CM Punk, Randy Orton, and R-Truth have returned to WWE! Survivor Series: War Games has brought back three legends! What’s next?!
The Cult of Personality, The Voice of the Voiceless, and the former WWE Champion CM Punk has returned to WWE, and he’s brought back a couple of legends with him. For the 37th time, WWE held their annual Survivor Series Pay-Per-View/Premium Live Event. This year, rumors about CM Punk’s return to WWE’s squared circle have permeated the entirety of Twitter, often trending alongside the long-awaited return of The Viper, Randy Orton.
WWE executive Triple H delivered on that speculation with a blockbuster return by Punk to an unbelievable hometown ovation by the Chicago area crowd at the Allstate Arena. Though, with CM Punk’s tumultuous history within WWE and wrestling as a whole, what does his return spell for the future of WWE?
WarGames
Before we dive into the triple returns of the night, let me start off with a recap of Survivor Series: War Games – 2023 to give context to this momentous occasion. The show had several high-profile matches scheduled to ensure the Chicago crowd would be thoroughly entertained.
The show kicked off with the Women’s WarGames match. WarGames, for those who are unaware, is a variation on a Cage Match crafted by the late American Dream, Dusty Rhodes. The match involves a five versus five Cage Match in two connected rings. Every three minutes, a new WWE Superstar is released from a cage near the entrance to enter the caged ring. The match, however, doesn’t start until all ten wrestlers are in the ring, letting each Superstar wrestle each other until the match officially starts with no rules other than one: once you enter the cage, you are not allowed to leave it.
The Women’s WarGames match pitted the Heel Faction Damage CTRL led by Bailey against a team of Face Women’s Superstars including Charlotte Flair, Becky Lynch, Bianca Belair, and Shotzi. The match ended with the Face Women’s Superstars winning after a grueling match.
Following this was a series of singles matches. The first involved the reigning Intercontinental Champion Gunther beating The Miz in a championship match. Following this, Santos Escobar, who recently turned heel on WWE Hall of Famer Rey Mysterio, fighting off against Dragon Lee, with the Heel winning. Finally, we had a Women’s Championship Match between Zoey Stark and the reigning champion Rhea Ripley, who came out on top.
Finally, the main event. Throughout the week and into tonight, fans were adamantly fighting all over Twitter about the return of Randy Orton or CM Punk to fill in the empty spot on Team Cody. Team Cody was Cody Rhodes leading Sami Zayn, Seth Rollins, and Jey Uso against the Judgment Day members Damian Priest, Finn Balor, Dominik Mysterio (go ahead and boo), J.D. McDonough, and the honorary member in Drew McIntyre.
Throughout the match, many fans kept chanting for CM Punk, hoping he might fill that last empty spot. However, when the final buzzer sounded, Rhea Ripley charged to the ring with Damian Priest’s Money in the Bank briefcase to restart the match as a Championship Match with Priest cashing in his contract to win the title against WWE World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins. However, before Rhea could cash it in, Randy Orton returned to one of the loudest pops I’ve ever heard.
Randy worked with Team Cody to deliver RKO after RKO, pounded Dominik into the canvas, and helped the team win the WarGames match. However, during the celebration to end the night…CM Punk returned to the sounds of Living Colour’s “Cult of Personality.”
CM Punk Is Back
 CM Punk’s return to WWE marks another turning point in Phil Brooks’ controversial wrestling career. Following the tumultuous final months in WWE which had him drop his WWE Championship to The Rock to build towards a Rock vs. Cena WrestleMania Main Event, was unceremoniously released from his contract on his wedding day. ‘s later explanation of WWE’s internal turmoil with creative planning and his physical health lead him to renounce wrestling altogether.
Following a few matches in UFC, faded from the limelight as WWE essentially erased his existence from their shows and website, despite the fans continuing to chant his name. Then, in 2021, returned to his Chicago hometown and signed with All Elite Wrestling, becoming AEW’s top star in mere minutes upon his return.
Punk’s AEW Career saw him wrestle Darby Allin, current AEW World Champion MJF, and former two-time AEW World Champion Jon Moxley (formerly known as Dean Ambrose). However, during his time in AEW, a few controversial encounters with the co-presidents of the company the Elite (Kenny Omega, Hangman Adam Page, and the Young Bucks Matt and Nick Jackson) as well as an encounter with Jungle Boy Jack Perry at this year’s All In PPV in London, was released from his AEW contract.
RELATED: AEW Has Huge Plans For A 3rd Show And CM Punk
For the last few months, has been largely out of the public eye, having made few comments regarding his unceremonious exit from AEW, and leaving fans in suspense for his next appearance. Then, when WWE announced that the Survivor Series was going to be held in Chicago’s Allstate Arena, the fans took to the internet by storm to speculate about CM Punk’s return.
It’s Time to Go 2 Sleep in WWE
 CM Punk’s return to WWE has long been awaited, and everyone thought the door had been closed on his return to the company with the sour fallout from his 2013 release. Fans around the world are eager to see who he challenges next, and there are a few options on the table.
First and foremost, any fan of WWE and wrestling knows that CM Punk is World Championship material. With Seth Rollins already likely in a program with Damian Priest, the series writes itself. If CM Punk challenges Rollins for the title at Royal Rumble, wins it, and Priest cashes in the Money In The Bank briefcase to win the title from a battered and bruised Punk, it could set up another big feud as well. There’s a reason his return came during the Monday Night Raw portion of Survivor Series.
Now, there are other wrestlers who CM Punk would likely put on some amazing matches. CM Punk vs. LA Knight would be an absolutely stunning match, especially with them going at it on the mic. CM Punk vs. Austin Theory would be a fun match as well. Or even against Shinsuke Nakamura.
RELATED: AEW Terminates CM Punk’s Employment in Shocking Announcement
Regardless of who CM Punk faces between now and next year’s WrestleMania, the goal of a main event match at WrestleMania 40 is clearly going to be epic beyond proportion. Want to read more on WWE and Wrestling News? Or more on Film, TV, and other entertainment media news? Follow us on Twitter @The_Illuminerdi to get updates on all your nerd news!
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