CM Punk Reflects on One-Year Anniversary of WWE Return

CM Punk took a moment on Monday to reflect on the one-year anniversary of his return to WWE.

On this day last year, Punk made a surprise return at Survivor Series 2023, marking his first appearance with WWE in nearly a decade. The event took place in his hometown of Chicago, and his return was kept under wraps, coming together at the last minute, just months after his departure from AEW.

Punk shared a heartfelt message on his Instagram stories today, expressing gratitude to his fans, family, friends backstage, and key WWE executives who helped facilitate his return.

“Happy one year anniversary of my [return] to WWE. Thank you to all the fans for waiting, chanting my name for years and carrying me on this journey,” Punk wrote. “Thank you to my family and friends backstage for the warmth and continued support. Thank you Paul [Levesque], Nick [Khan], and Bruce [Prichard] for the trust and making it all happen. Love you all! We are just getting started!”

In celebration of the milestone, WWE released new behind-the-scenes footage from Survivor Series 2023, featuring Punk interacting with key WWE figures such as Levesque, Prichard, Stephanie McMahon, William Regal, Michael Hayes, Bayley, Cody Rhodes, Sami Zayn, Randy Orton, Kofi Kingston, and others while in Gorilla position before and after his return.