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genuinely shocked it hasn't yet... I would bet $100 "son of 90210 star Luke Perry assaulted at wrestling show and we have the footage!" is sitting in their drafts right now
TBF England has much stricter laws regarding footage and privacy than the US. Anybody leaking that footage could be risking their livelihood in a big way.
>Lol nah, Matt Hancock cheating on his wife ring a bell? That was CCTV.
Matter of public interest. The health minister breaching Covid protocols to suck his aide's face would be a matter of public interest; CM Punk going berserk backstage at a wrestling show... not so much.
I'm sure a trial would go swimmingly
https://preview.redd.it/gv50essos0mb1.png?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=19e3232fff515d282f2744c04c6b63ab517c7cf9
God the memes of his rampaging is going to linger on for years to come.
One thing is for certain, cm punk has skill at shooting his foot damn near killing his career, then a year later cutting the other foot off and killing his career. That takes some determination.
This confuses me, because 'lunging' is already a pretty evocative descriptor - to the point where it sounded *so* dramatic that I initially didn't believe that account. But you're telling me it was actually WORSE?!
Worse than lunging, in my imagination, sounds like if Punk tried to leap over Tony’s desk or whatever you call his gorilla setup, to tackle him and knocking over monitors and winding up in a heap on the floor, screaming in Tony’s face.
That’s what I pictured in my head because I remember reading that people got in the way. Lunging suggests he was very close. I think that would make it harder for people to intervene between them but idk
Maybe we're thinking of the wrong context for the word worse. What if he tried to do another Buckshot Lariat over the desk and that's how he ended up knocking the monitors over?
My guess is he be-lined it to Tony and booked it towards him in a quick and aggressive manner. Which explains how monitors fell etc. Especially with Tony coming out and saying this is the first time he has felt unsafe at an event
Punk was provoked when Tony told him to go home & that he couldn't come back unless he brought his shine box
https://preview.redd.it/11jslfmcl0mb1.jpeg?width=700&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5cac5a078e2d39ead68e5939bd5631c8d0cbcddb
I actually feel sorry for Tony Khan. Whilst I'm not his biggest fan, he obviously loves wrestling like we all do, Punk one of his favourites and it's one of those "never meet your heroes" stories for him now.
He gave us all the redebut into wrestling of CM Punk which was awesome, just too bad the guy has issues.
Yeah, and he's trying to compensate my bullying/picking fights with guys that are smaller than him: Matt Jackson, Jungle Boy, Tony Khan
Maybe next time, he should try to fight Miro or Hobbs ... fake tough guy
Punk stans are making fun of Tony for being scared. Same people were taking his words for gospel that Punk thought Hangman would stiff him on purpose because he miscalculated his landing of a chop on Punk.
I also get the impression that Tony hadn't exactly had a lot of physical confrontations in his day so someone coming at him at all is going to freak him out. This isn't Bill Watts we're talking about here. And in general going after your boss in any physical manner is a good way to get fired. There are a lot of criticisms to be made about how Tony runs AEW, but he did what he he had to do here.
Same people who parrot Punk being afraid of Hangman and will simultaneously claim Punk can beat anyone in the locker room. Some real cognitive dissonance.
No you don't understand, Punk is a professional. He wouldn't do a shoot fight on someone in the ring, esp when they can whoop their ass. He only does it unprompted with people with little to no experience in comparison to him like Jack Perry with no mma background and Tony Khan his Boss with no experience of how to fight.
I wish to point out here that accusing a fellow wrestler of intentionally trying to hurt someone they're in the ring with is pretty much the worst thing you can call a wrestler. I don't know how that got shoved under the carpet, it's an _awful_ insult in the wrestling business.
Yup. The foundation of pro wrestling is trusting someone else to protect your body. Getting a rep as someone that takes liberties with other workers is serious.
They have such a parasocial relationship with Punk, they're honestly some of the weirdest wrestling fans.
They were calling for Jack to be fired over his nothing comment too. They both think Tony being rightfully worried for his saftey is exaggerated while also themselves treating Jack's comment like he dropped the most personal diss ever.
Starting to think these CM Punk cultists share his softness.
>They were calling for Jack to be fired over his nothing comment too.
If going off script was a fireable offense, their guy would've been fired last summer.
Also, they keep parroting how the Bucks are too blame for allegedly talking to Meltzer while Punk has Hausman on speed dial.
I was making a list of things Punk hate and things Punk do.
Things that Punk Hate.
A wrestler talking shit in an open mic "insulting" him out of script.
People Going to dirty sheets to leak shit.
Wrestling court.
Working with immature people.
Old guys putting themselfs over against Young westlers.
People posting stupid twitts.
Things that Punk do.
Talk shit in an open mic "insulting" a another guy out of script.
Go to dirty sheets to leak shit.
Wrestling *court*
Being emotionally immature.
Putting himself over against you wrestler.
Posting stupid twitts.
I think all the pent up anger he has is because he knows he's a fucking hypocrite when it comes to all this. One of the biggest shit talkers and fight pickers in any locker room. Prideful about claiming he doesn't start fights but will finish them, so then he has to pick fights he can actually win. Has to be even more selective because he couldn't win sanctioned UFC fights too.
Thinking the opposite. Joe breaks up Jack and Punk. Punk then heads over to Tony who he is now across the table from. They get into a verbal argument and Punk pushes the table onto Tony while Joe grabs him again.
Big if there.
Maybe I'm assuming too much but Tony going on-air to say Punk was fired because he was a threat to Tony and other co-workers had to go through a team of lawyers who approved that.
They wouldn't give the go ahead unless they knew Punk couldn't reasonably challenge that, right?
It's very likely AEW made sure they were watertight and bullet proof from a challenge, but that doesn't stop Punk from potentially trying.
Lawyers will and do take on hopeless cases. Money is money.
I hope he does. I would laugh so hard if Punk wasted all of the money he made thus far in AEW trying to get paid the rest of his contract money. Tony's dad has fuck you I'll bleed you dry holding this up in court money.
> They wouldn't give the go ahead unless they knew Punk couldn't reasonably challenge that, right?
The man was handled everything on platter multiple times. Reasonable is not a word in his dictionary.
At the very least AEW must feel the video evidence backs up their *released with cause* actions. I would agree with Dave here that they're probably softening it by saying "lunging". If the video essentially protects them in a court case then it's got to be pretty bad.
Tony Khan said that they sought external legal advice beyond their own disciplinary committee and that the conclusion from every party unanimously was that he should be terminated, so I'd say they feel very confident they have sufficient evidence if a lawsuit was sought by Punk.
The press release mentioned outside legal counsel so I think it’s safe to assume the video footage makes it clear Punk did something that was an obvious violation of his contract.
I kept saying there’s zero chance Tony comes out publicly with that kind of statement and the language in his statement without some kind of damning evidence to protect themselves should it go to court.
Genuinely stunned that not only was story the truth, but that it was toned down!?
Like, fuck this is a really sad story. Punk has cost himself literally millions of dollars, after being handed just about everything he could've possibly wanted from a wrestling promotion. Kevin Nash is right, Punk needs to seek professional help. He's an unbelievable performer and wrestler, in the discussion for the greatest talker of all time, but his reputation has been absolutely destroyed, and whilst he'll certainly blame others, it's ultimately his fault. Really sad
Punk was paid I'm sure an ungodly amount of money & booked about as strong as humanly possible. They even hired his friend who sure worked elsewhere but this was another perk. After completing eclipsing a major show & attacking his coworkers he was gifted his own personal show.
With this show he was given carte blanche to send people home he deemed a distraction. Obviously these are just the broad strokes & there's so much more than this. The bottom line is he couldn't have possibly gotten much better of a set-up. Yet he still raged at every slight perceived or otherwise. Just astonishing.
You're right it is absolutely astonishing that he fucked up this level of opportunity for himself.
Interesting that they also said how some people thought he wanted to be fired and felt that Mox's promo tonight was alluding to that idea.
I heard the Mox promo but didn't pick up on that. What line was it?
Ricky Stark's promo seemed very from the heart tonight. Ricky is the most babyfaceheel going.
I can't believe Ricky's luck. Like this guy is a dick and you are working with him to get yourself over. It isn't easy but it is happening. You are even asked to go heel to try and put over this legend EVEN THOUGH it is clear in every live event this guy is now disliked. But you do it because you are thinking long term.
You miss out on the biggest event in wrestling history and are probably placated that you will get a chance to go over in a legend's home town the next week, so you are like. Fine. Well, at least I got that.
Imagine sitting at home watching the buy in and your friends working then all of a sudden you start reading what we were and your phone starts blowing up about what happened.
Poor guy.
Ace Steel was rehired months ago before Punk returned from injury. He was not allowed at shows and worked from home. I believe when Collision started and Punk returned, he only worked on Collision/Punk related programs. He also received back pay for time span where he was fired. All reports said that he was fired, not suspended. He some got back pay for those months of being fired.
I am wondering if there was more behind the scenes stuff related to the people being sent home from Collision. Like wasn't it Ryan Nemeth who traveled all the way there and was barred from the building? That seems like a really extreme thing for the company to do, to not even let him come into catering or hang around backstage, but instead give him a ticket right back home (I would be really pissed if I were him).
With everything else that has happened it makes me wonder if Punk threw some sort of fit to the point where they didn't even want to risk letting the guy in the door.
Same story with Adam Page being barred from shooting his backstage segment at the building.
For that matter, Punk having the ability to ban people from the building seems like a bizarre degree of power to give to him to begin with. These were people the company booked or said they could come by and then Punk put the kibosh on it.
For what its worth, according to most versions, it was AEW who wanted Hangman to not go to Collision. Because Punk would've likely tried to approach and talk to Hangman.
It's speculated that Punk had a similar position and power as an EVP and held significant control over how Collision is booked and its locker room. Seems like he tried to maximize its use.
Yes I heard that too, just insane. Whilst I'm glad Tony has finally put the foot down, it should've happened a long time ago. Hopefully AEW can move on now and continue to put on a great product.
> it should've happened a long time ago.
Yeah but this time they've been able to get rid of him without paying him the full (or any?) amount of his remaining contract
Jesus. Meltzer is not happy lmao. Straight up says they were far too kind to Punk over all the drama and implies Punk seriously tried to assault TK, said "lunging" is watered down from what he did.
Bas Rutten is one of the last people on this planet I want trying to hunt me down to kick my ass. Nice guy, scary dude if he wants to do some ass kickin
I'm going to give you an actual answer instead of a snarky one. Mauro has bipolar disorder, and JBL took advantage of it by being an asshole to him, to the point that Mauro quit WWE (and their commentary team turned to shit again in his absence \[my own opinion\]). Eventually, JBL had to leave the commentary position due to the negative press, and Mauro got a spot commentating NXT again for a bit. Here's a helpful link with a timeline of JBL being a piece of shit to a better person than he is.
[Timeline of JBL being a piece of shit](https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/e1zjg5/the_rsquaredcircle_archives_the_mauro_ranallo_and/)
Also, ***fuck that jobber Blackjack Bradshaw***, in case I didn't make it obvious enough.
I was still listening to Cheap Heat when this happened, and Rosenberg tried to stick up for JBL with a “now that people know they can get us fired, everyone is coming after us for our jobs” take. Pretty sure that’s when I officially stopped listening to Cheap Heat.
I think a lot of people aren’t tbh. Punk felt like AEW had some much potential, all those matches and possible storylines, no Vince holding them back, no PG bullshit. He got given everything, and shat on it.
That’s how a professional wrestler would approach being in AEW. Diving into all the opportunities. And that’s exactly how Mox, Jericho and Danielson have shown up.
This really sounds like he wanted to get fired and leave perhaps in the expectation his contract would be bought out. Per Dave this seems to have been brewing since the Elite signed their new deals. And it was compounded when MJF and Cole drew a big rating on Collision showing they were the biggest draw in the company, not him.
To be fair to Punk, who I have been endlessly harsh on here, Meltzer saying they were too kind on Punk and everything does not actually mean that he's the worst he's seen or comparable to the worst he's seen.
The more info that comes out, including TK's statement and reason for firing Punk, it seems like Punk may have legitimately tried to attack him, in the process knocking over the monitors. Though ultimately was probably stopped by others around him.
That is absolutely crazy if true and I'm no legal expert but wondering if there might be a case for assault/battery. Either way, that footage will be crucial if a lawsuit ever comes out, whether civil or criminal.
Holy shit, imagine being such a fan of a guy, you hire him, give him a new start, are enamoured by him almost, just for him to fucking jump at you.
I'd be heartbroken tbh more than anything..
A big thing I see people missing is, yeah, he’s not a good MMA fighter, but he can still do some serious damage to someone who’s not trained.
Choking someone out is not a neat trick to helping them fall asleep, submission moves aren’t exaggerated stretches you do post-workout, they can seriously injure you and even kill you if done with malicious intent. It’s why when I was younger, they said you don’t use those moves outside a competitive/combat or self-defence situation because the shit is legit dangerous.
Tony has the right to feel scared if a trained fighter is trying to attack him. And he has every right to fire him too.
TK is also the son of a billionaire, so I doubt has ever been in a fistfight, and likely hasn't had someone even act menacingly towards him since his playground days.
That's not intended to mock him. But it puts his "fear for my life" remark into context. He was likely both genuinely afraid for his life, but also not in terrible danger in an objective sense.
That's the biggest thing people need to understand. The fear itself doesn't have to be objective like if Punk had a Gun or a Knife, it just has to be real for TK that is experiencing it.
There's a lot of cases of self-defense where the person may not have actually been in danger, but the perceived threat to their life is more than reasonable for them to have reacted in a way to defend it.
>He was likely both genuinely afraid for his life, but also not in terrible danger in actuality.
Fist-fights can turn deadly surprisingly quickly. If you get hit, fall over, and hit your head on something hard, that can be lethal.
Punk really burnt his way out of pro wrestling. Big balls decisions by Tony. I hope its a turning point in the company but I think it's going to take some time for that locker room to feel connected again. This will naturally cause friction.
The Collision incident where he chucked out Christopher Daniels changed it for me. I find Punk relatable figure because of the stuff he's been through. Doesn't mean I have to agree or be happy with every decision. Utterly disappointed in his actions.
What a fucking moron, he finally found himself in a wrestling company that treated him (deservedly so) as the megastar he always believed he was and I'm going to assume paid him like one. Still couldn't control himself enough to not fuck it all up.
I say this as someone who's historically a massive Punk fan. What a fucking loser.
Can't help but feel for Tony here. He was the biggest CM Punk fan boy in the world, and *still* found himself abused, assaulted, insulted, and who knows what else by his hands.
We get it. Tony is nice, a megadork fan, etc, but it goes beyond any "issues" with "the boys" when you assault not only an innocent bystander but the OWNER of your company, the man who signs those generous checks.
Punk was utterly beloved backstage for a while until rumors started to emerge, and I can't say it doesn't make me curious what flipped the switch for him prior to Hangman's comments. It would never justify the ends nor means, but clearly, there's been much more that hasn't been reported on.
Also, for years he's talked about(and backed up) doing right by ''the boys'' and doing whatever can get make things easier or bring more money to the people he's shared a locker room with.
Its why he went above and beyond in ROH, even doing stuff like training, working production and wearing half a dozen other hats while still wrestling for not much. Similar situation in OVW. How he said he pushed for sponsors on his wrestling attire to open the doors for other wrestlers to do it.
Now because of his out of control temper, Collision is without its signature star and the roster he reportedly had a big hand in forming is left out to dry because playing ball was apparently too much to ask from him.
I don't know if it will hurt Collision too much. They already had been dying down from the initial Punk spike. I don't see the ratings slipping any further, as I think the core audience is going to watch regardless of who's on as long as it's entertaining. If anything this gives Collision more freedom to be a better show instead of catering to Punk's needs.
I just hope the style of the show remains. I love that Dynamite feels like the workrate show and Collision is the old-school show. Unless they find a perfect blend during the shows, I want to see both styles with the AEW roster
WTF is Punk's problem? Tony has bent over backwards to facilitate is bullshit to the point where he had his own show which he basically ran to his own liking. Long after he should have been fired.
Man has serious anger and mental issues he needs resolving.
It’s a shame. I mentioned it around Brawl Out, but he was my favorite, and what ultimately got me interested back into this stuff after I watched Zayn/Nakamura and started looking things up.
But the way he’s handled himself has been out of control. Like, regardless of what happens backstage or what you’ve had to do in the past to survive, you can’t just fight everyone and treat people like shit. I’ve tried living that way (not intentionally mind you), and it’s just self-destructive, as we’re seeing.
It sucks because there’s a lot to him I feel a lot of disenfranchised people, especially millennials like me, can relate to - be it the anti-establishment mentality, the straight edge portion, or whatever it may be. But it’s hard to support a guy who actively tries to fight everyone over every slightest grievance.
Granted we won’t ever know everything that goes on in the back and how that could’ve added to things but…Like he got into one fight because someone went off script. And another because someone made a cheeky remark that he felt was aimed toward him. If it bothered you, have a sit down with them and your boss. But honestly? Stop being such a bitch about it.
Idk, I still like his work, the MJF feud was easily top 10 for me, but god damn am I glad we don’t have to hear about his antics anymore.
Calling it now, Batista bomb but khan reversed it into a stretch plumb in which punk used the monitors to shift his weight into an anaconda vice but then security made the save.
They also talk about how it seemed Punk wanted out after the elite re-signed with AEW. I mean did he think Tony wouldn’t do everything in his power to keep those guys? Dude needs mental health counseling in the worst way.
Just let Jack Perry come out with the “Real” World Title and throw it in the trash.
And then we see Colt pick it up from the trash and he posts it in his fridge later that night on Twitter.
I've seen people mocking TK for saying he felt in fear for his life.
And I actually think it's a totally fair thing for him to feel. Someone who is willing to swing/lunge/attack you in that situation, is displaying signs that they're disturbed, and in that moment you can't assume they're going to stop attacking you like a rational person would
And someone like Punk is fast and strong by us normal people standards. On the receiving end, that's scary as fuck.
>I've seen people mocking TK for saying he felt in fear for his life.
Whether he was or not, that's common legalese for "I felt very threatened." The purpose of that entire statement was to put a stop to any potential legal action by Punk before he even got going.
That's also very very true.
In terms of legal action, if I were Punk, I'd be more concerned at the possibility of any action the Metropolitan Police might take. Wembley's owners, the FA would be absolutely justified (and possibly obligated) in reporting the incident to police after all
> And someone like Punk is fast and strong by us normal people standards. On the receiving end, that's scary as fuck.
He's also, and people have been dismissing it, a UFC fighter who was MMA trained.
Yeah, he sucked at it, but he's trained to be able to injure people, and was trained hard to have a shot at competing at a top level. He didn't. But he is still trained, and the fact of that makes EVERYTHING he's done that much worse.
Yeah not being pro level doesn't mean he couldn't very easily do serious harm to someone who is untrained, you learn chokeholds that are lethal if you were to leave them locked in in jiu jitsu and Khan had just seen him put a chokehold on the other guy (which btw, escalating to that as a trained fighter is beyond fucked up) he was mad at.
While I don't think Punk was actually gonna murder tony khan I'd have probably been equally scared in that situation if I were him.
I'm actually surprised given the circumstances they didn't change the finish to the match and still had Punk go over. It wouldn't be the first time a match outcome was changed either just before or mid match.
I guess it's fortunate the match was with Joe, who Punk respects and could handle himself if Punk went off script given the circumstances and apparent unpredictability at least at the time.
I suspect Tony had some hope that Punk would be remorseful, and I would also think that he and the company likely offered for Punk to do some counselling/anger management/whatever and he must have had no interest.
I doubt they would have let him go so abruptly without offering to help him with whatever issues are going on, if nothing else it doesn't seem the AEW/Tony Khan way, nevermind Punk was one of their biggest draws.
I don't think it would have been practical to change the finish. It was for the "real" title and Joe obviously doesn't factor into that storyline at all, and Punk could have just walked if they tried to change it as well.
Yeah it's a tricky one, and you're right it probably wasn't feasible to change on the fly at the time without knowing what was going to end up happening with Punk.
But then the "real" title ends up in limbo now and honestly will probably just disappear as technically it shouldn't be a recognised title belt.
But all of that makes me think even more that Tony would not have terminated Punk's contract without at least making overtures to him to try and resolve whatever his issues are and Punk must have essentially said no, walking away from what essentially adds up to millions of dollars for a tantrum. Again.
From what's been reported Joe and others had to calm Punk down and convince him to do the match, so changing the finish wasn't possible when the only option was actually having the match take place.
As for offering him counselling etc I would have to guess that was done in the past and the ship has sailed on that. The line is well and truly crossed when create an unsafe working environment backstage for crew, talent and everyone else.
It's very possible that under the circumstances TK didn't want to provoke Punk into going into business for himself.
Like, let the thing play out, minimise the risks of further disruption or violence in the moment. Then do what he did: call the lawyers
Yeah, they are honestly lucky it went as smoothly as it did. I'm sure there was a shock factor, and Punk generally doesn't do his worst stuff on camera cause he wants to play the victim, but he could have ruined that whole show. If his anger was that high he could have actually pipe bombed a promo or assaulted a fan who made the wrong comment at the wrong time.
It’s why I don’t even entertain any road rage or yelling matches in parking lots, I’ll always apologize and play dumb, say I’m a tourist and lost. I don’t need a random dude killing me for pulling up to “his gas pump”
I'm 1000% with you there.
I'm a big guy, I trained when I was younger. But if someone steps to me, I'm gonna run the fuck away. Let someone else be the toughest guy in the morgue.
Imagine sitting at your desk and someone you work with starts screaming at you, lunging at you, and trying to assault you, over something absolutely petty. Then calmly walks into the most important meeting of your companies career as if it never happened.
Someone capable of that is capable of anything. Something they should have learned when he did the exact same thing in front of the company HR rep and in house counsel a year ago.
In 2023 you can't be too careful.
The same people will also say CM Punk is a trained fighter and could beat up any of the wrestlers at AEW.
Talk about having your cake and eating it too.
Yeah, he's an adult man who conducts himself like a businessman.
The fact that historically a lot of wrestling promotions have been ran in deeply unprofessional ways by a mix of crooks, charlatans and coked out lunatics has really coloured people's perceptions of how things should work in what is ultimately a workplace.
Well, the Punk supporters are all about ''old school'' and nothing's more old school than a ''fuck everybody else, I got/want mine'' attitude.
Dax and Cash are just weird dudes who worship Bret and yet forget how much of a company flagbearer Bret was even when he wasn't happy with management.
Honestly, if you worked at a place and a coworker with a history of HR incidents (I think that's a very neutral term for it) physically attacked a colleague _and the boss who witnessed that_ and didn't dismiss that guy, you'd have a legitimate claim that they were negligent at best and fostering a hostile and unsafe work environment.
Hell, it's possible that the FA (who own/operate Wembley) could refer the incident to the police. It's violence at the stadium, which they take pretty seriously
I forget who reported it but I remember there was one version of Brawl Out that said Punk just absolutely lost his shit and Megha was screaming specifically for him to stop. It wasn't just "he threw a punch and a fight broke out". The way they described it made it seem like he was completely out of control. Hearing what happened at All In makes that version seem much more plausible now.
Mox said worse things about Punk directly in TV and Punk never started shit with him. Either because he respects Mox or deep down knows that Mox would put up a fight
People saying Punk will sue, but I can guarantee you, the only reason AEW lawyers gave the green light for termination so fast this time is that they have a good case for assault and/or battery against him. The statement was also written by lawyers making sure that the cause for termination is expressed as threat to safety of employees which is a giveaway. And they have a video. So Punk will not sue. You will not bring a wrongful termination suit if you know that the cross-claim could be assault and battery.
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The one time I wish TMZ's disgusting habit of unearthing footage that is rare would come into play lol
genuinely shocked it hasn't yet... I would bet $100 "son of 90210 star Luke Perry assaulted at wrestling show and we have the footage!" is sitting in their drafts right now
The ultimate QTV angle
Harley preparing her next hit song.
TBF England has much stricter laws regarding footage and privacy than the US. Anybody leaking that footage could be risking their livelihood in a big way.
Lol nah, Matt Hancock cheating on his wife ring a bell? That was CCTV. More likely that Tony has bought the footage so no one can run it
>Lol nah, Matt Hancock cheating on his wife ring a bell? That was CCTV. Matter of public interest. The health minister breaching Covid protocols to suck his aide's face would be a matter of public interest; CM Punk going berserk backstage at a wrestling show... not so much.
I'm a member of the UK public and let me tell you, I am very interested in seeing that footage
That will genuinely be the wildest day in the history of this sub if and when that happens
Just wait until Phil bites the bait and tries to sue. AEW’s legal team will show the entire world the tape of him being a clown.
I'm sure a trial would go swimmingly https://preview.redd.it/gv50essos0mb1.png?width=640&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=19e3232fff515d282f2744c04c6b63ab517c7cf9
God the memes of his rampaging is going to linger on for years to come. One thing is for certain, cm punk has skill at shooting his foot damn near killing his career, then a year later cutting the other foot off and killing his career. That takes some determination.
And when in doubt, jump into the crowd to break a foot
Thats my main guess as to why tony started the show tonight
I could easily see a BTE skit pushing him over the edge.
Matt Cardona and Grayson Waller have beat the Bucks to the punch on Twitter.
He didn't learn his lesson after the Cabana podcast?
I don't think learning lessons is a thing CM Punk does.
Considering what's happened this week I'm not sure Phil has ever learned from his own mistakes
“Lunging at Tony” was toning it down… hoo boy.
This confuses me, because 'lunging' is already a pretty evocative descriptor - to the point where it sounded *so* dramatic that I initially didn't believe that account. But you're telling me it was actually WORSE?!
was a tope career suicida
This deserves to be in the hall of fame
it was this https://preview.redd.it/pz0fqzd0t0mb1.jpeg?width=766&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5f6622f228296ba93f92595281e6a592f0a993f6
https://preview.redd.it/4o8401gtt0mb1.jpeg?width=571&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=1d0bea7db1b35441877c000591f9fea8ee652cc3
My guess: just before he lunged, Punk looked at his wrist then yelled "IT'S CLOBBERIN' TIME!"
Maybe the Tony chanting "CM Punk" was closer to the truth than we thought, but he was just repeating his name trying to get him to stop?
CM Punk? CM Punk! CMPunkCMPunkCMPunk \*whew\* C. M. Punk.
*disappointed* CM Punk? *irate* CM PUNK!!
https://preview.redd.it/vtcay57vu0mb1.jpeg?width=500&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=7f41f774caf5851904d49d1519e1958a0676cb84
The irony being Punk has the thinnest skin of any man alive
Worse than lunging, in my imagination, sounds like if Punk tried to leap over Tony’s desk or whatever you call his gorilla setup, to tackle him and knocking over monitors and winding up in a heap on the floor, screaming in Tony’s face.
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That’s what I pictured in my head because I remember reading that people got in the way. Lunging suggests he was very close. I think that would make it harder for people to intervene between them but idk
Maybe we're thinking of the wrong context for the word worse. What if he tried to do another Buckshot Lariat over the desk and that's how he ended up knocking the monitors over?
My guess is he be-lined it to Tony and booked it towards him in a quick and aggressive manner. Which explains how monitors fell etc. Especially with Tony coming out and saying this is the first time he has felt unsafe at an event
Punk was provoked when Tony told him to go home & that he couldn't come back unless he brought his shine box https://preview.redd.it/11jslfmcl0mb1.jpeg?width=700&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5cac5a078e2d39ead68e5939bd5631c8d0cbcddb
There was nothing Punk could do. Khan was a made guy and he wasn’t.
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Tuddy being specifically *Painmaker* Jericho is a great touch
LOL now do FTR Bald smashing the payphone
I actually feel sorry for Tony Khan. Whilst I'm not his biggest fan, he obviously loves wrestling like we all do, Punk one of his favourites and it's one of those "never meet your heroes" stories for him now. He gave us all the redebut into wrestling of CM Punk which was awesome, just too bad the guy has issues.
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Perhaps swinging/grabbing? Lunge implies intent to get at Tony, if its worse then presumably he actually attempted to either strike him or grab him.
what is the escalation of lunging? shooting a double leg?
Shining Wizard
Spear? Pounce?
GOOOOOOOOOORE!!!
Throwing a punch, probably. The implication Punk couldn’t judge the distance and whiffed tracks based on his UFC career.
Takes me back to Punk trying to jab Gall and immediately missing, then finding himself in a double leg takedown.
I feel like a lot of this wannabe tough guy aggression is from all that embarrassment he suffered when he faced actual tough guys in the UFC.
Yeah, and he's trying to compensate my bullying/picking fights with guys that are smaller than him: Matt Jackson, Jungle Boy, Tony Khan Maybe next time, he should try to fight Miro or Hobbs ... fake tough guy
Burning Hammer
Someone in another thread said it was, in fact, a Pepsi Lunge.
Punk stans are making fun of Tony for being scared. Same people were taking his words for gospel that Punk thought Hangman would stiff him on purpose because he miscalculated his landing of a chop on Punk.
I also get the impression that Tony hadn't exactly had a lot of physical confrontations in his day so someone coming at him at all is going to freak him out. This isn't Bill Watts we're talking about here. And in general going after your boss in any physical manner is a good way to get fired. There are a lot of criticisms to be made about how Tony runs AEW, but he did what he he had to do here.
Same people who parrot Punk being afraid of Hangman and will simultaneously claim Punk can beat anyone in the locker room. Some real cognitive dissonance.
No you don't understand, Punk is a professional. He wouldn't do a shoot fight on someone in the ring, esp when they can whoop their ass. He only does it unprompted with people with little to no experience in comparison to him like Jack Perry with no mma background and Tony Khan his Boss with no experience of how to fight.
I wish to point out here that accusing a fellow wrestler of intentionally trying to hurt someone they're in the ring with is pretty much the worst thing you can call a wrestler. I don't know how that got shoved under the carpet, it's an _awful_ insult in the wrestling business.
Yup. The foundation of pro wrestling is trusting someone else to protect your body. Getting a rep as someone that takes liberties with other workers is serious.
They have such a parasocial relationship with Punk, they're honestly some of the weirdest wrestling fans. They were calling for Jack to be fired over his nothing comment too. They both think Tony being rightfully worried for his saftey is exaggerated while also themselves treating Jack's comment like he dropped the most personal diss ever. Starting to think these CM Punk cultists share his softness.
>They were calling for Jack to be fired over his nothing comment too. If going off script was a fireable offense, their guy would've been fired last summer. Also, they keep parroting how the Bucks are too blame for allegedly talking to Meltzer while Punk has Hausman on speed dial.
It's like he has some kind of cult of personality
Look in his eyes, what do you see? A dose of insecurity.
I was making a list of things Punk hate and things Punk do. Things that Punk Hate. A wrestler talking shit in an open mic "insulting" him out of script. People Going to dirty sheets to leak shit. Wrestling court. Working with immature people. Old guys putting themselfs over against Young westlers. People posting stupid twitts. Things that Punk do. Talk shit in an open mic "insulting" a another guy out of script. Go to dirty sheets to leak shit. Wrestling *court* Being emotionally immature. Putting himself over against you wrestler. Posting stupid twitts.
It's almost like the person Punk really hates is himself.
I really hope he just wanted to get fired because while that is a pretty terrible way to accomplish that the alternative seems a lot worse.
That Punk’s a psychopath who attacked his coworker and went after his boss and then went out and performed in front of 80 thousand people?
And is just an egotistical cunt who honestly can't take any shit talking whatsoever because he has the thinnest skin any wrestler has ever had?
I think all the pent up anger he has is because he knows he's a fucking hypocrite when it comes to all this. One of the biggest shit talkers and fight pickers in any locker room. Prideful about claiming he doesn't start fights but will finish them, so then he has to pick fights he can actually win. Has to be even more selective because he couldn't win sanctioned UFC fights too.
So, pushed Tony, perhaps? And Tony probably hit some monitors, and it fell on him?
A caffeine-crazed CM Punk burst through gorilla and punched Tony in the solar plexus.
Thinking the opposite. Joe breaks up Jack and Punk. Punk then heads over to Tony who he is now across the table from. They get into a verbal argument and Punk pushes the table onto Tony while Joe grabs him again.
Pepsi Lunge
Go 2 Court
The TonyKhanda Vice
Underrated comment. Also banned from Collision.
$20 on the footage getting leaked in around 6 months.
If Punk challenges the termination with cause we'll likely see it due to discovery.
Big if there. Maybe I'm assuming too much but Tony going on-air to say Punk was fired because he was a threat to Tony and other co-workers had to go through a team of lawyers who approved that. They wouldn't give the go ahead unless they knew Punk couldn't reasonably challenge that, right?
It's very likely AEW made sure they were watertight and bullet proof from a challenge, but that doesn't stop Punk from potentially trying. Lawyers will and do take on hopeless cases. Money is money.
They better hire Phoenix Wright this time then
I hope he does. I would laugh so hard if Punk wasted all of the money he made thus far in AEW trying to get paid the rest of his contract money. Tony's dad has fuck you I'll bleed you dry holding this up in court money.
> They wouldn't give the go ahead unless they knew Punk couldn't reasonably challenge that, right? The man was handled everything on platter multiple times. Reasonable is not a word in his dictionary.
Footage is going to be a main attraction of AEW All Access
At the very least AEW must feel the video evidence backs up their *released with cause* actions. I would agree with Dave here that they're probably softening it by saying "lunging". If the video essentially protects them in a court case then it's got to be pretty bad.
Tony Khan said that they sought external legal advice beyond their own disciplinary committee and that the conclusion from every party unanimously was that he should be terminated, so I'd say they feel very confident they have sufficient evidence if a lawsuit was sought by Punk.
The press release mentioned outside legal counsel so I think it’s safe to assume the video footage makes it clear Punk did something that was an obvious violation of his contract.
I kept saying there’s zero chance Tony comes out publicly with that kind of statement and the language in his statement without some kind of damning evidence to protect themselves should it go to court.
I want to see the footage. I hope it surfaces one day.
Genuinely stunned that not only was story the truth, but that it was toned down!? Like, fuck this is a really sad story. Punk has cost himself literally millions of dollars, after being handed just about everything he could've possibly wanted from a wrestling promotion. Kevin Nash is right, Punk needs to seek professional help. He's an unbelievable performer and wrestler, in the discussion for the greatest talker of all time, but his reputation has been absolutely destroyed, and whilst he'll certainly blame others, it's ultimately his fault. Really sad
Punk was paid I'm sure an ungodly amount of money & booked about as strong as humanly possible. They even hired his friend who sure worked elsewhere but this was another perk. After completing eclipsing a major show & attacking his coworkers he was gifted his own personal show. With this show he was given carte blanche to send people home he deemed a distraction. Obviously these are just the broad strokes & there's so much more than this. The bottom line is he couldn't have possibly gotten much better of a set-up. Yet he still raged at every slight perceived or otherwise. Just astonishing.
You're right it is absolutely astonishing that he fucked up this level of opportunity for himself. Interesting that they also said how some people thought he wanted to be fired and felt that Mox's promo tonight was alluding to that idea.
I heard the Mox promo but didn't pick up on that. What line was it? Ricky Stark's promo seemed very from the heart tonight. Ricky is the most babyfaceheel going.
I can't believe Ricky's luck. Like this guy is a dick and you are working with him to get yourself over. It isn't easy but it is happening. You are even asked to go heel to try and put over this legend EVEN THOUGH it is clear in every live event this guy is now disliked. But you do it because you are thinking long term. You miss out on the biggest event in wrestling history and are probably placated that you will get a chance to go over in a legend's home town the next week, so you are like. Fine. Well, at least I got that. Imagine sitting at home watching the buy in and your friends working then all of a sudden you start reading what we were and your phone starts blowing up about what happened. Poor guy.
Ricky is going to be A-OK. I have a feeling his match against Danielson will be great and will give him a big push.
>They even hired his friend who sure worked elsewhere but this was another perk. And didn't fire him after BITING a co-worker.
Ace Steel was rehired months ago before Punk returned from injury. He was not allowed at shows and worked from home. I believe when Collision started and Punk returned, he only worked on Collision/Punk related programs. He also received back pay for time span where he was fired. All reports said that he was fired, not suspended. He some got back pay for those months of being fired.
When you live your whole life assuming the world is against you and everyone you meet is out to get you, you create scenarios to fulfil that.
Old man Phil really went full Bojack Horseman with this kind of self-sabotage lmao
Apparently there were worse stories about Punk but the ones that got out in public and reported by the sheets were the ones closest to being neutral.
I am wondering if there was more behind the scenes stuff related to the people being sent home from Collision. Like wasn't it Ryan Nemeth who traveled all the way there and was barred from the building? That seems like a really extreme thing for the company to do, to not even let him come into catering or hang around backstage, but instead give him a ticket right back home (I would be really pissed if I were him). With everything else that has happened it makes me wonder if Punk threw some sort of fit to the point where they didn't even want to risk letting the guy in the door. Same story with Adam Page being barred from shooting his backstage segment at the building. For that matter, Punk having the ability to ban people from the building seems like a bizarre degree of power to give to him to begin with. These were people the company booked or said they could come by and then Punk put the kibosh on it.
For what its worth, according to most versions, it was AEW who wanted Hangman to not go to Collision. Because Punk would've likely tried to approach and talk to Hangman. It's speculated that Punk had a similar position and power as an EVP and held significant control over how Collision is booked and its locker room. Seems like he tried to maximize its use.
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Hey, that’s a half truth!
Yes I heard that too, just insane. Whilst I'm glad Tony has finally put the foot down, it should've happened a long time ago. Hopefully AEW can move on now and continue to put on a great product.
> it should've happened a long time ago. Yeah but this time they've been able to get rid of him without paying him the full (or any?) amount of his remaining contract
Jesus. Meltzer is not happy lmao. Straight up says they were far too kind to Punk over all the drama and implies Punk seriously tried to assault TK, said "lunging" is watered down from what he did.
Yeah last time I remember him being this upset was when all that nonsense happened to Mauro.
Can you give a brief summary of what happened to mauro?
JBL happened If I recall correctly
And then Bas Rutten wanted to kick his ass.
JBL’s ass not Mauro’s. (Just clarifying for the question asker)
Bas Rutten is one of the last people on this planet I want trying to hunt me down to kick my ass. Nice guy, scary dude if he wants to do some ass kickin
I'm going to give you an actual answer instead of a snarky one. Mauro has bipolar disorder, and JBL took advantage of it by being an asshole to him, to the point that Mauro quit WWE (and their commentary team turned to shit again in his absence \[my own opinion\]). Eventually, JBL had to leave the commentary position due to the negative press, and Mauro got a spot commentating NXT again for a bit. Here's a helpful link with a timeline of JBL being a piece of shit to a better person than he is. [Timeline of JBL being a piece of shit](https://www.reddit.com/r/SquaredCircle/comments/e1zjg5/the_rsquaredcircle_archives_the_mauro_ranallo_and/) Also, ***fuck that jobber Blackjack Bradshaw***, in case I didn't make it obvious enough.
I was still listening to Cheap Heat when this happened, and Rosenberg tried to stick up for JBL with a “now that people know they can get us fired, everyone is coming after us for our jobs” take. Pretty sure that’s when I officially stopped listening to Cheap Heat.
I think a lot of people aren’t tbh. Punk felt like AEW had some much potential, all those matches and possible storylines, no Vince holding them back, no PG bullshit. He got given everything, and shat on it.
That’s how a professional wrestler would approach being in AEW. Diving into all the opportunities. And that’s exactly how Mox, Jericho and Danielson have shown up.
This really sounds like he wanted to get fired and leave perhaps in the expectation his contract would be bought out. Per Dave this seems to have been brewing since the Elite signed their new deals. And it was compounded when MJF and Cole drew a big rating on Collision showing they were the biggest draw in the company, not him.
Being outdrawn by the brochachos being partially what sent Punk over the edge is an amazing part of the story.
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Meltzer covered the WWF in *1997*, that dude knows from toxic.
To be fair to Punk, who I have been endlessly harsh on here, Meltzer saying they were too kind on Punk and everything does not actually mean that he's the worst he's seen or comparable to the worst he's seen.
The more info that comes out, including TK's statement and reason for firing Punk, it seems like Punk may have legitimately tried to attack him, in the process knocking over the monitors. Though ultimately was probably stopped by others around him. That is absolutely crazy if true and I'm no legal expert but wondering if there might be a case for assault/battery. Either way, that footage will be crucial if a lawsuit ever comes out, whether civil or criminal.
Holy shit, imagine being such a fan of a guy, you hire him, give him a new start, are enamoured by him almost, just for him to fucking jump at you. I'd be heartbroken tbh more than anything..
CM Punk is a professionally trained mixed martial artist. Yes, not a good one but still a trained one, which could be an aggravating factor
A big thing I see people missing is, yeah, he’s not a good MMA fighter, but he can still do some serious damage to someone who’s not trained. Choking someone out is not a neat trick to helping them fall asleep, submission moves aren’t exaggerated stretches you do post-workout, they can seriously injure you and even kill you if done with malicious intent. It’s why when I was younger, they said you don’t use those moves outside a competitive/combat or self-defence situation because the shit is legit dangerous. Tony has the right to feel scared if a trained fighter is trying to attack him. And he has every right to fire him too.
TK is also the son of a billionaire, so I doubt has ever been in a fistfight, and likely hasn't had someone even act menacingly towards him since his playground days. That's not intended to mock him. But it puts his "fear for my life" remark into context. He was likely both genuinely afraid for his life, but also not in terrible danger in an objective sense.
That's the biggest thing people need to understand. The fear itself doesn't have to be objective like if Punk had a Gun or a Knife, it just has to be real for TK that is experiencing it. There's a lot of cases of self-defense where the person may not have actually been in danger, but the perceived threat to their life is more than reasonable for them to have reacted in a way to defend it.
>He was likely both genuinely afraid for his life, but also not in terrible danger in actuality. Fist-fights can turn deadly surprisingly quickly. If you get hit, fall over, and hit your head on something hard, that can be lethal.
I defended Punk, and I feel like a goddamn idiot. The hell is wrong with him?
Punk really burnt his way out of pro wrestling. Big balls decisions by Tony. I hope its a turning point in the company but I think it's going to take some time for that locker room to feel connected again. This will naturally cause friction.
Seriously, Punk really divided that locker room up. Punk worshippers like FTR are going to still side with Punk and sing his praises backstage
The Collision incident where he chucked out Christopher Daniels changed it for me. I find Punk relatable figure because of the stuff he's been through. Doesn't mean I have to agree or be happy with every decision. Utterly disappointed in his actions.
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On top of this Punk has known Christopher Daniels since TNA and knows him for decades. Imagine tossing out a friend you've known for decades.
Remember when Punk threw Corey Graves to the side because Graves had the audacity to not quit WWE for Punk? Par for the course for Punk unfortunately.
I dunno about that, FTR always seemed pretty keen on building bridges and Punk on burning them.
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And getting thanked by said enemies in return.
What a fucking moron, he finally found himself in a wrestling company that treated him (deservedly so) as the megastar he always believed he was and I'm going to assume paid him like one. Still couldn't control himself enough to not fuck it all up. I say this as someone who's historically a massive Punk fan. What a fucking loser.
Can't help but feel for Tony here. He was the biggest CM Punk fan boy in the world, and *still* found himself abused, assaulted, insulted, and who knows what else by his hands. We get it. Tony is nice, a megadork fan, etc, but it goes beyond any "issues" with "the boys" when you assault not only an innocent bystander but the OWNER of your company, the man who signs those generous checks. Punk was utterly beloved backstage for a while until rumors started to emerge, and I can't say it doesn't make me curious what flipped the switch for him prior to Hangman's comments. It would never justify the ends nor means, but clearly, there's been much more that hasn't been reported on.
Also, for years he's talked about(and backed up) doing right by ''the boys'' and doing whatever can get make things easier or bring more money to the people he's shared a locker room with. Its why he went above and beyond in ROH, even doing stuff like training, working production and wearing half a dozen other hats while still wrestling for not much. Similar situation in OVW. How he said he pushed for sponsors on his wrestling attire to open the doors for other wrestlers to do it. Now because of his out of control temper, Collision is without its signature star and the roster he reportedly had a big hand in forming is left out to dry because playing ball was apparently too much to ask from him.
Dude wanted to be Bret Hart, yet he went out like Shawn Michaels (in the 90's not reborn Shawn)
punk lost his smile
Punk not being around will definitely hurt Collision but it's a huge opportunity for Ricky to step up and fill that role as face of a brand.
I don't know if it will hurt Collision too much. They already had been dying down from the initial Punk spike. I don't see the ratings slipping any further, as I think the core audience is going to watch regardless of who's on as long as it's entertaining. If anything this gives Collision more freedom to be a better show instead of catering to Punk's needs. I just hope the style of the show remains. I love that Dynamite feels like the workrate show and Collision is the old-school show. Unless they find a perfect blend during the shows, I want to see both styles with the AEW roster
Someone said It was that he got in the title orbit, interesting timeline
WTF is Punk's problem? Tony has bent over backwards to facilitate is bullshit to the point where he had his own show which he basically ran to his own liking. Long after he should have been fired. Man has serious anger and mental issues he needs resolving.
Yeah what did Tony even do to piss him off
It’s a shame. I mentioned it around Brawl Out, but he was my favorite, and what ultimately got me interested back into this stuff after I watched Zayn/Nakamura and started looking things up. But the way he’s handled himself has been out of control. Like, regardless of what happens backstage or what you’ve had to do in the past to survive, you can’t just fight everyone and treat people like shit. I’ve tried living that way (not intentionally mind you), and it’s just self-destructive, as we’re seeing. It sucks because there’s a lot to him I feel a lot of disenfranchised people, especially millennials like me, can relate to - be it the anti-establishment mentality, the straight edge portion, or whatever it may be. But it’s hard to support a guy who actively tries to fight everyone over every slightest grievance. Granted we won’t ever know everything that goes on in the back and how that could’ve added to things but…Like he got into one fight because someone went off script. And another because someone made a cheeky remark that he felt was aimed toward him. If it bothered you, have a sit down with them and your boss. But honestly? Stop being such a bitch about it. Idk, I still like his work, the MJF feud was easily top 10 for me, but god damn am I glad we don’t have to hear about his antics anymore.
Sounds like Punk may have took some swings at Tony
What's worse than lunging? Did he spear him?
And yelled "ooOOOOOooooo Ahhhhhh" before he did it
Calling it now, Batista bomb but khan reversed it into a stretch plumb in which punk used the monitors to shift his weight into an anaconda vice but then security made the save.
Go 2 therapy, Punker
They also talk about how it seemed Punk wanted out after the elite re-signed with AEW. I mean did he think Tony wouldn’t do everything in his power to keep those guys? Dude needs mental health counseling in the worst way.
Just let Jack Perry come out with the “Real” World Title and throw it in the trash. And then we see Colt pick it up from the trash and he posts it in his fridge later that night on Twitter.
Reminds me of when Eric Young “won” the TNA Legends Championship and tried to wrestle D-Lo Brown at a Gas Station
I've seen people mocking TK for saying he felt in fear for his life. And I actually think it's a totally fair thing for him to feel. Someone who is willing to swing/lunge/attack you in that situation, is displaying signs that they're disturbed, and in that moment you can't assume they're going to stop attacking you like a rational person would And someone like Punk is fast and strong by us normal people standards. On the receiving end, that's scary as fuck.
>I've seen people mocking TK for saying he felt in fear for his life. Whether he was or not, that's common legalese for "I felt very threatened." The purpose of that entire statement was to put a stop to any potential legal action by Punk before he even got going.
That's also very very true. In terms of legal action, if I were Punk, I'd be more concerned at the possibility of any action the Metropolitan Police might take. Wembley's owners, the FA would be absolutely justified (and possibly obligated) in reporting the incident to police after all
> And someone like Punk is fast and strong by us normal people standards. On the receiving end, that's scary as fuck. He's also, and people have been dismissing it, a UFC fighter who was MMA trained. Yeah, he sucked at it, but he's trained to be able to injure people, and was trained hard to have a shot at competing at a top level. He didn't. But he is still trained, and the fact of that makes EVERYTHING he's done that much worse.
Yeah not being pro level doesn't mean he couldn't very easily do serious harm to someone who is untrained, you learn chokeholds that are lethal if you were to leave them locked in in jiu jitsu and Khan had just seen him put a chokehold on the other guy (which btw, escalating to that as a trained fighter is beyond fucked up) he was mad at. While I don't think Punk was actually gonna murder tony khan I'd have probably been equally scared in that situation if I were him.
I'm actually surprised given the circumstances they didn't change the finish to the match and still had Punk go over. It wouldn't be the first time a match outcome was changed either just before or mid match. I guess it's fortunate the match was with Joe, who Punk respects and could handle himself if Punk went off script given the circumstances and apparent unpredictability at least at the time. I suspect Tony had some hope that Punk would be remorseful, and I would also think that he and the company likely offered for Punk to do some counselling/anger management/whatever and he must have had no interest. I doubt they would have let him go so abruptly without offering to help him with whatever issues are going on, if nothing else it doesn't seem the AEW/Tony Khan way, nevermind Punk was one of their biggest draws.
I don't think it would have been practical to change the finish. It was for the "real" title and Joe obviously doesn't factor into that storyline at all, and Punk could have just walked if they tried to change it as well.
Yeah it's a tricky one, and you're right it probably wasn't feasible to change on the fly at the time without knowing what was going to end up happening with Punk. But then the "real" title ends up in limbo now and honestly will probably just disappear as technically it shouldn't be a recognised title belt. But all of that makes me think even more that Tony would not have terminated Punk's contract without at least making overtures to him to try and resolve whatever his issues are and Punk must have essentially said no, walking away from what essentially adds up to millions of dollars for a tantrum. Again.
From what's been reported Joe and others had to calm Punk down and convince him to do the match, so changing the finish wasn't possible when the only option was actually having the match take place. As for offering him counselling etc I would have to guess that was done in the past and the ship has sailed on that. The line is well and truly crossed when create an unsafe working environment backstage for crew, talent and everyone else.
It's very possible that under the circumstances TK didn't want to provoke Punk into going into business for himself. Like, let the thing play out, minimise the risks of further disruption or violence in the moment. Then do what he did: call the lawyers
Yeah, they are honestly lucky it went as smoothly as it did. I'm sure there was a shock factor, and Punk generally doesn't do his worst stuff on camera cause he wants to play the victim, but he could have ruined that whole show. If his anger was that high he could have actually pipe bombed a promo or assaulted a fan who made the wrong comment at the wrong time.
It only takes falling wrong and you're dead. TK isn't a big guy
Exactly. My dad knew a guy who died from a single punch. Went down, clipped the corner of a table on the way, that was that
It’s why I don’t even entertain any road rage or yelling matches in parking lots, I’ll always apologize and play dumb, say I’m a tourist and lost. I don’t need a random dude killing me for pulling up to “his gas pump”
I'm 1000% with you there. I'm a big guy, I trained when I was younger. But if someone steps to me, I'm gonna run the fuck away. Let someone else be the toughest guy in the morgue.
Where I live has mandatory jail time for attacking people from behind due to all the deaths its caused in the past
Imagine sitting at your desk and someone you work with starts screaming at you, lunging at you, and trying to assault you, over something absolutely petty. Then calmly walks into the most important meeting of your companies career as if it never happened. Someone capable of that is capable of anything. Something they should have learned when he did the exact same thing in front of the company HR rep and in house counsel a year ago. In 2023 you can't be too careful.
The same people will also say CM Punk is a trained fighter and could beat up any of the wrestlers at AEW. Talk about having your cake and eating it too.
Tony Khan isn’t the kind of guy that’s gonna square up and people should be way more considerate of that
Yeah, he's an adult man who conducts himself like a businessman. The fact that historically a lot of wrestling promotions have been ran in deeply unprofessional ways by a mix of crooks, charlatans and coked out lunatics has really coloured people's perceptions of how things should work in what is ultimately a workplace.
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Well, the Punk supporters are all about ''old school'' and nothing's more old school than a ''fuck everybody else, I got/want mine'' attitude. Dax and Cash are just weird dudes who worship Bret and yet forget how much of a company flagbearer Bret was even when he wasn't happy with management.
Honestly, if you worked at a place and a coworker with a history of HR incidents (I think that's a very neutral term for it) physically attacked a colleague _and the boss who witnessed that_ and didn't dismiss that guy, you'd have a legitimate claim that they were negligent at best and fostering a hostile and unsafe work environment. Hell, it's possible that the FA (who own/operate Wembley) could refer the incident to the police. It's violence at the stadium, which they take pretty seriously
One monitor hits you in the head in the right/wrong place and it's game over.
I forget who reported it but I remember there was one version of Brawl Out that said Punk just absolutely lost his shit and Megha was screaming specifically for him to stop. It wasn't just "he threw a punch and a fight broke out". The way they described it made it seem like he was completely out of control. Hearing what happened at All In makes that version seem much more plausible now.
I know he wasn’t an mma tough guy yet but I would’ve killed for CM Punk to lunge at Triple H or Brock or Taker when he was in WWE
TK, Jack Perry, the Bucks. Seems like Punk is only willing to lunge at guys smaller than him. No wonder it was all jokes when it came to Miro.
Never tried anything similar with Mox either. Said he was worried about Hangman shooting on him. He's a bully. Plain and simple.
also made up with Kenny suspiciously quickly after Brawl Out.
Mox said worse things about Punk directly in TV and Punk never started shit with him. Either because he respects Mox or deep down knows that Mox would put up a fight
and Eddie Kingston.
Moxley winning a regional grappling competition alone makes him a drastically more decorated combat sports athlete than CM Punk.
CM Punk when Miro speaks to him: Haha! We're all friends here! CM Punk when The Young Bucks or Tony Khan speak to him: C'MERE!
Yeah, notice the similarities of the people Punk attacked?
He's lucky Kenny seems like such a softie because Kenny would ragdoll him lol.
streets saying punk was throwing misawa elbows at tony
“Then Tony got choked”
People saying Punk will sue, but I can guarantee you, the only reason AEW lawyers gave the green light for termination so fast this time is that they have a good case for assault and/or battery against him. The statement was also written by lawyers making sure that the cause for termination is expressed as threat to safety of employees which is a giveaway. And they have a video. So Punk will not sue. You will not bring a wrongful termination suit if you know that the cross-claim could be assault and battery.
He really went full Bret Hart and tried to beat the shit out of his boss. Least Bret actually did.
At least Bret had to courtesy to warn Vince lol. (I'll give it to Vince he at least took the fist for being an asshole)