Samoa Joe Defeats Roderick Strong, Will Face CM Punk In AEW Owen Hart Tournament

The highly rumored and anticipated match between Samoa Joe and CM Punk is official for next Saturday's "AEW Collision." After the Ring of Honor World Television Champion made Roderick Strong tap out on "Collision," he officially advanced to the semi-finals of the men's Owen Hart Foundation Tournament. This past Sunday at AEW x NJPW: Forbidden Door, Punk defeated Satoshi Kojima to advance in the tournament.

In the lead-up to Punk's AEW return on the debut episode of "Collision," many rumors and reports went around about possible feuds for the former AEW World Champion. After some time with the rumors centering around a possible feud with Chris Jericho, it was reported that Punk had requested to work with his old ROH rival Joe. Additionally, it was reported that Punk had an interest in working with "Switchblade" Jay White, which came to pass in the main events of the first two episodes of "Collision."

The second men's semi-final match in the tournament is also set after tonight's "Collision," with Powerhouse Hobbs having beaten "The Natural" Dustin Rhodes and Ricky Starks taking down "Rock Hard" Juice Robinson. Hobbs and Starks will also be a rematch, albeit of a far more recent rivalry.