Booker T Reveals How CM Punk Could Return To AEW

"Anything's possible man, especially in this business," Booker T said on the most recent episode of "The Hall of Fame Podcast." 

The topic was CM Punk possibly returning to All Elite Wrestling after his seemingly-ignoble exit from the company after All Out in September. Booker T doesn't see Punk's return as impossible but thinks it would take some heavy lifting. "If they do get past [Punk's infamous tirade and the locker room brawl that followed], it's gonna be from the damage control Punk has to do. Like I said before, I don't want to just keep going in circles. I feel like CM Punk had an opportunity because he was in a leadership position with a bunch of young guys that were impressionable that looked up to him and looked to him for guidance, as a guy who -like I said- could 'take us to the promised land,' and sometimes you've heard that saying, sometimes you may not want to meet your heroes because they turned out to be something that you thought was totally different."

Booker also thinks that Punk is going to need to listen to younger talent more. "We've been saying 'respect your elders' for years and my saying is 'respect your young people' because they're the ones that's going to be running stuff in the next twenty years. When The Young Bucks were in Impact Wrestling I said 'who are these guys? What they heck are they doing?' Making muscles but they didn't have any muscles but they'd still be flexing and whatnot, if you believe it, they'll believe it. I look at The Young Bucks now and they're the hottest guys out there. You gotta understand this generation if you want to be a part of it. It's different. They ain't following the rules."

Booker's co-host Brad Gilmore sounded unsure about a return but Booker refused to rule it out. "It could happen. If money's right, if we think we can pull a rating and pop the crowd, it could work."

The former WWE Intercontinental Champion reiterates that Punk "dropped a ball" with his AEW debut in 2021, which while heartfelt, and emotional, was centered on Punk's past grievances, rather than his future and AEW's potential. "I thought it could've been such a party going on there, instead of a 'let's go back in time' type deal."

Booker disagrees with former WCW President Eric Bischoff, who says that Punk shouldn't come back and called the entire situation a "trainwreck," and credits All Elite Wrestling President Tony Khan for being "different than any other manager," and thinks that could be the lynchpin to bringing back a star asset like Punk, comparing Punk to controversial NFL wide receiver Terrell "TO" Owens. "I could see [Punk] coming back because Tony Khan is different than most. He's trying to create something, build something, and the TOs of the world may be useless to some people but some people say 'that's a hall of fame receiver. I'm gonna get him on my team. I'm gonna get him any way I can.' That's the way life is, and business."

While there are business issues that could prevent Punk from returning, the former AEW Champion isn't going anywhere as long as he's recovering from a torn tricep.