CM Punk is once again associated with WWE.

The former WWE champion, whose real name is Phil Brooks, made a surprise appearance to close the “WWE Backstage” studio show on FS1 on Tuesday night. He will be appearing periodically on the show as a special contributor and analyst starting next week.

Punk, who hasn’t wrestled since his ugly exit from WWE in 2014, channeled some “Rowdy” Roddy Piper after his music hit and he walked into the show’s ring.

“It’s as simple as this, just when they think they got answers I change the culture,” Punk said to the camera. “I’ll see you here next week.”

The 41-year-old Punk, who appeared in the recent movie “Girl on the Third Floor,” joining “WWE Backstage” is not a complete shock. Fox screen-tested him for the show, and he has been doing commentary for Cage Fury Fighting Championships. Kevin Dunn, WWE’s executive vice president for television and production, told The Post in September that Fox was “looking for some controversy” with “WWE Backstage”, which opened last week by drawing a disappointing 49,000 viewers.

Punk, known for his famous pipebomb promo in 2011 and the willingness to tell it like it is, could provide the buzz the show needs. “WWE Backstage” and CM Punk were trending worldwide on Twitter after his appearance. “WWE Backstage” airs Tuesday at 11 p.m on FS1 and is produced by Fox, who will be paying Punk and not WWE.

Punk’s return to the wrestling world has been a constant in the rumor mill since the minute he left. Talk picked up again when he appeared to sign autographs and do a stage show at the Starrcast III convention done in conjunction with All Elite Wrestling’s “All Out” pay-per-view his hometown of Chicago in August.

During his stage show, Punk said he “wouldn’t not talk” to WWE and during a Reddit chat last month stated it would take a “very big bag” of money for him to return to Vince McMahon’s company. While this appears to be a first step toward getting back in the good graces of WWE, its does not mean for certain Punk will return to the wrestling ring or appear on “Monday Night Raw” or “Friday Night SmackDown” anytime soon.

He left WWE under tense circumstances in 2014, citing injuries, illness and general unhappiness with how he was being used in the company — calling out McMahon, Triple H, Ryback and the company’s doctor Chris Amann along the way. In 2018, Punk was cleared in a seven-figure civil lawsuit filed against him by Amann for defamation based on Punk’s comments about him on Colt Cabana’s podcast.

It might be part of the reason Punk’s appearance on “WWE Backstage” came as a surprise to the panel for this week’ show of Paige, Booker T, Samoa Joe and Adam Cole. As Punk’s music hit, Paige yelled out: “Is this a rib?”

It was not. CM Punk has officially returned to the world of professional wrestling, just not the ring.