"I would shake the man's hand and move on" - Top star on broken relationship with CM Punk; says he would welcome him in WWE

SmackDown broadcaster Corey Graves recently stated that he would welcome CM Punk in WWE despite the two having a falling out in the past.

Punk is arguably the biggest free agent in wrestling today, having been let go by AEW in August following a backstage incident at All In 2023. Since then, he's been linked to a possible WWE return, though sources within the company have indicated that they weren't interested in bringing him back anytime soon.

Appearing on The Kurt Angle Show, WWE broadcaster Corey Graves was asked if he was open to having The Second City Saint back in the global juggernaut. Furthermore, Graves went back in time, recalling how he and Punk were extremely close at one point but later had a falling out due to myriad reasons.

"Listen, Punk was always great to me when I was coming up. We were really, really, close. Remember how I told the story about how I missed my son being born. Punk was in Pittsburgh at the time and he was actually the first guy who held my son after he was born. We were tight. Fast forward to a few years, I don't really know what happened. We sort of fell out for one reason or another. I said some disparaging things in a very public, unprofessional manner. We haven't spoken since prior to then but at the end of the day, rather than sitting here and wasting everybody's time, I'm a professional. I'm too old to hold grudges. I feel like whatever's happened is water in the bridge," said Corey Graves.

However, Corey Graves added that he was a different man now and that he would be comfortable working with CM Punk if he were to return to WWE.

"I got a whole different life, I'm in a different place in my life before back then when all that stuff went down. If it's right for business, who am I to say no? I'm a pro and I would be happy to do whatever is needed at the end of the day and I would shake the man's hand and move on and see what life holds," said Corey Graves. [0:12 - 1:20]

Check out the full video below:

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Eddie Kingston on never being a fan of CM Punk

In a recent interview, Eddie Kingston confessed to having never liked CM Punk despite participating in a highly acclaimed feud with him in AEW. However, The Mad King also feels that The Straight Edge Superstar was a big draw for Tony Khan's promotion and that he wished the two parties could settle their differences.

"No, I'm doing my job. Then, that's how I felt, you know what I mean. I didn't know what anyone else in the locker room felt. I didn't care. It's how I felt. I didn't want him there, you know what I mean. Me and Punk don't like each other and that's fine. You're not going to like everybody you work with, you know what I mean. Do I wish he was still in AEW and I wish it worked out differently? Yeah, because he helped the company. But, other than that I don't give a f*** what he does, you know what I mean. Coz, me and him, never got along anyway," Eddie Kingston said.

Considering he's one of the biggest names in the business, fans are eagerly waiting to see which company CM Punk ends up joining.

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