After seven years away from the world of professional wrestling, CM Punk might finally be ready to make his return. The former WWE star is widely expected to show up on Friday night’s edition of “AWE: Rampage” in Chicago.

There’s much more than just rumors and speculation indicating that Punk will make his All Elite Wrestling debut this week in his hometown. The wrestling superstar is seemingly dropping hints about a highly anticipated comeback.

Punk was part of the broadcast team Saturday for CFFC 99, a mixed martial arts event. When asked about a particular fighter returning to his wrestling, Punk joked that the fighter was “all elite.” Punk was wearing a lapel pin that appeared to be a Chicago Bulls’ jersey with the Roman numerals XX. The Bulls play their home games at the United Center, where “Rampage” will be filmed on Aug. 20.

Punk made a cryptic post on his Instagram story Monday that simply included the numbers 05, 11 and 21. Many wrestling fans have taken that to mean Punk has signed a contract to wrestle in 2021, just as he inked deals with WWE in 2005 and 2011.

At Money in the Bank 2011, Punk defeated John Cena to win his first-ever WWE Championship. Punk had two WWE title runs, including one that lasted 434 days.

AEW hasn’t done anything to dispel the rumors of Punk’s impending arrival. In light of the speculation, AEW CEO Tony Khan told Sports Illustrated “everyone knows what to expect—and everyone is very excited,” in regard to Friday’s show.

Buzz linking Punk to AEW started on July 21 when Fightful reported that the 42-year-old was in ongoing talks for a return, and that AEW was his most likely landing spot.

Punk abruptly left WWE after the 2014 Royal Rumble. There’s been no indication that two sides have been close to a reunion since Punk’s last wrestling match.

There are no confirmed reports that Punk has signed a contract with AEW. It’s possible that Punk is simply having fun with the rumors on social media. Maybe he’ll make his AEW debut sometime after this week.

But it will be considered a major letdown if Punk doesn’t make a long-awaited return to wrestling Friday night.

CM Punk
CM Punk prepares to fight Mike Jackson in their welterweight bout during the UFC 225: Whittaker v Romero 2 event at the United Center in Chicago, June 9, 2018. Dylan Buell/Getty Images
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