Stone Cold Steve Austin and Mick Foley Talk Possible CM Punk WWE Return on Stone Cold's Podcast

Mick Foley was a guest on Stone Cold Steve Austin's podcast, The Steve Austin Show Unleashed, this week, and the two had a very interesting perspective on a possible CM Punk return to WWE.

"I don't know. Everyone comes back. If there's an exception to the rule, it would be him," Foley said. "But the secret for Punk, and, honestly, I haven't talked to him... the last time I had an interaction with him was the night of the Rumble and he said he might not be back, and he didn't show up. He's gotta find something he loves as much as this. Because, you know, it's really hard to replace. I don't know if he's... if he's got that in his life he doesn't need to come back. He's made all the money he's ever gonna need. I don't know if he's going to get the itch. You know, you don't get to be as good as Punk was without loving it. And if you love it, there's really only one place to be: there. Unless he wants to just be the guy who makes an absolute killing on the independent scene and working comic book conventions and making a handsome living that way."

Austin then briefly recounts the famous story of his leaving in 2002 and Jim Ross' letter that brought him back to WWE. He points out "you can only make hay so long" so if Punk does come back, then it would have to be within that window. Foley then goes into a story he had never shared.

"I don't believe I've ever shared this. When I was making the decision to do the thing with Ambrose before the doctors stepped in and told me I'd had my last match, that grass roots thing was really resonating with the top guys in the company. Punk, Cena, they liked it; it was different. Punk wanted to be a part of it," he said.

"I remember parking outside an arena and texting him...I said, '12 years from now, do you envision yourself coming back after a three-year layoff to do a segment that is intentionally bad, referring to me coming back to do the 'This is Your Life, John Cena' spot. And he said 'no'. And I said, 'that will give you some indication how far I've fallen from my ideals.' And I will always regret that I let myself fall that far and that I didn't stand up and fight that one. I get the call and it is a pretty unusual idea, and under other circumstances, had I been back a while, I would have been glad to have done a segment that was purposely bad.

[...]

But my first time back to be in a segment that was intentionally bad, it was a real blow to everything that I thought I had stood for. I remember Punk saying he wouldn't be that guy. I don't know if he's going to come back if it's less than ideal and if he does come back, he becomes that guy he hated. If he becomes that guy collecting the part time check than he gets the last laugh but he does it at the expense of his ideals."

These two have at least some perspective on the matter, as Austin walked out and returned months later, while Foley had his "last match" numerous times only to return years later. Still, it seems like Punk is happier and healthier than he has been in years, which is the most important thing to remember when talking about someone who has literally given his body to fans for the better part of his life.

You can listen to the full episode of Austin's podcast with Foley here.

What do you make of Foley and Austin's comments? Do you think Punk will return soon, if ever? Let us know in the comments below.