5 Potential opponents for CM Punk's "Real" AEW World Championship at All In
AEW All In will take place on August 27, 2023, at Wembley Stadium in London, England, in front of the biggest crowd in AEW history. Despite the event being less than a month away, no matches have been booked yet.
This was a puzzling fact that CM Punk brought up this past Saturday on Collision. The Straight Edge Superstar wasted no time in bringing up the mysterious bag that he carried on the debut episode of the show. He finally referenced it once again, unveiling the AEW World Championship, which he technically never lost.
Dubbing it the "Real" World Championship, he spray-painted a huge "X" on the front of the belt and proclaimed that he would defend it on Collision and beyond.
Looking ahead toward All In, we predict five possible scenarios/opponents that the Chicago star could defend his title against at the historic event.
#5. CM Punk vs. Jay White
CM PUNK VS JAY WHITE FEUD NEEDED IMMEDIATELY #AEWCollision pic.twitter.com/z3rFvwj4gK
Jay White was one of the first wrestlers to hand CM Punk his first major loss since his return to AEW Collision. This occurred during the main event of the second episode, which saw The Second City Saint team up with FTR and Ricky Starks against The Gunn Club and Bullet Club Gold.
The Switchblade has been a revelation on Collision thus far, finally living up to his reputation in New Japan. With previous reports mentioning how Punk actually handpicked White to be one of his first few opponents, it's clear that The Straight Edge Superstar thinks highly of the Kiwi wrestler.
Jay White would make an excellent candidate to challenge Punk for the "real" AEW World Championship at All In, especially if Tony Khan wants to introduce new, fresh blood into the main event scene.
#4. CM Punk vs. Ricky Starks in a rematch
Next Saturday, 8/5
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#AEWCollision
Live on TNT at 8pm ET/7pm CT
Special Outside Official:
Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat
@CMPunk vs @starkmanjones
Next Saturday, CM Punk defends what he's dubbed The Real World Championship vs. 2023 Owen Hart Cup winner Ricky Starks! pic.twitter.com/3e7Y4WELrF
Speaking of fresh main-event talent, it seems like AEW is pushing Ricky Starks to be the face of Collision alongside CM Punk.
Not only has Ricky Starks defeated Punk to win the Owen Hart Cup Foundation Tournament, but he also won again in a tag team contest the next week. Both matches were won via roll-up pins while holding the bottom rope.
The former FTW Champion was the first to confront Punk when he unveiled his AEW World Championship. It's clear that Starks feels that he has Punk's number. With the "title" match set for Collision this week with Ricky "The Dragon" Steamboat as a special guest referee, it feels like the start of a new rivalry instead of a one-and-done.
We will likely see a rematch at All In with higher stakes and perhaps a stipulation. The question is whether it will be Punk or Starks walking into London as champion.
#3. CM Punk vs. Wardlow
The currently planned Wardlow gears (more to come this is just wave 1) pic.twitter.com/gryV0ey5dO" target="_blank" title="tweet-url" rel="noopener noreferrer">pic.twitter.com/gryV0ey5dO" target="_blank" title="tweet-url" rel="noopener noreferrer">pic.twitter.com/gryV0ey5dO" target="_blank" title="tweet-url" rel="noopener noreferrer">pic.twitter.com/gryV0ey5dO
Wardlow has not been seen on television since losing the TNT Championship to Luchasaurus on the debut episode of Collision last month.
During a Q&A session on Fightful Select, Sean Ross Sapp alluded that Wardlow could be experiencing passport issues that prevented him from entering Canada.
The Wardaddy will need to return soon to build momentum on Collision. If he is no longer contending for the TNT title, he should be elevated into the world title picture and feud with Punk.
Last year, Wardlow was one of the fastest-rising stars in the company and their most popular babyface. Unfortunately, AEW has ruined his momentum. Perhaps the best way to salvage him is to turn heel and act as a foil to Punk. He needs to bring back the hard edge and killer instinct he's been lacking. Who better to pull that out of him than Punk himself?
#2. CM Punk vs. MJF for the AEW Undisputed World Championship
With only a matter of weeks, here’s some matches I’d book for #AEW #AEWAllIn at Wembley:
Punk never lost the belt. Doesn’t need much build. Capitalise on this MJF Babyface run by having super heel CM Punk. The history is there, the story tells itself, doesn’t need huge build. pic.twitter.com/CHcFt8mhvs" target="_blank" title="tweet-url" rel="noopener noreferrer">pic.twitter.com/CHcFt8mhvs
It's inevitable that CM Punk and MJF will face each other in the ring again, this time over the undisputed world championship. The two wrestlers had a highly acclaimed rivalry last year, in which each star had one victory.
Now that MJF is the AEW World Champion and Punk has proclaimed himself the "real champ", this should lead to a rubber match at All In to unify both belts.
It would be a main event worthy of headlining a sold-out stadium show. The question is, how will the higher-ups tie up current storylines to bring us to this feud?
It all depends on the outcome of Punk vs. Ricky Starks and what happens between MJF and his current tag team partner, Adam Cole.
#1. MJF vs. Adam Cole vs. CM Punk
I hope this is the permanent MJF face turn. Babyface MJF vs. the divisive CM Punk is going to be a great dynamic later in the year. MJF has been pivotal in helping Adam Cole become more endearing with this babyface run he is on. It's the most interesting thing in MJF's career… twitter.com/i/web/status/1… pic.twitter.com/Lrldg6DDTS" target="_blank" title="tweet-url" rel="noopener noreferrer">pic.twitter.com/Lrldg6DDTS
The unlikely duo of MJF and Adam Cole was unsuccessful in defeating FTR for the AEW World Tag Team Titles. At the conclusion of the match, most fans thought the Salt of the Earth would turn on Cole, but surprisingly, he didn't.
It seems like AEW is planning to keep this budding bromance going a little longer. But what does this mean for MJF's World Championship? He will have to defend the title sooner or later, and it seems like Cole would make a credible number-one contender.
Now that CM Punk has been added to the mix, this could be an explosive situation that would lead to a 3-way. It will be interesting to see if they can stay on the same page or betray one another, with Punk acting as the instigator of the split.