Had CM Punk not been injured during last year's 30-man Royal Rumble, he'd have faced then-World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins at WrestleMania.
Drew McIntyre was responsible for injuring the Second City Saint and, when Punk returned, they embarked on the best feud of 2024 in a series of unforgettable clashes.
While we'd expected Punk and Rollins to resume their feud to set the stage for a match at this year's WrestleMania, they instead went one-on-one in the main event of the first RAW on Netflix.
The match started with a brawl before the action moved to the ringside area. It was a competitive bout that eventually saw Rollins hit his foe with a GTS! In retaliation, Punk took Rollins down with a stomp, earning a 2-count in the process.
Eventually, Rollins delivered a Pedigree on the announcer's table but still couldn't keep Punk down. In the match's closing moments, Punk hit Rollins with the GTS twice and managed to get the 1-2-3.
This marked Punk's first time competing on RAW in over a decade and the match delivered in every respect. Whether Punk and Rollins are truly done remains to be seen, though it's been reported that the Bets in the World will challenge Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship at the Show of Shows this April.
"I would love to say that I’m moving on to bigger and better things. I would love to be wrong about that, too," Punk said of his feud with Rollins in a recent interview. "This is one of those [Hulk] Hogan-[Randy] Savage deals that is going to go on for as long as the beef has already been festering."
"Ten-plus years, we’re talking a decade here. I don’t think, even as big of a night, debuting on Netflix, and no matter how bright the lights are, this one is going to fester for a while," he teased.
You can check out some highlights from the match, along with comments from Punk in a promo/at the post-show press conference, below.