CM Punk vs. AEW

By
Jim LaMotta
-

Be care what you wish for because you just might get it.

The old adage might be cliche, but it’s also usually true. Nothing provides a better example for that in the current climate of the pro wrestling industry than the events that took place in Chicago. No, not the All Out pay-per-view, which featured the return of MJF to the company, but rather CM Punk’s post-show media scrum. Punk, who was on the shelf for three months because of a very badly injured foot that required extensive surgery, reclaimed the AEW world championship in front of his hometown crowd. Instead of discussing what it was like to be back in the ring and presumably on the path to take the company into 2023, Punk went on a tirade. The world champion of the promotion buried the majority of the company, including The Elite, the faction that the launch of the organization was built around. The real-life Phil Brooks ranted about his former best friend Colt Cabana, who was quietly taken off of AEW programming before he was signed to a contract to work for Ring Of Honor, even though the status of that Khan project seems to be unknown. The rumor mill suggested that Punk, who was involved in a bitter lawsuit with Cabana, stemming from another lawsuit that was filed after Punk appeared on the Cabana podcast several years ago to speak on his walk out of WWE, used his position to get Colt sent home from television tapings. Nothing was confirmed and nobody from All Elite actually commented on Cabana’s status.

CM Punk went as far to suggest that the EVPs of the company, The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega were responsible for getting the story picked up by the wrestling press a few months ago. He also addressed when he went off-script a few weeks ago to bury Adam Page and explained that it was in response to when Page made reference to Cabana in a promo ahead of the match they had at Double or Nothing when Punk initially won the championship.

There are several things that this reveals about not only CM Punk’s current status in the company, but also the state of the company itself.

First of all, very similar to what I wrote in an article last week, it might be tough for some fans to admit, but prehaps Triple H was right about CM Punk. Punk won the world championship in his hometown, how much more spotlight could the company put on him? But, instead of discussing any of that, he decided to bury the structure of the company and many of it’s featured performers for almost thirty minutes. Obviously, Punk has a grudge against the dirt sheets that reported that he might’ve been the guy to get Colt sent him, and clearly the “reporter” that originally mentioned Cabana was trying to bait Punk into a rant. Why exactly would CM Punk be willing to play into that? He could’ve brushed it off instead of giving the “journalist” exactly what he wanted. If anything, Punk actually lent credibility to the possibility that he got Cabana sent home even if it isn’t true because it’s clear that Phil Brooks has hostility toward Scott Colton. Maybe Brooks is justified in that hostility, but what does it accomplish to give the dirt sheets more content on the subject?


Punk claimed that the EVPs “couldn’t manage a Target,” another statement that validated some of the rumors that there was discontent backstage. It might be true, but what good does it do to make any of this public? Punk claimed that he wanted to sell tickets and draw money for AEW. How did anything he said at the press conference do anything to help draw money for AEW? “Hey guys, you know all those wrestlers that you paid to watch before I got here? None of them are good and they don’t have the best interest of the company in mind.” Furthermore, if the implication is that the structure of the company is in disarray, why should the fans have faith in the promotion of want to invest in it?

All of this sounded like CM Punk putting himself about everybody else on the roster.

Considering the popularity of Kenny Omega and Adam Page to the AEW core audience, how exactly is Punk going to draw money when he buried both of them? Keep in mind, Punk also expressed that he wasn’t thrilled to work with MJF, who is the next challenger for the title so what exactly would make Punk happy? It wasn’t as though anyone was clamoring for that big Colt Cabana return before Punk specifically mentioned his name and the details of their hostility would be too inside baseball for a national audience to get any of the references. Perhaps, CM Punk was annoyed that there was an MJF chant to conclude the event in Chicago.

During the course of the media scrum, Punk said he was “hurt and tired” which is exactly what he said about his WWE exit so he went to the “woe is me” narrative as far as being a martyr for pro wrestling.


Ultimately, Tony Khan wanted CM Punk and he got CM Punk. When Punk got exactly what he wanted exactly the way he wanted it, he was all smiles after Double or Nothing because all of the spotlight was on him. When the night concluded with a pop for MJF, Punk decides to bury the company at the press conference. Punk also said if anyone had a problem with him, they could find him, and there was a rumor of some type of altercation after the media scrum, but I take that with a grain of salt. The only thing I will say about it is that before Punk challenges the world in front of a mic, he should probably consider what happened the last time he was in an unscripted fight.


Tony Khan looked like he just received some bad news about his dog (and I wouldn’t blame him) during the entire segment. Khan is passionate about pro wrestling and didn’t have to invest any cash into the industry so his efforts are admirable, but he was too naive and unfortunately, he learned a tough lesson about the pro wrestling business. All things considered, I think CM Punk’s tenure in AEW has done more harm than good for the perception of the company, specifically based on this rant. I’m just guessing, but I think on some level, Khan is going to have to decide if The Elite or CM Punk is more valuable to his company. The problem is, CM Punk is the AEW world champion and has a history of walking out of a company so what if he doesn’t agree to eventually drop the title?

It’s very ironic that CM Punk claimed that he wanted to sell tickets and draw money for AEW because his rant has more fans talking about the free press conference after the show than the $50 pay-per-view.

What do you think? Share your thoughts, opinions, feedback, and anything else that was raised on Twitter @PWMania and Facebook.com/PWMania.

Until next week
-Jim LaMotta

E mail [email protected] | You can follow me on Twitter @jimlamotta

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