CM Punk is off bookings indefinitely. That doesn’t mean anything other than there are no plans for him right now and he’s being given time off to let his knee heal up and rest his body. He could conceivably be called back at any time. About a month ago, WWE.com added CM Punk to Raw shows starting on Memorial Day and going into June. As of today, Punk has been pulled and is no longer listed. CM Punk was added to a number of listings for upcoming WWE events and then quietly disappeared. There is a very good reason for that, according to a WWE Creative source – Punk was never supposed to be advertised to begin with.
According to the source, Punk’s name was added in error, partially because he was originally slated for those dates before he injured his knees at Wrestlemania 29 against The Undertaker.
As we’ve noted on PWInsider.com, there is no timetable set for Punk’s return to television at all. A different source believed that Punk might not return until late summer, at the earliest.
We are told there has been very little communication between Punk and the company since the angle where he walked out and internally, there has been no discussion about his return storyline. WWE has tried to avoid UFC weekends on PPV for obvious reasons, since their domestic numbers usually take a hit running the day after. However, in June, there is a head-to-head weekend with UFC on 6/15 andWWE Payback from the All-State Arena in Chicago on 6/16 (which is scheduled as Punk’s first major match back, or at least that was the idea last week). This time I don’t think WWE will be hurt one iota, because the Renan Barao vs. Eddie Wineland main event has to be, from a marquee value, the weakest UFC main event of the modern era. CM Punk wrote the following on Twitter:
“I am exactly where I belong. No desire to be anywhere else. #thankyouverymuch”
Punk was referring to the constant barrage of questions as to when he will return to WWE TV. Punk, who has been described as “burnt out” by many in the company, is currently healing up injuries to his knees and is taking his first legitimate break from the WWE touring schedule since 2006. There is no laid out next program for Lesnar. I’ve heard those in the know speculating strongly that they go with a babyface Punk vs. Lesnar much sooner than later with Heyman turning on Punk with the idea of Punk and Heyman doing dueling promos. I’d have Lesnar turn first because I think there is a lot more mileage in a heel Punk. The idea is if you’re doing Punk vs. Lesnar, that it’s much easier to do with Punk as the face. But if Punk is to turn face, I don’t think beating him early is a good idea. Punk as a face is inevitable, and Punk vs. Lesnar is an obvious direction they should go to, but I’m surprised it’s something under discussion for the short run.
Source: PWInsider.com Hit us on Twitter: @TheCMPunkBlog
