CM Punk defeated Satoshi Kojima in a first-round match in the 2023 Men's Owen Hart Foundation Cup Tournament at AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door on Sunday.
The match was significant not only because it was part of the Owen Hart Cup tourney, but also due to the fact that it was Punk's first singles bout in nearly 10 months.
B/R Wrestling @BRWrestlingCM Punk defeats Satoshi Kojima to advance in the Owen Hart Foundation Men's Tournament 💗<a href="">#ForbiddenDoor</a> <a href="">
All Elite Wrestling @AEWDevastating diving elbow by CM Punk right across the throat of Kojima!<br><br>Order <a href="">#AEWxNJPW</a> <a href="">#ForbiddenDoor</a> on PPV right now!<br>🇺🇸: <a href=""> <a href=""> href="">@CMPunk</a> <a href="">
All Elite Wrestling @AEWLeg-drop by CM Punk 👀<br><br>Order <a href="">#AEWxNJPW</a> <a href="">#ForbiddenDoor</a> on PPV right now!<br>🇺🇸: <a href=""> <a href=""> href="">@cmpunk</a> <a href="">
B/R Wrestling @BRWrestlingCM Punk arrives at <a href="">#ForbiddenDoor</a> 👀<br><br>(via <a href="">@AEW</a>)<a href="">
Punk suffered a torn triceps when he beat Jon Moxley for the AEW World Championship in the main event of All Out last September, forcing him to vacate the title and take several months off to heal.
Eventually, rumors began to circulate that AEW intended to create a weekly Saturday show with Punk as the face of the brand, and it ultimately came to fruition in the form of Collision.
On June 17, Collision debuted and Punk was in the main event, teaming with FTR to defeat Samoa Joe, Jay White and Juice Robinson in a six-man tag team match.
With Punk's return occurring so close to Forbidden Door, AEW had to act fast to get him on the card, and there wasn't any time to build a storyline for him leading up to the show.
Still, a suitable opponent was found in the form of Kojima, who is a 52-year-old veteran and one of the most accomplished Japanese wrestlers of all time.
Kojima has held top titles in essentially every major Japanese wrestling promotion. He is a two-time IWGP heavyweight champion in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, a two-time Triple Crown heavyweight champion in All Japan Pro Wrestling and a one-time GHC heavyweight champion in Pro Wrestling Noah.
The master of the lariat even enjoyed great success in the United States, holding the NWA World Heavyweight Championship and MLW World Heavyweight Championship one time each as well.
Kojima represented a tough test for Punk in his first singles match back, but the two-time AEW world champion was up for the challenge and moved on to the second round of the Owen Hart Cup.
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