CM Punk Defeats Satoshi Kojima, Advances In Owen Hart Tournament At Forbidden Door
CM Punk continued his much-anticipated return to All Elite Wrestling Sunday night, defeating Satoshi Kojima in his third match of 2023 at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door. "The Best in the World" got quite the fight out of the NJPW legend in the show's second match, but ultimately advancing to the second round of the Owen Hart Foundation Cup Tournament. Punk finished the match with a Go To Sleep to Kojima, closing the door on any thought of an upset from the Japanese star.
Punk and Kojima's match was announced during Wednesday's "AEW Dynamite" when the brackets for the second annual Owen Hart Foundation Cup Tournament were revealed. Punk will now face the winner of another first round match between Samoa Joe and Roderick Strong, which will take place on "AEW Collision" on Saturday, June 29th. Hypothetically, fans could see another face-off between Joe and Punk, two storied rivals during their days in Ring of Honor. As for the rest of the tournament, this weekend's "Collision" will feature two other matches, with Powerhouse Hobbs taking on Dustin Rhodes and Juice Robinson vs. Ricky Starks.