Warner Bros. Discovery’s upfront presentation on Wednesday morning included the confirmation that AEW Collision would launch as a new weekly Saturday night show for All Elite Wrestling on TNT beginning on June 17. The existence of Collision had been a poorly-kept secret as reports and rumors regarding the show had been popping up online for over a month (even nailing the start date). Many of those same reports connected CM Punk to the new show, despite the former AEW World Champion not appearing on AEW TV since the infamous “Brawl Out” incident last September.ย
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But the announcement and press release and official poster all came and went without any mention of Punk. The only reference to him came from a WBD press release from after the event, which initially listed him as the first headlining star of the new series. WBD then told ComicBook, “CM Punk is not affiliated with TNT’s AEW Collision.”
However, according to Fightful Select’s Sean Ross Sapp, there are still plans for Punk to be involved in the show. He noted that WBD chose not to feature any talent at the presentation due to the ongoing writers’ strike and later added that Punk didn’t want to be announced for the Collision show ahead of his return to TV. Sapp previously reported that Punk will wrestle on the Collision premiere episode and has been pushing for his old rival, ROH TV Champion Samoa Joe, to be his first opponent.ย
“We’re told that there were ‘active content plans with Punk as of this week,’ though it was noted that as with anything else, that can change,” Sapp wrote. “Punk’s involvement in AEW has featured regular contact with owner Tony Khan. We’re told that Punk himself didn’t want to be announced for the Collision brand well ahead of time, but don’t know if that played any role in the altered press release.”
AEW Dynamite Card (May 17, 2023)
- Chris Jericho vs. Roderick Strong (Falls Count Anywhere)
- Jay White vs. Ricky Starks
- The Outcasts (Saraya, Toni Storm & Ruby Soho) vs. The Originals (Dr. Britt Baker, Jamie Hayter, Hikaru Shida)
- Rush vs. “Jungle Boy” Jack Perry
- Sammy Guevara vs. TBA
- Don Callis Promo