CM Punk's AEW Return Announced For Company's New Program In Mid-June

All Elite Wrestling chief Tony Khan revealed on last night's AEW Dynamite that June 17 will mark the first-ever broadcast of AEW Collision and will have CM Punk's return to TV as the centerpiece of it all.

The controversial pro wrestling figure has not been seen since September of last year when he defeated Jon Moxley (Dean Ambrose in WWE) at the AEW All Out pay-per-view to claim his second AEW World Championship.

Following the event however, the infamous "Brawl Out" altercation happened where Punk, "Hangman" Adam Page, the Young Bucks (Matt and Nick Jackson), Kenny Omega, and AEW producer Ace Steel got into a fight in the locker room while the event's press conference was ongoing.

Punk was subsequently stripped of the title due to his involvement in the headline-making backstage brawl and was suspended because of it.

Whether he was suspended or not, it was revealed a couple of days later that Punk was already set to miss a significant amount of time due to him tearing his tricep muscle during the match with Moxley and would keep him out for at least eight months.

Announcing Punk's return on June 17 is perfectly in line with his recovery timetable, which likely means that Punk is back to being a full-time competitor for AEW.

Upon Khan's disclosing of Punk's return to AEW TV, the fans in the arena erupted in a mix of boos and cheers because of his current stature within the company.

Punk's fiery words targeted at Page and company executive vice presidents Omega and the Young Bucks ignited the dustup and is likely to be the reason why fans had a mixed reaction to his reveal for Collision.

Positioned to be the company's second show behind their flagship Dynamite show after their Friday event (Rampage) was designated as their developmental show, Collision's debut will be taking place at the iconic United Center in Chicago, Illinois.

Fans would remember that it was in that same venue in 2021, where Punk made his bombastic return to the world of pro wrestling after spending the last seven years on the sidelines due to his frustrations with WWE.

While the return of Punk to AEW programming is likely to boost their engagement with fans on social media and in the TV ratings, there is reason to worry that his return might cause more issues in the future.

Just this past March, reports emerged that the AEW locker room was already wanting to move on from Punk, with them claiming that "[t]he majority of wrestlers don't want him back" and about "maybe one or two of the top third of the roster want him back".

AEW is fully aware of the risk they are taking with bringing Punk back into the fold, and it can be expected that fans will be tuning in to see what they plan to do with him this time around.