CM Punk’s turbulent history with WWE has been well documented as he previously parted ways with the company in 2014. In the years that followed his departure there was constant speculation regarding a potential WWE return for CM Punk, and it sounds like a return was discussed at one point in time.
During a recent conversation with Robbie Fox on My Mom’s Basement, CM Punk revealed that he actually had a top secret meeting with Vince McMahon and Triple H in 2018 or 2019 which resulted in a handshake agreement. However, nothing came of the meeting as Vince McMahon ghosted CM Punk according to the Second City Saint.
“I think the Twitter and the internet perception is I tried to go back to WWE and they didn’t want me so I went and did the FOX show. That’s not what happened at all. I had a hilarious, clandestine meeting in the Borgata in Atlantic City with Vince (McMahon) and Triple H. I don’t even know now. What is it? It’s 2025. This has to be 2018 or ‘19, and it’s just because Vince just started (calling). I had agents, they were telling me, ‘Hey, they wanna talk to you’ and I was like, ‘Whatever, I’m not interested,’ and then Vince just started calling me. He was like, ‘Hey! I’m eliminating the middleman,’ and I was just like, ‘This is insane,’ and it just so happened that, ‘Oh, well, I’m gonna be here.’ ‘Alright, we can get there.’ You know, ‘Okay, alright’ and we had a meeting and we had a handshake agreement and then he ghosted me.”
“So, that’s why it didn’t happen. Unbelievable. I’m gonna write a book someday… It’s a great story. It’s a fantastic story. Yeah, that would have been probably the first time that me and Triple H probably started chipping it away at any problems or drama that we had in the past. That was the first instance… Yeah (I was open to a return at the time). I was very much just like, yeah, okay. Pay me, whatever. I took some stuff personally. Like, years have gone by. Alright, I’m over it, recognized that it’s a business. You don’t want me to take it personally? Just pay me.”
Even though his agreement with Vince McMahon didn’t come to fruition, CM Punk did make his triumphant return to WWE in 2023. He’s been consistently featured as one of the top stars in the company since then, and he’s currently set to challenge Gunther for the WWE World Heavyweight Championship at SummerSlam.
H/T Fightful