CM Punk’s Mysterious Red Bag Could Hold AEW World Title, His Until Someone Can Pin Him

The long-awaited AEW Collision finally made its debut tonight on TNT, and kicking off the show was none other than CM Punk. Punk hasn’t been on AEW TV since his match at AEW All Out, and the last time we saw him on TV he was still AEW World Champion. It seems he still feels a certain way about being Champion, as he brought along a mysterious red bag with him into the ring. During his promo, he would suggest that inside the bag was his AEW World Championship, referring to the Dog Collar Match he won against MFJ. He also added that it was his until someone could either pin him or submit him for it, so it does seem to be his AEW Title.

During his promo, Punk said, “Tell me when I’m telling lies. The last time you saw me with my triceps hanging off you saw me holding this, and it’s not mine because I wanted it. It’s mine because I earned it. It’s not mine because I had a great dog collar match. It’s mainly because I won the dog collar match. It’s mine until someone can either pin me or submit me for it.”

“And there are those of you who were praying to whatever God you believe in to put these (his boots) down in the ring and ride off into the sunset to never be seen again, but until there is somebody in this company that can fill these boots, they belong on my feet,” Punk said. “Tell me when I’m telling lies!”

Punk never lost his Title in a match, but was stripped of it after what happened at All Out. The same happened to The Elite, who had just become AEW World Trios Champions. It remains to be seen how this will be booked, as you would imagine at some point the Title issue will have to be dealt with. It does beautifully come full circle though, as MJF is the current AEW World Champion, and since MJF was Punk’s last opponent, it would be easy to put them both in another program together and settle the Championship issue once and for all.

MJF just defeated Darby Allin, Sammy Guevara, and Jungle Boy to retain his AEW World Championship, and at the moment looks to be heading towards a fight with Adam Cole down the line. Punk can easily be folded into MJF’s storyline, but it’s also not known how exactly Tony Khan is approaching roster crossover with Dynamite, where MJF frequently appears.

As for Punk’s first opponent, it is likely not to be MJF, though there are plenty of intriguing names on Collision’s first night that would make interesting opponents. Miro, the House of Black, and Andrade El Idolo all come to mind, and since Punk did take some shots at the Young Bucks, perhaps they are in the mix as well.

We’ll have to wait and see how all that plays out, but things are certainly interesting right now, and Punk definitely got people talking.

What did you think of Punk’s return and promo? Let us know in the comments or as always you can talk all things wrestling with me on Twitter @MattAguilarCB!