Subhojeet Mukherjee on August 23, 2023
Fans were happy for CM Punk’s return on the debut episode of Collision, as it marked the first time he appeared on AEW television since All Out last year. CM Punk is back as a regular feature, but the drama surrounding him is clearly far from over. Now it appears Tony Khan admitted he can’t make everyone get along amidst all the backstage drama.
CM Punk is considered to be one of the most divisive pro wrestlers on the planet right now. In fact, Punk might have been responsible for sending non-contracted AEW talent home after a previous week’s episode of AEW Collision.
Reports of Ryan Nemeth getting sent home as soon as he arrived this week broke out. Nemeth was not the only AEW talent who was sent home with a believed connection with CM Punk.
His dispute with Nemeth stemmed from very ordinary things as well. Even the likes of AEW Head of Talent Relations Christopher Daniels, and Matt Hardy were also not allowed to attend the tapings.
While speaking with Hollywood Reporter to promote All In, AEW President Tony Khan was asked about managing the tension in the locker room. Khan admitted that he can’t make everyone get along amidst all the backstage drama in AEW.
“And there may be some of them that don’t get along with each other backstage or on TV. It’s not ideal, but it’s a reality, and I can’t make everyone get along. I’m not sure it’s necessarily even in the best interest of pro wrestling for everybody to get along. But ideally, everybody is going to be able to focus on their matches and putting on the best shows for the fans. And I think that’s what we’ve been doing. We’ve had really strong ratings. So even though … wrestlers backstage hate each other and don’t want to be friends with each other, I think we all agree this is a really exciting time for the company. And it’s a really exciting time for the wrestling business and for the wrestling fans.
There are a lot of people around here who think they’re the best. And I think a lot of them have a valid claim that they’re the best. And what I’m trying to do is to create an environment where everybody can go out and prove it multiple times per week and create a platform where the fans can decide who the best wrestlers are, what the best rivalries are, what the best matches are. As long as I can keep the top talent in AEW, we will have the best matches and the best big events.”
We will have to wait and see what will become of CM Punk and AEW in general, as we head towards the All In event on August 27th. After all, a lot is riding on All In’s success in general.
What’s your opinion on this story? Do you AEW will ever be free from backstage drama? Share your thoughts in the comments!
August 23, 2023 2:29 pm
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