Huge Injury Update On CM Punk -- WWE WrestleMania Is "Not In The Cards"

CM Punk's return to WWE after a decade-long absence came to a screeching halt after just one televised match, as it was learned Monday that he suffered a torn right triceps during Saturday's Royal Rumble match, an injury that looks to keep him out of WrestleMania 40 and delay his dream of main-eventing the Showcase of the Immortals.

During the Rumble bout, Punk could be seen in the corner having a lengthy discussion with a referee, but he finished the match, being the last man Cody Rhodes eliminated en route to winning his second consecutive Rumble.

Punk opened Monday Night Raw, walking out with his arm in a sling and looking wistfully at the WrestleMania 40 sign before telling fans that he felt "a bit unlucky" about his injury. He discussed wanting to just tape it up and head to Elimination Chamber to find a way to Philadelphia, but it wasn't to be, saying Mania "isn't in the cards" for him.

Get well soon, CM Punk. ❤️#WWERaw pic.twitter.com/HCFFZVPwuI

— WWE (@WWE) January 30, 2024

The Second City Savior repeatedly told fans that the torn triceps was "just a flesh wound" and a "bump in the road," vowing (as he did in AEW) to go "until the wheels fall off."

However, it should be noted that this is the third injury Punk has sustained in his past 14 televised matches. He broke his foot just days after winning the AEW World Championship in June 2022, and then tore his left triceps when he regained the world title at All Out just three months later.

Fightful Select noted that they had not heard that Rhodes' Rumble victory was an audible called due to the injury. Internally, Punk was slated to face Seth Rollins -- who is also dealing with his own injury (a torn MCL and partially torn meniscus) -- for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania.

Punk did not elaborate on whether or when he will have surgery, but PWInsider reported that the belief among several sources is that Punk would need four-to-six months to recover, which would clearly put him out of action well past WrestleMania.

Best wishes to CM Punk on his recovery.