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Just hours before the March 11, 2024 episode of Monday Night RAW, WWE announced the return of CM Punk to the red brand on March 25th. The Voice Of The Voiceless' impending return barely two weeks before WrestleMania XL set tongues wagging and had many wondering what to expect.
The Second City Saint is still not cleared to compete after tearing his triceps at the 2024 Royal Rumble match, so his role likely will not be too physical. However, he has no shortage of foes on the red brand's roster, and fireworks are bound to fly. So, what will happen when the six-time world champion returns to the Monday night show?
Here are three possible scenarios that could occur when CM Punk does return on the upcoming March 25th episode of WWE RAW
#3. CM Punk is announced as the host of WrestleMania XL on WWE RAW
CM Punk is a man of many talents. Apart from being a great in-ring talent, he is also a master of the microphone. In fact, he's arguably better at the latter than the former at this stage in his career. Thus, despite being sidelined by a tricep injury, The Second City Saint could still play a starring role at WrestleMania XL as its host.
This would see him follow in the footsteps of great mic workers like The Rock and The Miz, and help him set up future feuds by interacting with superstars all over the roster and across brands. All this could be set up when he returns to WWE RAW on March 25th.
#2: CM Punk prepares Cody Rhodes to face The Bloodline at WWE WrestleMania XL
Over a decade ago, CM Punk saw his WrestleMania main event spotlight 'stolen' by a returning Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson. This became a defining moment in his career, driving his character for over a decade until he got another chance to headline the Show Of Shows.
That chance was taken from him by injury, but not before he faced Cody Rhodes, who also faced the prospect of being displaced by The Great One. With The American Nightmare preparing to face arguably the biggest hurdle of his career, Punk could return to give him a pep talk and get him in the right mindset to face The Tribal Chief, Roman Reigns, and The Rock.
This would be a nice callback to memorable segments like Edge preparing John Cena to face Brock Lesnar back in 2012 or Punk himself receiving a rousing pep talk from Ace Steel in AEW last year.
#1. CM Punk announces himself as the guest referee for the World Heavyweight Title match at WrestleMania XL
CM Punk, at the time he was sidelined with injury, had animosity with multiple top stars, notably Seth Rollins and Drew McIntyre. The Voice Of The Voiceless vowed to win the Royal Rumble and headline WrestleMania XL by challenging Rollins for the World Heavyweight Championship. However, this dream was shattered by McIntyre, who wrote Punk off with a vicious attack on the WWE RAW post-Rumble show.
The World Heavyweight Championship match is in dire need of star power in light of The Visionary's involvement in Cody Rhodes' feud with The Bloodline. Adding The Second City Saint to the match as a special guest referee would make it much more compelling. It would also be an excellent way to bring the feud out of its counterpart's shadow, not to mention boost star power at The Showcase of the Immortals.
