A former rival of CM Punk was not a fan of the return promo.
Punk stood inside a WWE ring and had a live microphone in his hand on November 27th, a sentence that fans are only just starting to come to terms with given all that has happened in the past 9 years. With many anticipating possible shots at the circumstances in which he left or even jabs thrown in AEW’s direction, the promo itself was rather tame. Punk stated he was home and was happy that the fans never forgot him. Additionally, those who want CM Punk to take shots at AEW may be disappointed as according to a new report this is not going to happen.
While some fans are patient and believe that this will be a slow burn process and the best is yet to come, ex-WWE star Ryback has given his point of view on the matter. Taking to social media to give his take on the matter, Ryback believed that Punk’s promo did not get the desired reaction and made reference to Punk’s UFC career, something Punk himself has stated is the most unimaginative joke made at his expense:
“Yo, I’m the ‘Big Guy’ Ryback and I’m here to tell you that CM Punk promo on Monday Night Raw ABSOLUTELY sucked. First of all, the pops aren’t quite nearly the same when you’re not in your hometown of Chicago, ain’t that right fragile Phil? The man-child, best know for his ‘Pipebomb’ promo, which by the way was all, all scripted for all you little neckbeard Nancy, negative marks out there, just completely bombed.
Anyone who calls that place home [WWE] is just mentally fried. It’s Shawshank and there’s no doubt, that promo was written 100% by the warden. But fragile Phil is desperate and desperate boys do desperate things. I mean in fact did he just think he was gonna just sneak this one by us. Bro…do you think we were just gonna forget about this [CM Punk’s UFC career] ‘most feared man’. Huh? ‘most feared man’ if you got into an altercation with a 12-year-old I’m putting everything you got on the 12-year-old.
The former WWE star would continue by referencing Punk’s financial situation and claimed that the former AEW World Champion is “broke” by accepting a multi-million dollar contract that is likely going to lead to a main event WrestleMania match:
At least he was clear on one thing though and that’s he’s broke. He doesn’t have the money, he needs the money and he tucked his tail between his legs and he went back to the one place that fired him [laughing] on his wedding day. Oh fragile Phil, welcome back to ‘The Game’ and you are about to get played.”
It appears that if there was a world where Ryback was offered this same contract of multi-millions of dollars then he would turn it down.
For what it’s worth Ryback claimed that he would retire if CM Punk returned to WWE, even though no promotion has booked him for a match since 2018. Despite the fact that Punk did actually return, Ryback quickly dug himself a hole and backtracked on his original statement by adding the term that it had to be an AEW return.
Why Do CM Punk & Ryback Not Get Along?
Following Punk’s exit from WWE in 2014, the former World Champion was interviewed at length on Colt Cabana’s podcast to allow Punk to air his grievances. Punk called out Ryback for being unsafe, including a spot where The Big Guy was supposed to throw Punk through a table but missed and threw Punk onto concrete. Ryback has since taken issue with this and frequently takes shots at Punk online.
If you use any quotes from this article please credit Ryback and leave a h/t to Inside The Ropes.