Booker T comments on CM Punk returning to WWE.
Hell froze over on Saturday at WWE Survivor Series when CM Punk returned to WWE for the first time since 2014. The return happened in Punk's hometown of Chicago. Punk previously returned to wrestling in 2021 for AEW in Chicago and then returned to AEW, in Chicago, after a suspension in 2022.
CM Punk is synonymous with Chicago, and Booker T believes it will be tough for AEW to run Chicago without someone like Punk.
"This is huge. It's huge because it's a huge blow. The Chicago market has been huge for AEW, bringing CM Punk in was a huge plan to really boost that thing to the next level. Bottom fell out, still tried to run Chicago, now it's going to be so hard for that company to step back into Chicago without someone like CM Punk. That goes back to my ol' addage, just keep your damn mouth shut, take care of your business, and then you might not fall into potholes like this one right here. This is just one pothole. Those potholes are going to keep getting bigger and bigger. This goes back to when I was in WCW, we were running for 83 weeks, the bottom fell out, the company got sold. All those guys were looking for a job. Ted Turner, you think he missed any champagne wishes and steak dinner? Ah nah. He said, 'Let me pull the plug on this.' Sooner or later, I feel like Tony Khan will be doing the same thing if he doesn't keep his mouth shut and run his company," said Booker on his Hall of Fame podcast.
AEW ran Chicago on the Wednesday before WWE Survivor Series for its annual pre-Thanksgiving episode of AEW Dynamite in Chicago.
AEW also ran Chicago the day, and the day after, the promotion fired CM Punk with AEW Collision and AEW All Out.
Asked if Punk returning to WWE was a bigger blow to AEW or a bigger win for WWE, Booker replied, "It was a bigger blow to AEW. It was a huge win for WWE as well. They're both equal. It was a huge blow just because of the build up, how much they put into that thing, for it to just fall apart the way it did. It's a huge blow to AEW."
Punk was part of Monday's WWE Raw, cutting his first promo since he left the company following WWE Royal Rumble 2014. Punk said he was "home" in his promo.
Fans can check out the viewership numbers for Monday's WWE Raw by clicking here.
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