Almost two years ago, on November 26, 2023, "The Second City Saint," CM Punk, made his return to WWE after almost a decade away at Survivor Series: WarGames in front of his hometown crowd in Chicago, Illinois. While the city is known for being a "wrestling town," the response that Punk's return got was electric, with the fans coming unglued to see their favorite star, who had only left AEW in September of that year.
Punk, who recently won the World Heavyweight Championship at Saturday Night's Main Event, stopped by WGN News in Chicago to promote Elimination Chamber in the city in 2026.He commented on his return two years prior when one anchor mentioned that Punk's ovations in Chicago go on for "like 15 minutes."
"You saw the one guy hugging me [in the return clip]," Punk said. "It's like the warm embrace of Chicago as a whole, you know? I can still feel it. I can still feel it today. I love being here. I love performing. I was just at Madison Square Garden on Monday night and the fans at Madison Square Garden are very important and integral to what we do, but to me, obviously the fans in Chicago are the best in the world."
WWE announced that Elimination Chamber will take place at the United Center in Chicago on Saturday, February 28. It will be the first time WWE has held a show in the venue since SummerSlam in 1994. The event will take place in between the Royal Rumble in January, live from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas.
If you use any quotes from this article, please credit WGN News and provide a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
