CM Punk has dialed the heat on his feud with Drew McIntyre up to an 11. This past weekend at WWE Clash at the Castle, Punk appeared in the climactic moment of McIntyre’s world title match against WWE World Heavyweight Champion Damian Priest, taunting the Scottish Warrior in a referee shirt before low-blowing him, leaving him prone for The Judgment Day’s big man to collect the 1-2-3. Punk, who has been shelved with a triceps injury since January, followed this surprise cameo up by addressing the media at the WWE Clash at the Castle post-show and declared that he is hoping to relay “good news” about his in-ring status.
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CM Punk’s In-Ring Return Remains At Least One Month Away
Don’t expect the Second City Saint to get physical this week.
As reported by insider account @WrestleVotes, the latest WWE Monday Night Raw roster sheet maintains that CM Punk’s official return date is “set for the end of July.” Punk specifically “won’t be cleared for action” come WWE Money in the Bank but he “should be ready for WWE SummerSlam.
While Punk has looked good since ditching his arm brace at WWE WrestleMania 40, WWE has been patient with getting him back in the swing of things from a physical standpoint. Punk has continued to make sporadic appearances on WWE programming, continually building his feud with Drew McIntyre, but has yet to take bumps.
Even if Punk was close to 100 percent for WWE Money in the Bank, WWE would likely opt to save the first Punk vs. McIntyre match for WWE SummerSlam. Punk and McIntyre have been the hottest feud in the company since Cody Rhodes dethroned Roman Reigns at WWE WrestleMania 40 and it is likely primed for a marquee spot on the biggest party of the summer’s card in August.
Despite being a member of the WWE Monday Night Raw roster, Punk is expected to appear on WWE SmackDown in his hometown of Chicago this Friday to address his in-ring future. It’s unclear as to if this appearance will begin Punk’s return to weekly television or if it is one of his final one-off pop-ins before his official medical clearance.
“I’ve been cleared, only for referee duty,” Punk said at the WWE Clash at the Castle post-show this past weekend. “I had a little bit of a hiccup out there. We’ll go back to the lab and reassess. I can tell you that my arm feels amazing. I got permission to skip Raw in Corpus Christi to go home to Chicago to see my doctors with the idea that I’m going to be cleared.”
WWE Money in the Bank is set for July 6th. WWE SummerSlam goes down on August 3rd.
