CM Punk shocked the wrestling world when he returned to WWE in November and made his highly publicized re-debut in this year's men's Royal Rumble match in January.
However, a triceps injury in the match robbed him of the chance to headline WrestleMania for the first time in his career. Ever since, the 45-year-old has worked diligently to re-enter the squared circle and attempt to achieve his goal next year in Las Vegas.
At Clash at the Castle, Punk played spoiler, costing Drew McIntyre the World Heavyweight Championship in his home country. It was a controversial ending, but Punk offered fans a health update during the press conference afterward.
"I got permission to skip Raw in Corpus Christi to go home to Chicago to see my doctors with the idea that I'm going to be cleared," he said. "I'm going to skip Raw, I'm going to get cleared and then I'm going to show up the Smackdown and let everybody know the good news, hopefully."
The initial timetable for his recovery was six to eight months. So, Punk is on schedule, but something about this seems too easy. Don't be surprised if a vengeful McIntyre attacks him in his hometown of Chicago on Friday night, keeping him off TV until the buildup to SummerSlam.
It makes much more sense to save Punk's first singles match back in WWE until The Biggest Party of the Summer even if he's ready to come back before then.
