CM Punk's AEW All Confrontation with Tony Khan More Intense Than Initially Described

As reported on Saturday, CM Punk has been let go from All Elite Wrestling (AEW) in the wake of an altercation with fellow wrestler Jack Perry prior to the main card of last Sunday's All In pay-per-view. The confrontation escalated to a point where AEW President Tony Khan felt his safety was compromised.

Earlier reports highlighted that CM Punk had a tense exchange with Tony Khan immediately after the Perry incident, during which he verbally threatened to exit the promotion. Sources confirm that equipment, including monitors, toppled over during this heated exchange.

Wrestling experts Dave Meltzer and Bryan Alvarez weighed in on the situation during a recent episode of Wrestling Observer Radio.

Alvarez: "He [Tony Khan] said the incident was regrettable. It endangered people backstage. That includes the production. My security, safety, and life were in danger at a wrestling show. I don't feel anyone should feel that way at work. I don't think the people I work with should feel that way. I had to make a very difficult choice today."

Meltzer then revealed that his previous wording—describing CM Punk as lunging at Khan—was softened to mitigate the intensity of the situation.

Meltzer: “It was probably stronger than that....lunging was, again, far too kind. If you saw the actual wording of what was said, lunging was like I was toning it down. It was more than lunging.”

They also discussed the presence of security footage, confirming that the incident happened in a space with operational cameras, differing from locker rooms where such monitoring is typically absent.

Alvarez: "This was gorilla, and they had cameras all over the place."

Meltzer: "Well, I mean, the gorilla, the setup is at Wembley where they have that. It's where they do interviews and things like that for soccer games, football all the time, and other sports and other entertainment."

According to Meltzer and Alvarez, there were numerous witnesses present during the confrontation, making it difficult for anyone to dispute the accounts of what transpired.

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— Ben Jordan Kerin Sep 03, 2023 06:35AM