CM Punk has been surrounded by plenty of talk lately, but one thing is obvious right now. The former WWE Champion has clearly been putting in serious work in the gym.
Ahead of his expected return to WWE programming, Punk appeared in an Instagram promotional video for UFC Rivals, and fans immediately noticed that he looked absolutely jacked. There is no confirmed date for when the promo was filmed, but based on Punk’s current look, it appears to be recent.
UFC Rivals is set to air back-to-back episodes on Sunday, June 21, at 8 p.m. ET. Punk will be featured on the panel alongside Miesha Tate, Michael Bisping, and Ken Shamrock.
As for his WWE return, nothing has been officially announced yet. However, Dave Meltzer noted in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that WWE’s current plan has Punk returning on SmackDown. The idea appears to be tied to roster balance, with Raw already stacked with names like Roman Reigns, Seth Rollins, The Usos, Jacob Fatu, Oba Femi, Logan Paul and Bron Breakker.
SmackDown would give Punk a different top-tier mix to work with, including Cody Rhodes, Gunther, Rhea Ripley, Randy Orton and Drew McIntyre. Rhodes vs. Punk has also been a direction WWE has had in mind, which would make Punk’s move to the blue brand even more interesting.
There has also been talk about the July 6 episode of Raw in Chicago making sense for Punk’s return, since Chicago is his hometown and always feels like the right place for a major CM Punk moment. Even though that date is a Raw episode, the brand itself may not matter if WWE wants to bring Punk back in front of that crowd.
Punk has not been given an official WWE return date yet, but his latest appearance definitely has people paying attention. Whether he shows up on SmackDown, Raw in Chicago, or somewhere else entirely, he looks more than ready for whatever WWE has planned next.
What do you think about CM Punk’s new look ahead of his expected WWE return? Please share your thoughts and feedback in the comments section below.
