Report: WWE Rejected CM Punk Contract but 'No Such Thing as No Forever'

WWE has reportedly declined to sign CM Punk despite overtures made by the former WWE star following his release from AEW.

According to Dave Meltzer of Wrestling Observer Radio (h/t Felix Upton of Ringside News), TKO Group Holdings executive chairman Vince McMahon, WWE president Nick Khan and WWE head of creative Triple H collectively decided that "the negatives outweighed the positives" with regard to Punk.

Meltzer noted that WWE "turned him down," which suggests that Punk was the one who reached out in hopes of striking a deal.

While there is reportedly no agreement in the cards as of now, Meltzer added that things could change, and a source said, "There's no such thing as 'no forever' when it comes to WWE."

Fightful Select (h/t Upton) also reported on the rumors and speculation linking Punk to WWE, noting that WWE talents were "unanimously" told the company is not working toward signing Punk.

Punk left WWE in January 2014 after being under contract with the company for more than eight years and becoming a five-time world champion during his WWE tenure.

For more than seven years, Punk remained outside the world of pro wrestling, but he finally made his return in 2021 with AEW.

Punk's return to wrestling was celebrated, and it saw him become a two-time AEW world champion, but backstage issues ultimately mounted and led to his ouster from the promotion.

The proverbial last straw came at All In, which took place at Wembley Stadium in London in August and was by far AEW's most-attended event ever.

Punk reportedly got into a backstage altercation with "Jungle Boy" Jack Perry after Perry made a taunting remark toward Punk during his match against Hook. Days later, AEW announced that Punk's contract had been terminated.

That decision left Punk without many other viable options if he truly wanted to continue his pro wrestling career at 44 years of age.

WWE is the industry leader by a large margin, followed by AEW. The drop-off from AEW to tertiary promotions such as Impact Wrestling, NWA, MLW and GCW is steep in terms of size and scope, and likely in terms of what they can realistically pay Punk.

New Japan Pro-Wrestling is the third-biggest promotion worldwide, but it would require Punk to primarily wrestle overseas, and it has a working relationship with AEW, which could be a nonstarter.

In recent weeks, WWE has seemingly dropped little hints in reference to Punk, including Shinsuke Nakamura doing Punk's finishing move, the GTS, to Ricochet on Monday's Raw.

That, coupled with the fact that next month's Survivor Series premium live event is in Punk's hometown of Chicago, created a great deal of speculation regarding Punk returning to WWE for the first time in nearly a decade.

While current reports suggest a return at Survivor Series may not be in the works, a return at the Royal Rumble in January or WrestleMania 40 in April may still be a possibility if WWE wants to revisit the idea of signing Punk further down the line.

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