The WWE Universe is still talking about The Rock calling CM Punk after Raw went off the air, but the fans may be surprised to learn why The Rock decided to call Punk despite his relationship with WWE showing no signs of improvement. Many people are still wondering if Rock had a spur of the moment impulse to call his friend in front of a live crowd in Los Angeles, or if it was a deliberate stunt to bring Punk back into the fray.
CM Punk hasn’t been seen on WWE programming since the 2014 Royal Rumble PPV. His relationship with WWE went extremely sour after his podcast interview on “The Art of Wrestling” with Colt Cabana aired. The WWE Universe continues to fully support Punk despite the company considering him to be scorched Earth.
There have been many rumors about a possible return to WWE for CM Punk, but there is still too much bad blood between the two parties for them to do business together again. In fact, The Rock “breaking kayfabe” to call Punk is the first time that the latter has been mentioned in a setting where WWE officials didn’t have to acknowledge him. The WWE Universe remains hopeful that Rock’s “after-Raw” shenanigans could lead to something.
It’s being reported that the reason why The Rock made the decision to call CM Punk after Raw had gone off the air was for no other reason than he thought it would be entertaining for the WWE Universe. The Rock is bulletproof in WWE, so he can do anything he wants if WWE officials agree to give him a microphone. The powers that be are unhappy about Rock’s stunt with CM Punk, but there isn’t anything they can do about it.
The People’s Champion was in attendance for Monday Night Raw because he was filming a huge scene for his upcoming film, “Fighting with My Family,” which is based on the life story of WWE Superstar Paige and her wrestling family. The Rock and crew filmed a reenactment of Paige’s main roster debut in WWE against AJ Lee for the WWE Divas Title back in 2014. The scene is expected to be pivotal to the ending of the film.
Recent WWE signee Thea Trinidad played the role of AJ Lee, who is also CM Punk’s wife in real life. There has also been a lot of speculation about her WWE career ending too soon because of Punk’s beef with WWE officials. All of these factors contributed to The Rock making the call to CM Punk because he knew the WWE fans would appreciate it and it would generate a lot of buzz. But, imagine if Punk had answered the phone.
CM Punk admitted that he didn’t answer the phone because he was walking his dog, but he thanked the Los Angeles crowd of WWE hopefuls for the response and attention. Honestly, it may be better that Punk didn’t answer the phone because that could have been a huge blindside. Punk has shown zero interest in returning to WWE, but possible WWE Hall of Fame induction or an appearance in the future still seems plausible.
In all likelihood, wrestling a match for WWE may be out of the question. Punk has not wrestled a match in three years, and his UFC career may not be over after his first fight with the company. Even if it is, Punk will have the chance to go to Bellator or fighting elsewhere. For better or worse, Punk’s WWE career is over.
The point is that a WWE return remains highly unlikely for Punk. It was extremely interesting for The Rock to bring CM Punk’s name out of the blue, but the stunt was simply to entertain the WWE Universe while his film crew set up. Unfortunately, it won’t lead to anything. However, WWE fans will continue to stay hopeful in the future. You can never say never in the wrestling business.
[Featured Image by WWE]