CM Punk Points Out How Big of a Draw He Was for AEW in 2022

CM Punk's future with AEW remains uncertain heading into 2023, but the former two-time AEW Champion didn't hesitate in pointing out how much of a draw he was for the company in 2022 this week. Punk took to his Instagram on Tuesday and posted multiple images to his story, showing off how well his action figures sold through Ringside Collectibles and how viewership for his videos towered over other AEW highlights on YouTube. 

While Punk has mostly remained quiet about the infamous "Brawl Out," he did recently indicate on Instagram that it would be incredibly financially beneficial for AEW if everyone involved were to bury the hatchet. Dax Harwood openly pushed for that during a recent episode of his FTR podcast

"I can tell you what I hope, because I don't know," Harwood said. "Everyone knows about the legalities of the situation and no one is really expressing what is going to happen, what has happened, and what won't happen. I can tell you, all I can be truthful about, I can only tell you what I know and what I perceive to know, I hope that he comes back. I feel that AEW should have the Young Bucks in their locker room. AEW should have Kenny Omega in the locker room. I know that I feel AEW should have CM Punk in the locker room. With those four entities, it makes our talent roster so much deeper and better. It's four guys who want to be the best. Regardless of what any of us think personally, I know that we all want to be the best and I know we all want the best for professional wrestling. It's given us a life that we could never have otherwise.

"This is my plea to all four guys," he continued. "Please find a way to make it work. If we can make it work, we can set up the future of professional wrestling for a long time and we can change the course of professional wrestling for a very long time. When you think about it, unselfishly, we're doing this for 20-30 years down the road so guys and girls can make a living."