Ring of Honor World Champion Adam Cole says CM Punk would be welcomed back to Ring of Honor.
Cole appeared on Pro Wrestling Illustrated's The PWI podcast on Septermber 16th ahead of ROH All-Star Extravaganza. At the time, it was one week after CM Punk's mixed-martial-arts debut at UFC 203. Cole gave his prospective on the reaction to CM Punk fighting in The Octagon,
"You had a bunch of different range of emotions for this CM Punk fight. You had people that said 'what a disgrace', 'what a joke', 'how embarrassing for the sport', 'that guy sucks', 'what was he thinking?' Other people who were extremely supportive. If I had to pick a side to be on, I'm more so the supportive side," said Cole.
Cole stated he supported CM Punk's mma career because he respected the contribution CM Punk made to wrestling. Host Al Castle asked Cole about CM Punk returning to professional wrestling and specifically Ring of Honor.
"It hasn't been discussed too much at least among the boys in the locker room. For the last two years, it seems like anytime professional wrestling was brought up to CM Punk, it was the last thing he wanted to talk about. All he wanted to talk about was fighting and preparing for this fight. Now that this fight is over, who knows what's going through his head and if he's getting that itch to return? I can tell you, from all the guys in the locker room and in the Ring of Honor office — not only because of CM Punk's legacy in the WWE and from this extremely popular UFC fight he just had — but CM Punk is one of the forefathers of Ring of Honor. On a personal level, CM Punk is the reason I started following Ring of Honor and independent wrestling in the first place. So I think it would be really cool for our fans and for our locker room. If CM Punk ever did decide to return to pro wrestling, I think he certainly would have a home in Ring of Honor" said Cole.
Cole never got the opportunity to take on Punk, as Cole debuted after Punk's WWE run started. CM Punk once held the world championship Adam Cole just successfully defended at Ring of Honor All-Star Extravaganza VIII on Friday.
The PWI podcast is available on ITunes or Pro Wrestling Illustrated's website.
