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#1 CM Punk - AEW
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CM Punk made his long-awaited in-ring return after seven years away from the business at AEW All Out 2021 in a win over Darby Allin. His debut with the company, a couple of weeks prior to his in-ring return, is viewed as one of their biggest signings. The massive pop that he got from the Chicago crowd at United Center that night will be remembered for years to come.
Punk has since continued to garner plenty of cheers in his subsequent appearances for AEW, including at All Out. CM Punk has also expressed his interest in facing the newest signings for All Elite Wrestling, Adam Cole and Bryan Danielson. This will likely be the same scenario if Kevin Owens decides to become the next WWE talent to make the move.
Kevin Owens and CM Punk hold a lot of parallels to each other despite never locking horns even in their times in other companies together. They were like passing ships in the night in the independent scene. They have shared the same locker room at times, but Punk and Owens have never faced each other in a one-on-one match, which could change if they are both in AEW.
The two men have also been the victims of WWE's over-reliance on past megastars. CM Punk held the WWE Championship for 434 days from 2011 to 2013. His reign should have led to the WrestleMania main event that Punk always desired, but it ended at Royal Rumble 2013 when he lost to The Rock, who was on his way to a rematch against John Cena at WrestleMania 29.
Years later, Kevin Owens was in the very best feud in WWE with the first ever AEW World Champion Chris Jericho. Their friendship and breakup produced the best television for the promotion in 2016-2017 and the both of them were on their way to a Universal Championship Match at WrestleMania 33. However, KO lost to Goldberg on his way to a showdown with Brock Lesnar at the Show of Shows.
Those mutual frustrations could breed an intense rivalry between two of the best talkers in the history of the business. These two are not only exceptional promos, but Punk and Owens are quite gifted in-ring performers. This is an indie dream match in so many ways. That's why Kevin Owens vs. CM Punk is the biggest dream match for KO in AEW.
