It's been five and a half years since CM Punk left the WWE under bitter circumstances, but one major AEW star believes the former World Champion could head back to the company that made him legendary.
During a recent interview with ESPN.com, Punk admitted that he received an AEW offer from Cody Rhodes over a text message. But the latter took to Twitter and said that they haven't given Punk " a contracted offer," and that he "wouldn't be surprised" if Punk wound up back in WWE.
This is certainly an interesting admission of thought from Rhodes, but you can't help but wonder if this is just a ploy. Perhaps AEW is having contract negotiations with Punk, and given the latter's ugly exit from WWE, one would think he'd be more interested in joining the new promotion instead.
Related: CM Punk Reveals He Was Made An Offer By AEW Via Text Message
WWE insider Brad Shepard recently reported that the company "would love to have" CM Punk back, but whether or not the former main event star feels the same way is anybody's guess. Punk has vowed that he wouldn't go back to WWE, but if he has the desire to wrestle again, would he choose Vince McMahon's company over AEW? It's hard to envision so right now, but you never know.
CM Punk left WWE in Jan. 2014 and was officially "fired" a few months later. It was reported that he was unhappy over never receiving the opportunity to headline a WrestleMania. Not only that, but Punk also talked about suffering numerous injuries plus a serious infection that was nearly fatal. Add it all up, and it's just not easy to see Punk returning to WWE - at least in the near future.
What This Means
Punk remains under contract with UFC, but a return to the ring doesn't seem out of the question. He's had lots of time to rest his injuries while remaining in strong shape. There's no doubting that Punk could still be a world-class star if he returned to WWE. It just comes down to him simply wanting to do it again.