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 town is understood 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 12 months.
Punk, who recently won the World Heavyweight Championship at Saturday Night’s Foremost Event, stopped by WGN News in Chicago to advertise Elimination Chamber in the town in 2026. He commented on his return two years prior when one anchor mentioned that Punk’s ovations in Chicago go on for “like quarter-hour.”
“You saw the one guy hugging me [in the return clip],” Punk said. “It’s like the nice and cozy embrace of Chicago as a complete, ? I can still feel it. I can still feel it today. I like being here. I like performing. I used to be just at Madison Square Garden on Monday night and the fans at Madison Square Garden are very vital and integral to what we do, but to me, obviously the fans in Chicago are one of the best on the earth.”
WWE announced that Elimination Chamber will happen on the United Center in Chicago on Saturday, February 28. It is going to be the primary time WWE has held a show within the venue since SummerSlam in 1994. The event will happen in between the Royal Rumble in January, live from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and WrestleMania 42 in Las Vegas.
If you happen to use any quotes from this text, please credit WGN News and supply a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.