CM Punk continues to fan the flames.
Rumors have heated up regarding the status of CM Punk as WWE enters a new era, starting with the premiere of SmackDown on Fox this Friday, Oct. 4. The latest report comes from PWInsider, who says that Punk tested on-camera for WWE Backstage, WWE's upcoming studio show on Fox Sports 1.
Appearing on The Kevin & Bean Show on KROQ, Punk was asked about the report.
"So you mean to tell me, you would watch a show where I talk about wrestling?" he replied, before praising WWE Backstage host Renee Young saying, "Renee's great. She works for Fox now?"
When Punk was called the "belle of the ball," he said, "I am and I'm not. I'm really not. I think people have -- it's taken on a life of its own."
Fans know for certain that The Rock will be at SmackDown on Friday. The last time The Rock was at Staples Center for a WWE event, he called CM Punk in a post-show dark segment. Punk did not answer as he was out walking his dog.
"I enjoy The Rock. I'm not trying to put this out in the zeitgeist but do you remember the last time The Rock was in the Staples Center? Let's do it again. Dwayne, call me Friday."
When a K&B co-host scripted that The Rock should call Punk, and then the camera cuts backstage to reveal Punk on the phone, Punk said, "That's better than 100 percent of anything they've had on the show since I left."
When asked if wrestling is still on his mind, Punk replied, "No. And it hasn't been for, I don't know, seven years? I think social media as a whole is a negative cesspool and when you throw in wrestling social media, that's a whole different seventh level of hell."
Punk continued, "If nothing happens, please don't be mad at me. If I do something to make you mad, then you can be mad at me. Then just sue me, because that's apparently what everyone else does."
Punk just settled on a year-long lawsuit with his former friend Colt Cabana.
Asked again about his plans for Friday, the former WWE Champion went on to say, "What's the date? Friday? Probably watching hockey. Because hockey has started now."
Punk's favorite team, the Chicago Blackhawks have a game at 2 p.m. ET on Friday.
As the hosts continued to press Punk about his plans in wrestling he said, "Let's pretend you own a wrestling company. If you want me to work for you, why is it my responsibility to move that forward? Shouldn't you be contacting me?"
At this point, the co-hosts did a little bit of role-playing. One host assumed the position of WWE while the other was AEW. After the WWE "owner" joked about making an offer through a text message, the AEW "owner" stated that he's put numbers in front of Punk. To which Punk replied, "Your numbers are poor."
As the segment wrapped up, Punk was asked if he missed wrestling. He answered, "I don't miss wrestling. If I miss anything, it would be performing because there very much is a rush -- your music hitting, going out and being able to read a crowd and being able to give them what you think they want. As a performer, you almost have to be objective. 'The crowd doesn't know what they want.' I have to set that stage and tell a story. I've always appreciated and enjoyed doing that."
Finally, they discussed Living Colour, joking that the band would be at Staples Center on Friday. Punk said, "I'm surprised they haven't done that, give Cult of Personality to someone. They've got the guy who sits like me, they've got the guy who tries to talk like me, and they got [the guy] who's got tattoos."
WWE also has Shane McMahon, who has been announced as "The Best In The World" since winning the WWE World Cup in November 2018. Shane McMahon will put his career on the line in a ladder match against Kevin Owens on SmackDown.
If you use any of the quotes above, please credit KROQ with a h/t to Fightful for the transcription.