Ricky Starks comments ahead of massive match against CM Punk's real-life rival

AEW star Ricky Starks continues to be on a controversial hiatus from the Tony Khan-led company's television programming. The Absolute recently took to social media to hype up his upcoming match against a wrestling veteran who has a well-known rivalry with WWE Superstar CM Punk.

Ricky Starks has been missing from action in AEW since he and his former tag partner Big Bill were knocked out of last year's AEW World Tag Team Title tournament by Top Flight in a March episode of Collision. Despite impressing fans with his work against opponents like MJF, Bryan Danielson, CM Punk and more, the 34-year-old has been kept off of television for months.

Months after wrestling QT Marshall at a Big Time Wrestling event in May, Starks returned to the independent circuit in November at Glory Pro WrestlePocalypse, and subsequently competed in House of Glory shows in Chicago and New York City to kick off his 2025. The Louisiana native is scheduled for another major singles bout next month, as he is set to take on NJPW star Kenta at DEFY Hundredth on February 7 in Seattle, Washington.

Ricky Starks recently took to X/Twitter promoting his imminent showdown against the reigning DEFY World Champion, writing:

"Insane to think that it's Ricky Starks vs KENTA Shoutout Ricky Marvin," wrote Starks.

Check out the tweet below:

Kenta has had a rather public beef with CM Punk for many years now, supposedly over the latter's usage of his 'Go To Sleep' finishing maneuver.

Recent update on Ricky Starks' AEW status

Viewers of AEW programming have been speculating about Ricky Starks' absence from All Elite Wrestling, with many linking it to rumors of the star heading over to WWE once his current deal runs out. A recent report from the Wrestling Observer Newsletter presented similar conjecture, claiming:

"Tony Khan more and more if someone doesn’t want to do his creative, unless they are his top tier guys, he just stops using them with the idea there are tons of other people who are cooperative that want TV time. Plus, with Starks, once he was convinced Starks was leaving, he wasn’t going to book him going forward because that’s just how he does things."

It remains to be seen what lies next for Starks in the pro-wrestling industry, and if a WWE debut is simply a matter of time for Stroke Daddy.