CM Punk could have been part of AEW from the start but didn’t want to be involved with an unproven product. So instead, he sat by while Tony Khan assembled a roster consisting of The Elite, Cody Rhodes, Jon Moxley, and Chris Jericho, capable of selling out shows in minutes and dominating NXT in the ratings. Finally, however, with his movie and television career failing to take off and his bank balance diminished thanks to a WWE-funded lawsuit against him, he would bestow AEW with his presence, debuting during the premiere episode of Rampage on August 20th, 2021. And to be fair, that was an incredible moment that will live on in pro wrestling history.
Nevertheless, since then, the rating boom he was expected to deliver failed to come, and due to his abrasive personality, he has apparently slowly been turning the locker room against him, as he did in WWE. And the self-proclaimed locker room leader has now thrown AEW as a company into disarray following comments he made during the All Out media scrum, resulting in a backstage fight. Seemingly forcing Khan to choose between the former WWE star he paid handsomely to entice out of retirement and the men he launched the company with back in 2019.
And while losing Punk, who is currently the promotions world champion, would be a significant blow to AEW. Contrary to what the haters would have you believe, AEW was thriving pre-Punk and will thrive again. With Cody Rhodes’ departure, having shown what Khan has built is larger than any individual wrestler. Plus, truth be told, today’s Punk isn’t Hulk Hogan 1984 or Steve Austin 1998. In fact, he isn’t even CM Punk 2011, and with his bridge well and truly burnt with WWE, he now has nowhere else to go except back into wrestling retirement. In contrast, Tony Khan and AEW will continue to give wrestling fans the alternative they craved for two decades and create stars that may even one day exceed Punk’s stardom.
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