While CM Punk is back with WWE as an analyst on WWE Backstage, there are no plans of him getting back in the ring. Many fans believed that if Punk were to go to a wrestling company, it would be AEW. Punk’s return to WWE was a shock to many and Ryback discussed this matter and gave his opinion on why Punk signed with WWE instead of AEW.

Speaking to Wrestling Inc.’s Raj Giri, Ryback revealed that he believes Punk signed with WWE because the company and FOX have allowed him to give his opinion “shoot on stuff” if he wants to. Ryback also added that this opportunity might get Punk his dream WrestleMania match that he always wanted.

- Advertisement -

“CM Punk, this weird dynamic, who at one time didn’t want anything to do with pro wrestling is all of a sudden going in and talking about WWE. And like I said, I think it is a weird chess game going on where he is going to go there and shoot on stuff in a more negative way and call bulls**t when he sees it on things that he doesn’t like, and he is allowed to give his opinion on different things. And FOX is going to allow it, where it is going to create a situation where he is going to probably be able to go back and get the WrestleMania main event match that he always wanted. That is what I feel like is going on, and that is why I feel like he didn’t go to AEW,” said Ryback.

It’s known that one of the reasons Punk left WWE was that he never got to headline WrestleMania in a final main event match. Ryback thinks Punk was fed up with not getting a WM main event and was done for good with the company. Ryback says that once you get out of the wrestling bubble you wouldn’t go back and work the exhausting full-time WWE schedule ever again. He compares it to Shawshank Redemption. “It’s like Shawshank Redemption, once you are out, it is a beautiful thing when you are truly free from there.”

Ryback added that there is a weird dynamic going on with Punk being able to come on WWE programming and shoot on what he wants. He believes Punk might have even figured out how to get himself into the main event of WrestleMania.

h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the quotes