The Termination of CM Punk by The Coward Tony Khan

[Elsalvajeloco]

4 minutes ago, Eivion said:

Guessing there are still enough people around in power who would rather not work with Punk at this point. If we see Punk on WWE tv it will either be because of some deal like Fox had with him years ago or for the HoF. I doubt Punk himself would be interested because he would never get the level of power he had in AEW.

Anything is possible after WWF officials flew out to Arizona to meet with Warrior and he talked about Destrucity, and they STILL signed him. Different era definitely, but it wouldn't be even #1 in the "how the fuck did this happen" category. 

[SirFozzie]

Of course this is a thread that the forward back button doesn't work

[(BP)]

I’m less interested in AEW without Punk, but he’s also never going to make me sit through WWE tv. So, I’ll stick with AEW for a bit and if it’s not clicking there’s always mid 90s WCW Pro to binge. 

[Firebreaker Chip]

He really did have a hell of an in-ring run there, and with stuff like the short Kingston feud/match and the post-return promos there was some real heat and a sense of unpredictability and danger that you weren't really getting elsewhere in the company

But idk doing this old school throwback thing, if the manly fights you're starting backstage are over things that seem insanely petty in 2023 like Luke Perry's son making a pass-agg remark or whatever, it just seems kind of lame and deluded. I guess he was just on whatever level trying to get fired. I wonder if he was banking on negotiating a sweeter exit than this though

[Death From Above]

I don't take any delight in being proven right about Punk, because it definitely hurts AEW's TV presence for him to be gone. But Jesus Christ, it's been something weekly with this guy you can't even keep up with it all. Something had to give.

[Leonidas]

Nick Hausman's career in shambles right now as well, he needs to find a new wrestler friend.

[Dolfan in NYC]

GOD DAMNIT.  

Now we have to have a tournament to crown a new Real World Heavyweight Champion. 

[hammerva]

Firing Punk the day before a PPV IN Chicago is definitely a bold and possibly stupid choice.  I guess they figured the crowd was going to be a pain regardless 

Just hope they can find some real black paint remover for that title 

Edited September 2, 2023 by hammerva

[HumanChessgame]

Has anyone claimed this is a work a la MJF not being on a plane to Vegas yet?

[Ryback Hates Bullies]

2 minutes ago, Dolfan in NYC said:

GOD DAMNIT.  

Now we have to have a tournament to crown a new Real World Heavyweight Champion. 

Jack Perry needs a singles title. And Cabana as his butler or something.

[Elsalvajeloco]

2 minutes ago, Dolfan in NYC said:

GOD DAMNIT.  

Now we have to have a tournament to crown a new Real World Heavyweight Champion. 

Since we need a new scapegoat....

It's been her plan all along. SHE LOST THE WOMEN'S TITLE JUST SO SHE CAN BE HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPION. SHE KNEW THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN!

 

[NikoBaltimore]

Boy, if something ever deserved its own thread it's this.

Edited September 2, 2023 by NikoBaltimore

[John E. Dynamite]

I've been biting my tongue on a lot of this drama - so many conflicting reports, really grubby cash grab stuff from these clickbait journo dummies, more biased knee-jerk opinions based on shaky news then I've seen since the last time this shit happened. But when I sat back and thought about how the Punk camp had gossip dropping before the end of the Punk/Joe match, I figured the damage they were controlling for had to be different than the usual. And when I heard TK was there and that there were cameras around, well... yeah. You can't habitually assault your co-workers. Like, what the fuck. Anybody taking a pro-Punk stance on this one is a grade-A mark.

I hope Punk's contract had a lot of behavioral/disparagement clauses. I hope the next phase of this bullshit isn't Hausman and SRS pumping out scoops to squeeze more blood from the stone. I hope this leads to some kind of reckoning within not just AEW but the whole industry in terms of how to interact with wrestling media and how to prevent social media hot goss from melting everything down. Most of all I hope this strengthens the bond within the locker room - if Brody King and Dax Harwood or whoever have to be thrown upon the pyre, so be it. I miss All Friends Wrestling.

Edited September 2, 2023 by John E. Dynamite

[Infinit]

2 minutes ago, HumanChessgame said:

Has anyone claimed this is a work a la MJF not being on a plane to Vegas yet?

I was just about to ask...any chance this could be some kind of work before a TV and PPV in Chicago? 

[Elsalvajeloco]

Just now, L_W_P said:

Geebuz help me if TK crowns an Interim Real World Champion...

No, that's only something boxing would do. And UFC.

[Iron Moose]

16 minutes ago, SirFozzie said:

Of course this is a thread that the forward back button doesn't work

FWIW, my experience is that if you change from https to http, the back and forward buttons work.

[caley]

24 minutes ago, Cobra Commander said:

excited for CM Punk to launch a UWF style promotion like he's Akira Maeda

I REALLY want this to happen. 

Punk should go to OVW they have a doc on Netflix now and remake it in his own image. 

[elizium]

 

[WholeFnMachine]

He should write a book called, everyone’s fault but mine. Tell me when I’m tellin’ lies. If it was an audiobook read by him I would totally listen to it just to hear his masturbatory self justification. And I was a HUGE fan dating back to 2002.

[Elsalvajeloco]

3 minutes ago, Eivion said:

I've seen suggestions of maybe giving the women a stronger push on Collision.

Anything is possible. It just feels unlikely. He isn't really necessary, and off the back of this I can't see them wanting him right now, if at all.

Of course.

So when Punk and not Cody beats Roman to end his title reign, is this going to be a safe place when the wrestling internet community melts?

[Super Ape]

I give it a year, two tops, before the decision to fire Punk hours before the first of two shows on back-to-back nights in his hometown, with cause (possible lawsuit), and possibly without the consultation of a network executive who gave them another show because of Punk, bites AEW in the ass. And probably lethally so.

[For Great Justice]

I do feel bad for Starkman. Hopefully they find a path to putting him over mega-strong coming out of the PPV. 

[GuerrillaMonsoon]

I was kinda looking forward to a modern day Flair/Savage program with Adam Copeland, as watching him destroy Punk on the mic would have been the only acceptable use of him in 2024.

Nonetheless, Dennis Rodman strap match please. Or if it is somehow a work, Punk returning with Shannen Doherty as his legal consultant with past experience of being victimised off the set by the Perry family also would be fantastic. Thank you.

[Niners Fan in CT]

54 minutes ago, Cobra Commander said:

jobbing Punk to Roman Reigns in 3 minutes for his first match back feels like an idea to either get a hilarious result or kill the idea of Punk being there

You spelled "Theory" wrong. 

[Cobra Commander]

anyways, announcing the firing during the first saturday of college football and a holiday weekend was some amazing timing... the people who really follow wrestling stuff were gonna hear about it no matter what, but for everybody else, well..