CM Punk was recently suspended by AEW following the largest event in the company's history. But when he does return, there are plenty of dream matches that wrestling fans want to see. Both Punk and "Jungle Boy" Jack Perry are reportedly suspended because of a backstage incident at the recent AEW All In pay-per-view. As of this writing, we don't know the length of their suspensions.

This isn't Punk's first suspension from AEW, neither is it his first alleged shoot-fight in the backstage area of All Elite Wrestling. Punk was suspended last year because of a backstage brawl with The Elite, which led to the suspensions of Punk, Kenny Omega, and The Young Bucks, and the firing of Ace Steel, who would later be rehired by the company.

Before his most recent suspension, Punk became a regular on the show Collision. He returned on the debut episode which aired live on June 17, 2023. Punk, with a live microphone, had a lot to get off his chest, and his return lived up to the hype surrounding it. Hopefully, the widely publicized past controversies and drama that took place backstage can be left buried where they belong.

2023 has been an incredible year for wrestling in general. A new flame has been lit in the WWE, Impact Wrestling is building some amazing storylines, ROH is back in full force under Tony Khan's leadership, NJPW is as incredible as ever, and of course, AEW is riding a massive and much-needed new wave of momentum that will be invaluable in their attempts to move forward and grow even bigger.

Despite the 2023 calendar being absolutely stacked and filled with 5-star matches already, there's still plenty of time to go before the year is out, and with a fresh fire lit under a white-hot CM Punk who is once again the talk of the wrestling world, let's explore some massive CM Punk matches that Tony Khan could make happen in AEW that would certainly be a treat for the fans.

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5 CM Punk Vs. Bryan Danielson

The storied history between these two former indy darlings simply needs to come full circle and there's no way around it. CM Punk and Bryan Danielson have shared a career together symbolically for two decades. Both of these men paid their dues on the independent circuit 10 times over before they finally got their call-ups to the big stage and when they finally did, their careers were catapulted into superstardom. Punk and Danielson have wrestled each other on many occasions both during their time spent on the independent circuit and in the WWE, and every time has been magic.

The natural chemistry between these two superstars clearly comes from a shared love of the sport and an understanding of one another's struggle to get to the top, and both of them made it. Now, both of these men are on the same roster in a brand-new company and somehow, they have yet to share a ring together in AEW. Even their time spent in WWE and on the independent circuit together, they seldom featured in a major main event caliber feud. Tony Khan right now has these guys together in the same place at the same time, and pulling the trigger on a major feud between Punk and Danielson when Danielson returns from his gruesome arm injury that he suffered at AEW X NJPW Forbidden Door 2, would cater to the old indy fans, the lifelong WWE fans and the current wrestling market alike.

4 CM Punk Vs. Samoa Joe 6

Speaking of symbolically intertwining wrestling careers, let's revisit the incredible history of Samoa Joe and CM Punk. Two decades ago, these two budding future ring veterans first met, and they were quick to make history in one of the greatest trilogies of matches that has ever been seen. Joe and Punk left it all in the ring together every time. Punk was sadly gone from the WWE by the time Joe got there, leaving fans to only think about the dream match that could have been a return to their iconic rivalry. Tony Khan, being a fan and a genius, saw the money in this and gave the duo a chance to revisit history and book an incredible encounter for the July 8th edition of AEW Collision.

It's not often that two wrestlers sharing a ring can garner a "holy s**t" chant from the crowd just from looking at each other, but this is what we got. Tony Khan gave us CM Punk Vs. Samoa Joe 4, this time featuring the classic rivalry on a much grander stage with a much bigger audience. It delivered not only in the nostalgia factor but also in the storytelling factor, with Punk stealing a win to end his Samoa Joe curse and picking up his first career victory over "The Samoan Submission Machine" with a quick rollup. Joe responded by making Punk go to sleep. This is pro wrestling storytelling in its finest form, and it looks like AEW will be doing a Joe Vs. Punk trilogy of their own, and we are here for it.

At AEW All In, CM Punk defeated Samoa Joe in another epic encounter. All we need is Match Six!

3 CM Punk Vs. Chris Jericho

Back when CM Punk was first rising to the top of the WWE way back in 2008, one of his first brushes with the stars was at WrestleMania 24 when he emerged victorious in a Money in the Bank ladder match featuring none other than Chris Jericho. From this moment, the two were bitter enemies. The two superstars have long been compared to each other. Both men worked their way up from the bottom to the top and both men have continued to evolve as the years went by. Every time Punk and Jericho met in the ring or on the microphone together, they turned heads and got the wrestling world talking. The last time they met in the ring was WWE Payback in 2013 and their encounter narrowly missed a 5-star rating by half a percent.

Now, they share a roster in All Elite Wrestling. After the drama between Punk and The Elite last year and Chris Jericho not being shy with his words as he reportedly called Punk a "cancer," we have a stage set for an epic rivalry that features everything from a storied history, locker-room drama, and real-life heat. If these guys can come to their senses, be professionals, do business together, and create a lengthy program on television, complete with a series of matches and a pay-per-view pay-off, then we could be treated to some of the absolute best promos and matches of the year.

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2 CM Punk Vs. MJF 3

Undeniably one of the most legendary feuds in All Elite Wrestling's short yet storied history so far came when Maxwell Jacob Friedman and CM Punk shared a ring together. On November 24, 2021, on an episode of Dynamite, the two engaged in a war of words which resulted in one of the greatest promo exchanges that the wrestling world had seen in a generation. It was this moment that cemented Maxwell Jacob Friedman as a legitimate main eventer and the future of AEW, and the two battles that ensued between Punk and MJF afterward had everything from incredible wrestling, torch-passing hints, and pure, unadulterated storytelling.

Sadly, the aforementioned CM Punk and Elite drama came into play and cut this feud short with both men holding one victory each. MJF went on to achieve amazing success after this feud, and he is the current AEW World Champion. Now that Punk is back in AEW, the seeds are once again being planted to revisit this awesome rivalry, and the eventual rubber match that will stem from it will certainly not be one to miss and will likely result in a lengthy rivalry and several matches rather than just one decisive one, giving wrestling fans the closure on his feud that they have been hungry to see have a definitive ending.

1 CM Punk Vs. Kenny Omega

Given the widely-publicized drama between CM Punk and The Elite, there is a chance that this dream match to end all dream matches might never actually take place, and what a shame that would be. There are multiple variations of the events that went down during the alleged backstage fight following Punk's infamous appearance at the All Out 2022 media scrum, including the situations that led to it and the aftermath. The past is the past, and fans need to move on and look forward to the future. Tony Khan right now has in his hands the ability to provide a stage for one of the biggest dream matches of all time in CM Punk vs. Kenny Omega.

Heading back to the point with Jericho vs. Punk, what a treat it would be to see these two timeless athletes put their differences and egos aside and just do business together. Base the story on real-life drama, surround it with both wrestlers being regarded as the best in the world at different times, and fill it with clashing egos and microphone warfare - do whatever it takes, just make it happen. There is an untapped storyline here that is hidden behind the murk of real-life stuff that doesn't or shouldn't matter to wrestling fans. Give the world CM Punk Vs. Kenny Omega in a feud that would dominate headlines and, given the right build and stipulations, could also potentially provide some of the greatest wrestling matches that AEW has ever held.

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