AEW will "thrive and survive" even if 2-time WWE Champion doesn't return, claims Chris Jericho

Former AEW World Champion Chris Jericho has asserted that the promotion will be just fine even if a major star does not return. The wrestler in question is CM Punk, who never seems too far away from the headlines.

Punk has not been seen in AEW since the infamous All Out 2022 backstage brawl. He was suspended following the incident, as well as nursing a triceps injury.

The Second City Saint was reportedly on his way back into the promotion until his recent outburst on Instagram derailed the situation once again. However, regardless of whether he makes his way back under Tony Khan's roof, Chris Jericho believes the company will continue to succeed without the two-time WWE Champion.

Speaking on The Mark Madden Show, The Ocho said the following regarding CM Punk's possible return:

"I’m sure there will be some answers to that pretty quickly, I would assume. Either way, but to us, AEW’s going to thrive and survive with or without him [CM Punk], so I guess we’ll just have to wait and see what happens." [H/T: POST Wrestling]

Indeed, only time will tell, but it is undeniable that Punk's star power was an asset to AEW before things went sideways. This is an asset that one can assume Tony Khan would want on his side instead of the competitions.

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Chris Jericho says he can co-exist with CM Punk

Jericho and Punk are certainly not on the best terms and were reportedly involved in a heated confrontation following the Brawl Out incident. In their verbal spar, Jericho allegedly called Punk a "cancer to the locker room."

In his recent outburst on Instagram, the Second City Saint would hit back at The Ocho, calling him "a liar and a stooge."

Despite the bad blood between the former AEW World Champions, Jericho claims that he could co-exist with the Straight Edge Superstar if he were to be brought back into AEW.

"You know, I’m not [on CM Punk’s Christmas card list] but I wasn’t on Scott Hall’s Christmas card list or I wasn’t on, you know, Eric Bischoff’s Christmas card list. You don’t have to be best friends to co-exist so, to me, that’s not really my wheelhouse. I’m not in charge of that." [H/T: POST Wrestling]

It is unclear when, or even if, Punk will be brought back to AEW. But if there is a silver lining in this entire saga, perhaps it is that a possible professional amendment is on the cards between two of the company's biggest stars.