The news of CM Punk being in talks for an in-ring return for the first time since leaving WWE in 2014 has possibly been the biggest wrestling story of the week.

Multiple parties are said to be interested in bringing the Straight Edge star on board. Though AEW seems to be the most likely destination for his comeback. It appears that people within WWE believe the same.

According to Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter, the internal belief in WWE is that Punk has already signed a deal with their rival promotion.

There are ‘a number of things going on behind-the-scenes’ that would indicate that AEW is going to be the new home for the former world champion.

Meltzer notes that nobody in AEW has confirmed the news about CM Punk so far. It’s understandable as people would keep quiet about an announcement of this magnitude until the top brass decides to go public with it.

The former WWE champion had originally shot down the possibility of an in-ring return in the future after quitting WWE. However, he seems to have changed his mind in recent times.

Punk himself has claimed that he would be open to making an in-ring return against the right opponent. He has indicated that the right circumstances and storyline are more important than the amount offered to him for a comeback.

With AEW becoming home to some of the most exciting free agents of the wrestling world in recent months, it wouldn’t be a big surprise if a potential program with any of them has caught his eye and made him consider the return.