Update on CM Punk’s recent absence from WWE programming
An update is available on CM Punk’s recent absence from WWE programming.
Punk hasn’t appeared on WWE television since the Raw after WrestleMania on April 20, when he had a face-off with Cody Rhodes.
According to a report from False Finish on Saturday, Punk’s absence is due to his schedule and creative plans having shifted with WWE’s decision to move Gunther to SmackDown and Jacob Fatu to Raw.
False Finish wrote:
“As @FightfulSelect has mentioned, CM Punk being absent from TV is due to a “schedule change”. Sources tell False Finish that CM Punk is currently awaiting creative to return to WWE TV. Punk’s schedule and creative were shifted after WWE made the decision to move Gunther to SmackDown along with bringing Jacob Fatu to RAW to feud with Roman Reigns”
Alternate WrestleMania 42 plans for CM Punk vs. Roman Reigns
Last month in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, Dave Meltzer addressed alternate plans that had been discussed for Punk’s match against Roman Reigns in the main event of night two of WrestleMania 42. At one point, WWE had considered having Punk win the match, which would have led to a rematch between the two at Backlash.
Meltzer wrote:
“It was possible and apparently talked about that Punk could beat Reigns and then lose the title at Backlash, so they’d be ‘even’ when it was over but Reigns would end up as champion, as a way to protect Punk’s position. But the decision in the end was for Reigns to win here.”
Meltzer awarded Punk vs. Reigns a five-star rating, the fourth of Punk’s career and the first of Reigns’.
Ian Carey is the editing manager at F4WOnline and a writer from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. His work has appeared in award-winning publications including NOW Magazine and The Huffington Post. He joined the F4WOnline team in 2019 and moved into the editing manager role in the summer of 2026. Born in Calgary, Alberta, Ian has covered professional wrestling for more than 15 years.