CM Punk Says His Return to the Ring With AEW Was the Number One Moment in His Career
On today's Pardon My Take... CM PUNK! The wrestler returned to the ring about a month ago and joined Mr. Cat and Mr. Commenter on today's show to discuss where that moment ranked in his professional career, where he stands in his relationship with the WWE right now, and much more. After taking time off from professional wrestling, CM Punk didn't even hesitate when asked what kind of importance his return to the ring (in his hometown of Chicago) had on him. Take a look:
Mr. Cat: So, the moment that you do come back, that pop. We all saw it, it was incredible. it had to have been, like, where is that on your list of (sees CM Punk point No. 1)... Number one? Number one.
CM Punk: Easily, far and away. What that represented, what the moment was, far and away, number one moment of my career. Easily, easily. It's like number one, and then there's a gap, and then there's number two, which I don't know what number two is. Maybe winning the title at The Garden?
Mr. Cat: I felt slightly cheated by it. It was a great, great moment. The only reason I felt slightly cheated was I was definitely in the camp of when you left WWE, every, I would say for about three years, any time WWE did a show in Chicago or anywhere around Chicago, I was like, "This is the night. CM Punk's coming back." So, I waited too long for that, and then I wanted it to be a surprise, but it was still an incredible moment.
CM Punk: But it was. We used that. It was the worst kept secret for a reason. You know, that was very, very purposeful, and I thought we did a masterful job. We sold out the United Center on a rumor, never once said my name, never once announced it. In the business world, that's suicide, that's absolutely stupid, you don't do that. You know, you need to revenue, you need to move tickets. It's a business, I thought we kind of middled it and got the best of both worlds where it was still a surprise because all of those shows where, "Oh, he's coming back. Oh, this is going to be it, he's coming back." And it's like the boy who cried wolf. And then this time, you know, there's a payoff.
Mr. Cat: Also as a wrestling fan myself, you have to have some type of gullibility to be a wrestling fan. I always think...
CM Punk: Suspension of disbelief.
Mr. Cat: Yeah, maybe suspension of disbelief. But Undertaker retiring, I'm like, "Na, dude, he's going to be in Wrestlemania in like 20 years. He'll never die."
What a moment for CM Punk. Even if you are not a wrestling fan, the moment he returned to the ring in his hometown can be appreciated by everybody. Roughly 10 million views on YouTube in just more than a month is insane: