Almost as soon as CM Punk returned to WWE, fans would bring up his past now-deleted tweet directed towards The Miz, where he told him to suck a “blood money-covered d*ck in Saudi Arabia.” This was a topic of conversation because many wondered whether the former AEW star would stand by his principles or instead be a hypocrite and take the huge money on offer by working a Saudi show himself.
And now, PWInsider.com has confirmed that Punk won’t be in Jeddah for King and Queen Of The Ring this weekend. Instead, he will be commentating on Friday night’s Cage Fury Fighting Championships in Philadelphia. Whether this is due to a scheduling conflict or Punk turned down making an appearance on moral grounds isn’t publicly known and likely won’t be until WWE returns to Saudi Arabia for Crown Jewel in November when Punk will presumably be medically cleared.
Still, defenders of the arrangement argue that WWE’s presence is helping to bring about a positive change, and the Saudi wrestling fans who attend the shows are not to blame for their government’s actions. Ultimately, the situation is highly complex, and WWE and TKO clearly believe that the deal’s benefits far outweigh the negatives.
WWE began running house shows in Saudi Arabia in 2014 and subsequently signed a colossal money deal to hold annual pay-per-view quality events there. Yet over the years, a significant number of WWE’s critics have voiced concern over the company’s acceptance of “blood money” from a country that doesn’t permit LGBT equality, commits human rights abuses, and suppresses women.
