CM Punk will be back on screen but not on WWE television. He will be on the commentary desk as he’s returning to the Cage Fury Fighting Championships broadcast booth for CFFC 156 on Friday, June 26.
The event takes place at Hard Rock Casino Rockford in Rockford, Illinois, just outside Punk’s hometown of Chicago.
The appearance marks Punk’s first public professional showing of the year and his first CFFC outing of 2026. He has not been seen on WWE programming since a segment with Cody Rhodes on Raw after WrestleMania in April, making this booking a concrete data point in the ongoing question of when he returns to WWE.
The promotion confirmed the news, per Cage Fury Fighting Championships (CFFC).
“For the first time in 2026, the legendary CM Punk will return to the Cage Fury Fighting Championships broadcast team,” CFFC wrote.
“The seven-time WWE world champion and two-time UFC veteran will make his long-awaited homecoming to the booth for ‘CFFC 156: Stanford Lewis’ on Friday, June 26 from Illinois’ Hard Rock Casino Rockford, just outside of Punk’s hometown of Chicago.”
Punk will once again work alongside CFFC General Manager and longtime MMA journalist John Morgan on the broadcast. He has served as a color commentator for the promotion since 2018, a run that included his time away from wrestling and his stint in AEW, though his CFFC appearances have been more sparing since his 2023 WWE return.
Punk’s WWE Status Remains In Limbo
The CFFC booking lands while fans continue to wait on Punk’s WWE comeback. WWE recently announced his first appearance since WrestleMania 42, but he has otherwise stayed off programming.
Dave Meltzer addressed the situation in the June 15 edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, noting the current plan calls for Punk to join the SmackDown brand. Meltzer explained the move as a roster balancing act.
“The plan right now is for him to return on Smackdown, which is basically a balancing act,” Meltzer wrote. “The belief is with Raw having Reigns, Rollins, The Usos, Fatu, Femi, Logan Paul and Breakker that Punk made more sense on Smackdown with a top tier of Rhodes, Gunther, Ripley and soon to be Punk, Orton and McIntyre. Plus Rhodes vs. Punk has been a direction.”
Meltzer added that a 7/6 Raw date in Chicago makes sense as a possible return spot, even though that is a Raw show rather than SmackDown. Punk’s recent activity has kept him in the combat-sports orbit, including a UFC Rivals promo video ahead of his expected WWE return.