CM Punk made his return to the wrestling ring during Friday night’s Rampage in scenes that likely won’t ever be forgotten. He’d come out to Cult of Personality, and the sold-out crowd would chant his name. Punk was clearly moved by the reaction and took his time to soak it in. Once he made it to the ring, he would ask fans to understand his absence from wrestling but said that he’d never have gotten healthy physically, spiritually, or emotionally if he had stayed in the same place where he got sick in the first place. Punk would then address AEW’s young talent and confirm Darby Allin will be his first opponent, with the match taking place at the All Out.
At the conclusion of his promo, Punk would announce that fans in attendance would grab a free ice cream bar on him. This was in reference to promos he cut in WWE about wanting the company to bring back ice cream bars and include him on them. Some suspected this was a joke, but as you can see in the video below, he wasn’t kidding. United Center staff were waiting at the exits to hand out the bars, and some fans have already taken to eBay to sell their empty wrappers. As of writing, one very optimistic fan is asking for $1000, although sold listings indicate actual sales are between $40 and $80.
The belief is Punk has signed a multi-year contract with AEW, and while he is set to be a full-time television performer, it has been reported that he will wrestle between 10 to 12 times per year. While that may disappoint some, it will still allow him to wrestle up-and-coming talent he has previously stated he’d like to wrestle, such as Ricky Starks and Jungle Boy, while still enabling him to have first-time dream matches with the likes of Kenny Omega and Adam Page.
