CM Punk vs Grayson Waller is the perfect main event for WWE Wrestlepalooza in Australia

WWE recently announced its return to Perth, Australia for Wrestlepalooza, and CM Punk vs Grayson Waller could make for the perfect main event on that show.

Wrestlepalooza is set for Saturday, December 12 at Perth’s RAC Arena, sandwiched in between SmackDown the night before and Raw the Monday after, all in the same venue.

The event comes at a good time for Australia’s own Grayson Waller, who is now the NXT Champion after a resurgent return to the brand in July.

Grayson Waller’s time to shine

Waller has always had potential but was never really given the platform to fully succeed on the main roster outside of a couple of bright moments including a Madison Square Garden main event against Edge and a confrontation with John Cena at Money in the Bank in England.

He’s been able to get himself into phenomenal physical shape, and his return to NXT has allowed him that platform to showcase himself and his personality in a way that he just wasn’t able to on Raw and SmackDown, which may come down to the simple fact that Shawn Michaels trusts him and Triple H doesn’t.

WWE heading down to Australia means Waller might have a shot on a big main roster stage, as he’s been a major part of the promotion in his home country for previous events.

Especially with Rhea Ripley out of the picture due to her injury, that leaves Bronson Reed and Waller as the only Aussies on the WWE roster at the moment.

Reed might find himself in a big position and possibly the main event, but Grayson Waller might have the perfect opponent already lined up – CM Punk.

WWE has already planted seeds for CM Punk vs Grayson Waller

Last month, Punk and Waller were both at an untelevised NXT live event where they shot a confrontation backstage that was posted on social media by WWE.

Waller has made it no secret that he’s wanted to work with Punk since Punk’s return to WWE in 2023, and it seems like it might be about to become a reality.

Unless that confrontation was shot as a one-off with no real purpose behind it other than to cause some momentary buzz, plans appear to be in motion for a rivalry between the two.

Up until just over a week ago, this could have been a WWE Champion vs NXT Champion exhibition style match, but after Punk lost his WWE Title to Sami Zayn, that’s no longer in the picture.

Still, it doesn’t diminish the fact that he’s CM Punk and he’s the headline attraction for the majority of the shows he’s part of.

Due to his sheer popularity and overness, he’s been a babyface for the vast majority of his current tenure, but there have been the occasional environments where he gets to act like a heel – such as his recent matches against Kevin Owens in Toronto and Johnny Gargano in Cleveland – and you can tell he absolutely loves it.

Heading into Australia against Waller would be another example of that unique hometown atmosphere that Punk thrives off, and Waller is bound to thrive off the support as well.

Unless something changes in the coming months, CM Punk vs Grayson Waller should absolutely be the main event of WWE Wrestlepalooza 2026.

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