Following Colt Cabana’s recent return to television, the relationship between AEW and CM Punk has only gotten worse.
Cabana and Punk’s friendship soured after they were sued by now-former WWE doctor Chris Amann for Punk’s comments about him in an interview on Cabana’s podcast. They later sued each other after the lawsuit, with Cabana claiming that Punk promised to cover all of his legal bills only to break his word.
Cabana vanished from television shortly after Punk joined AEW last year, sparking speculation that Punk was involved in AEW’s decision not to renew Cabana’s contract earlier this year. Cabana was sent to the ROH brand after the locker room went to bat for him.
During the AEW All Out media scrum, Punk attacked Cabana, The Elite, and Hangman Page. With Punk suspended and recovering from surgery, AEW reintroduced Cabana on Dynamite on November 2, where he challenged Chris Jericho for the ROH World Championship. This comes at a time when Punk is reportedly in contract buyout negotiations with the promotion.
Dave Meltzer reported in the latest edition of the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that “Colt Cabana wrestling Chris Jericho only made things worse as far as issues with the two sides. Punk remains adamant he had nothing to do with Cabana being gone.”
Meltzer went on to say that a lot of talent believes and insists on the contrary, and it’s openly discussed. Punk’s contract situation has not changed as of this writing, as the promotion is still selling his merchandise and he is still under contract.
