fans believed it was time he returned more than ever.
Last year, Punk finally rubbed shoulders with wrestling again by becoming an analyst on WWE Backstage for FOX. Of course, WWE needed to sign off on that deal, so that seemed a promising indication they may be able to work together once more after an acrimonious split.
Now, speaking on Swing & Mrs. podcast, Punk has opened up about returning and who he’d like to face. Thanks to Fightful for the transcription.
“The answer changes. It’s a very fluid answer. Currently, if the business was right and I had somebody that motivated me across the ring from me, I think, might be able to get it done. Nobody has dangled the correct carrot.
“As far as people that I’ve worked with before, if there was a clean slate, if the money was right, I think a guy like Daniel Bryan, I would go, ‘I would listen to your idea.’ If you said John Cena, I’d probably listen to your idea. Rey Mysterio, I would listen to your idea. For people I haven’t ever wrestled before, I think Will Ospreay, I would listen to your idea.
“There’s a lot of moving parts. I’m busy doing other stuff and nobody has found the right combination of ways to approach me. It’s not all up to me, ladies and gentlemen, it’s up to the people who actually run the company.”
The idea of Punk and Ospready is scintillating to say the least, but he makes no mention of working with new WWE talent.
There’s a plethora of new talent Punk could really sink his teeth into, too. Whether that be a programme with Seth Rollins or Roman Reigns, any NXT talent and beyond, the 41-year-old still has a lot of money making matches left in him if he – and importantly the WWE – wants them.