Punk says he didn’t sign a part-time deal, been in talks with AEW for over a year, more

CM Punk didn't want to give details of his contract, but he says it's not a part-time thing.

Tony Khan chimes in and says he's going to be doing it for a while. [@Nick_Hausman]

— Alex McCarthy (@AlexM_talkSPORT) August 21, 2021

CM Punk: I knew I couldn’t debut if there were no people in the building. I always say timing is everything. There were a lot of happy accidents along the way to make this possible. #AEWRampage

— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says he's been talking to Tony Khan for about a year and a half about coming to AEW

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

Punk says he hasn't been doing dedicated in-ring training. He says he has been working out to get in his best shape, but he considers wrestling more like riding a bike and he wants it to be authentic.

— Alex McCarthy (@AlexM_talkSPORT) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says the ice cream bars were his idea. Said Jon Lester opening a tab at Chicago bars when he left the city to thank fans was an inspiration

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

Thanks for the ice cream @CMPunk pic.twitter.com/7yougpXRKB

— Abe Kanan (@abekanan) August 21, 2021

CM Punk is asked to compare the difference between his magic moments in Chicago; MITB in 2011 and tonight in 2021.

"This one was more organic. This one didn't feel like a job."

— Alex McCarthy (@AlexM_talkSPORT) August 21, 2021

CM Punk hasn't seen Dark or Elevation and doesn't really use Youtube. He says he watches DVDs and feels like Terry Funk now. He will watch everything moving forward

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk puts over Britt Baker big, and says she's a great example of how to get a talent over.

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk said mentioning Britt Baker as his first words in his promo was by design. He knew his first promo in seven years would be important and he wanted to put her over.

— Alex McCarthy (@AlexM_talkSPORT) August 21, 2021

Hey #Chicago, thanks for giving him the #Brittsburgh welcome. #AEWRampage @CMPunk pic.twitter.com/2QXsm1rshg

— Dr. Britt Baker, D.M.D. (@RealBrittBaker) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says AEW lets people learn from their mistakes, and a generation of wrestlers had been told prior that if they messed up, they were fired

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says a lot of time in talks with AEW, they said the same things at the same times. Said wrestling doesn't need to be as hard as people pretend it needs to be. You don't need 16 cooks in the kitchen

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says Tony Khan had the idea to do a program with Darby Allin. Punk says if he were a teenager, Darby would be his favorite wrestler. He doesn't want to take Darby's suicide dive

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says AEW didn't have to prove anything to him to sign him, it was about him being open to the idea and he had to dip his toe in and see.

"This is all @ReneePaquette's fault," because she got him back to do WWE Backstage and he got the bug again.

— Alex McCarthy (@AlexM_talkSPORT) August 21, 2021

Tony Khan indicates there wasn't really a consideration to bring back Punk without fans. This gave them a lot of time to talk

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk said that the roster, and people around AEW not saying anything about Brodie Lee's illness before his passing made a big impression on him

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says it's not about wins and losses, he just wants to have fun and work with good people.

— Alex McCarthy (@AlexM_talkSPORT) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says it was the worst kept secret by design, and surprises and anticipation in wrestling can still happen even in that case. He's happy they didn't advertise it

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says he is sure he'll do a bit of everything, like commentary, wrestling, and wants to give back to wrestling. He wasn't in the place to wrestle for the last few years, but wasn't able to give back for years.

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk: I don’t think I ever hated professional wrestling. … There needs to be a real distinction made about what I despised. It wasn’t professional wrestling. #AEWRampage

— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) August 21, 2021

Tony Khan said they collaborated on the idea to do a short promoted show, and it came together exactly how they wanted. They wanted a surprise, but everyone to anticipate it

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says he hasn't had a problem with anyone today, when asked if he smoothed anything over with AEW wrestlers he's had issues with.

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

CM Punk: I’ve never done anything with the Young Bucks. I’ve never stepped in the ring with Kenny Omega. … And who knows who else is coming. #AEWRampage

— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) August 21, 2021

CM Punk says "I've never worked with Jon Moxley before" 😏

Rattles off a lot of names like Ricky Starks, Hobbs, Jungle Boy, Young Bucks and many more he's excited to work with.

— Alex McCarthy (@AlexM_talkSPORT) August 21, 2021

CM Punk: "I I had Sting come up to me today and tell me he's excited to work with me and wish he could have worked with me in his day."

— Alex McCarthy (@AlexM_talkSPORT) August 21, 2021

CM Punk: Going forward, I think my legacy is to help out the young guys the way Harley Race helped me, the way Terry Funk helped me, the way Eddie Guerrero helped me. Tracy Smothers. #AEWRampage

— Marc Raimondi (@marc_raimondi) August 21, 2021

When asked about appearing in promotions, CM Punk says "I'm an AEW guy." He has freedom to continue MMA commentary, and doing other things.

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021

Tony Khan says Daniel Garcia working in top situations with AEW has been great. He's under an agreement with AEW, and they hope he's around there for a long time. Khan talks up how hard Garcia worked since his car accident

— Sean Ross Sapp of Fightful.com (@SeanRossSapp) August 21, 2021