Following the uncertainty over what’s next for the top star, there’s a lot of speculation about CM Punk’s future in the wrestling industry.
As PWMania.com previously reported, AEW is in talks with Punk about buying out his contract, with the only stumbling block being the non-compete clause in the contract.
The notion is that because AEW wants a non-compete clause in the buy-out, WWE may be interested in bringing Punk back because no other promotion could pay what Punk was making in AEW.
Before AEW signed Punk, FOX urged WWE to meet with him because he had worked on WWE Backstage on FS1. Those in WWE believed that if Vince McMahon was still in charge, he would not have brought Punk back, especially after the AEW All Out brawl.
WrestleVotes, which has broken stories on Twitter for years, told Give Me Sport’s Louis Dangoor that shortly after Triple H took over in July, he was told that Triple H didn’t want anything to do with CM Punk, but that appears to have changed as Triple H’s stance on Punk’s return has “softened a little bit.”
“I was told, I mean, pretty straightforward, that Triple H wants nothing to do with CM Punk, and even less to do with Phil Brooks. Well, that’s what I was told and that was July.
I did ask over the last couple of days, and it has softened a little bit from what I understand. I still think there’s animosity, I still think there’s a lot of pieces that need to be picked up between the two of them specifically. But Hunter, learned from Vince [McMahon] and Vince made amends with everybody. So to say that doors closed is ridiculous on anybody’s part, especially in this ‘war’ that’s happening right now… I would say never say never. Absolutely.”
WrestleVotes also stated that Punk’s return to WWE is “not closed.”