Jim Ross discussed CM Punk on the latest episode of Grilling JR, addressing his sudden departure from AEW and speculating on what the former world champion might do next. Punk’s contract was terminated following last month’s All In pay-per-view, where he (allegedly) got into a physical altercation with Jack Perry just before his match with Samoa Joe. AEW President Tony Khan announced Punk’s firing the following week and reports of whether or not the door is even open for Punk to go back to WWE have varied.
Ross said he hopes Punk continues to find work in the industry, but admitted he’s not sure where that would be (h/t Fightful) — “I hope so, and I think it’ll probably happen. I just don’t have any leads or any dirt. He’s still young enough and hungry enough I think to go out and grab those big paydays. I just don’t know where or when. Obviously, one would assume, that’s all I’m doing, one would assume that CM Punk’s next destination could be WWE. But there’s no guarantee of that, either. I don’t know how they left it.
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“Then when you go through a big turnover like WWE did this week with the Endeavor thing being finalized, you never know. I’m gonna miss him because I enjoy being around him, and we have such a small crew that comes on Saturday night. It’s a pretty unique environment, Collision nights. A whole lot less people are there. He’s too good not to use his skills. But I don’t know. He’s a different cat, as everybody knows. That’s not a revelation, either,” he added.
Nick Khan on CM Punk’s Possible Return
WWE President Nick Khan was asked about the possibility of Punk returning to the company in an interview with ESPN’s Marc Raimondi this week. Khan spoke highly of Punk’s time in both WWE and UFC, but left it at that.
“Listen, we only have respect for Phil,” Khan said. “We appreciate his run here. We appreciate what he did and tried to do with the UFC. Not many people can actually get in there and do what he did. So, when we have respect for Phil, we wish him nothing but the best.”
AEW Grand Slam 2023 Card (Sept. 20)
- AEW World Championship: MJF vs. Samoa Joe
- AEW Women’s World Championship: Saraya vs. Toni Storm
- ROH World Championship & NJPW Strong Openweight Championship: Claudio Castagnoli vs. Eddie Kingston
- AEW International Championship: Jon Moxley vs. Rey Fenix
- Chris Jericho vs. Sammy Guevara
- Darby Allin & Sting vs. Christian Cage & Luchasarus
