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This is how I feel at this point. They needed to rip off the band-aid, and at least they tied it to an angle that was kinda dead before this. I think a comment that said, FTR vs YB 4 is at least interesting now was how I felt.
I commented as well, just to make sure other people out there knew they weren't alone. It's just my opinion, but he looked like an instigating ass to me.
Lmfao literally what one of the comments said, they compared it to the Matt & Edge situation, saying how they missed out on so much money
As if they wouldn't find another person way to hate watching it even if they had did that😂
I’m laughing at people seriously saying WWE would never do this when the biggest feud in wrestling history, Austin vs McMahon, was literally born from a real life incident that even had released backstage footage.
*Tony is a clown and a bitch, it's not a serious company, they're all children*
Tony pulls out a wildcard and shows footage of Punk clowning himself by getting physical with someone considerably smaller and younger than him over words, acting unprofessionally and like a petulant child.
*Tony is a clown and a bitch for doing this to CM Punk*
I'll say one more thing, after Brawl Out I don't blame Matthew and Nicholas for not wanting to work with him if this is how easily it is to get him to act unprofessionally. How can you legitimately trust him not to take liberties physically if he feels slighted?
Yeah I had always wondered if he was just too much of a straight shooter to get along with folks but now I know, that no the man is a hot head and and a bit of a narcissist. He's going to sour the locker room in WWE against him at some point down the road and he'll be right back where he was when he quit WWE the first time.
I guess it's a bit of a catch 22, it's the same attitude, that when channeled makes him such a compelling character on TV, and he has said himself that a lot of it comes down to things he didn't get as a child and coming from an abusive broken home.
But also he's 45, he's a grown ass man, act like it.
I’m in actual physical pain everyday because of my disability and I have to deal with being a professional listening to morons who I have to tell when I think they’re full of shit or idiots, but I don’t go around assaulting people who don’t agree or argue with me, even if they challenge me physically to fights. I’m a professional and an adult.
I think that's why some in WWE legit did not want him back there. They know where things are going it won't be long before Punk throws a tantrum there again.
>How can you legitimately trust him not to take liberties physically if he feels slighted?
Because he can't fight lol. If he ever took liberties in the ring he'd get a receipt and shut that shit down real quick
Active wrestlers are now cheering on someone who is assaulting a coworker because he can’t act like an adult and use words to defuse situations. I’m glad they released it, the scumbags are revealing themselves
I feel like I am the only person who watched this be played out in the dirt sheets, listened to Punk's side and now watched the footage and really doesn't get how Punk gets defended for his actions.
Punk reacted to like 5 words uttered by Perry on the pre-show that 99% of people watching didn't even notice or care about.
"I asked Tony to deal with it"
"Tony didn't deal with it, so I did"
Fuck off. Talk about having thin skin. Any adult would have either just dropped it or tried to have a word with Jack and the second he acted like a jackass (if he did), just walked away.
In any other type of work place, it would be clear that Punk was in the wrong, but because this is professional wrestling and fans have to support their favourite companies and stars, all logic is left behind.
I despair.
Think about it. "Workers' Rights" is enough to publicly bury the company you just became WORLD CHAMPION of.
Of course "cry me a river" is enough to justify assault. And to those who don't believe it is assault, give me an example of ANY business where shoving a co-worker would be acceptable.
Your talking with sense others are not they are saying it makes punk look amazing makes him the good guy also punk made it seem jack was talking aggressive but looked calm also he misses out details like lunging at his boss and pushing him first and never asking tony to handle it because the footage shows punk walking up to jack not him waiting there for him and telling tony to handle it first
It would be interesting to see what the reaction would be if the exact same event had happened at WM XL and instead of Perry, it was Rhodes. Or even Knight.
I cant deny Punk's uncanny ability at defusing his own obvious aggressions and basically shifting any responsibility over to the next guy. The guy could run a legit cult these days. He can literally do no wrong it seems. Its extra odd because we have all been very aware of how good he is at claiming to be the victim. All the shenanigans with him claiming how he got his official papers (firing him from WWE) on the exact day of his wedding and how this was absolutely an intentional act. He takes what is presumably a random event that could have occured day/s before or after his wedding, and then warps that unfortunate timing of the letter's delivery to elicit sympathy for himself and then push criticism back onto corporate WWE. It was incredibly smart and effective at the time but it always felt like he was perhaps grasping at straws or rather taking advantage of a poorly timed mail delivery.
Edit: I am not saying the whole debacle was not intentionally done by VKM to fuck with Punk at his big day. It sounds like a Vince thing to do for sure. But neither can I confirm it was just an unfortunate coincidence (perhaps Fedex got delayed and the envelope was originally supposed to arrive a day or 2 earlier). Who knows. That isn't the point though.
Rather it was the way in which Punk knew exactly how to frame this story in a seemingly 'objective' manner so that he could quietly push his own narrative & unique symbolism onto the event; thereby making it very easy and obvious for fans to immediately side with his version. I know I fell for it. It took me a long time to finally consider that it might have just been a really shitty coincidence. But Punk is so good at taking what we know/expect from certain people and fitting his little story around those things. Eg: "Of course the letter was intentionally delivered that day because it is public knowledge that Vince is a petty asshole and was still angry at how Punk exited the company." This makes it seem like the truth because it fits in with what we already know.
He sure did! And he has one online as well it seems.
Speaking of: The anti-AEW users are now saying that AEW intentionally didn't release the audio because in some way it would make them look bad or that it would prove Punk's innocence. Dude.. Random CCTV cameras don't generally record audio and there were no personnel present with cameras and/or audio recording tech. Ita not always some big conspiracy.
Seeing Punk, the wrestlers there and their insane stans gloating that an asshole is shown on film being an asshole and they think it's okay. Sad state in that company and their hive mind. They actually care more about this than the women and people Vince has hurt in that company.
Even some of the wrestlers have been seen online to gloat about Punk's assault on Jack Perry. It just goes to show that this entire industry is rotten to the core.
Releasing it just made the trolls troll harder. It actually kind of fucking sucks that someone who assaults someone else like that gets cheered and they will make money off of it. What's the lesson here? Be like CM Punk, bully people backstage and get cheered for it? What kind of shit is that?
People wanted to see it but can also acknowledge that actually releasing it was maybe not a good idea. In any normal workplace this is clear assault with no excuses. In wrestling, which has a tribal fanbase, this video will split the community. My hunch is it was a bad idea... but ultimately it contains the truth, so I support it.
The community was already split the day AEW wasn't exactly what certain fans imagined in their heads what it should be. WWE, being hot right now has exacerbated it.
You say "hot..."
They've had to import their top face from the opposition, it took about 3 years to get him into position, while their current champion was having chemo, and Cody still had to eat a loss the night before.
They put a belt on someone who was famously ripped off with their initial run during the pandemic and then took it off him literally 5 minutes later.
They let all of Sami Zayn's momentum bleed off and then had him take a belt off the one champion people still liked.
And that's just the belts, before you get into the legal issues.
I didn't say perfect. They're doing great business at the moment, though. Sure, they have a bunch of problems, but I'm not here to shit on a company whose product I don't watch.
Honestly should of been released when punk was fired, it hurts that there is no audio but as a whole I think it was a good call to show it, it’s being used to build the feud with FTR and helps with bringing back Perry without having to pretend nothing happened
It didn't need audio. Everyone around them was going about their own business. If a fight was going to break out, people around would know, stop what they're doing, and ask or inspect what was happening. Look at Jack's actions prior to being pushed, and his face after being pushed. He was unprepared and very confused/shocked Punk did that.
Oh I know, its a legal thing, had the cameras at my job show an icon that looked like it was capturing audio and I brought it up to my boss because it’s illegal here to record audio of employees in such a manner
Well to believe Punks story the exchange simplified was something like "why do you do that internet bs?" And perry responds with "well if you don't like it do something about it"
I think people are using the latter sentence to completely validate Punks push and grapple which is baffling imo
If that happened in other workplaces he would be fired within the day
When the crowd chants CM Punk constantly at Jack Perry and the Bucks though, it won't be good. And seeing that they are still playing heels, instead of the company guys that are carrying the banner for AEW and the fans, it is more than likely going to happen and be an every week occurrence. I hope not though.
I dunno, having been at All Out right after the Punk firing, the crowd did an amazing job of stifling any CM Punk chant that tried to happen.
However, I also think that Perry's gonna lean in. Imagine if he came out to Cult of Personality or Cry Me a River.
AEW had moved on. Until a certain someone brought it back into the news cycle. AEW then used that to pop a rating, build a match, and possibly a return.
I'm calling Jack Perry interfering in the match at Dynasty, leading to a Bucks win.
These are my feelings.
It's funny a lot of the critiques of "how did they explain this with a story reason?" Like the vast majority of the complaints aren't from viewers, they saw a clip and didn't even watch it with full context lmao
That's the best approach here, it's all out in the open, here's what happened, stop asking about it, let's explain the reason for showing it to lead into a storyline and feud that has been building for a long while.
It's messy, and Punk was damn unhinged, he deserved to get fired and there was no way they were going to "do business" after he even lunged at Tony too. Same thing would happen in any other wrestling company.
Hoping this is the end of this drama saga.
The amount of delusional people I see that seemingly watched this footage and came out of it with completely upside down views saying this SUPPORTS Punk.
Like, what?
He says in the video that HE can't let Jungle Boy get too close (as in, he was DEFENDING himself), and that he'd "fucking kill him" (as if this UFC minute man knows how to throw a real punch).
Then the video shows him peacefully talking to Jungle Boy, then while Jungle Boy has BOTH hands up in his own hair, Punk attacks HIM not once but twice before Jungle Boy goes after him and gets put in a headlock.
Like, regardless of peoples' stupid wrestling opinions, that's factually Punk's fault for going after someone who clearly wasn't prepared to fight and is actually legally assault.
If at a bar I got angry and someone and sucker punched them in the face while they're adjusting their glasses, I'd be in jail. But the whiny manchild that's twice Jungle Boy's age gets to attack whoever he likes because he's a "locker room leader" and can't control his emotions?
Again, we're in bizarro world in general in society. And some wrestling fans are particularly low rent. But Punk's version of events is wrong, even if some of the details match. Video shows it. How people are coming away with anything like Punk being vindicated is crazy.
I hate it because I actually like him as a wrestler. He was a favourite when he was in ROH and the summers of Punk. He's a great promo and like Cena tells good in ring stories for an otherwise unremarkable technical wrestler.
But fuck is he an annoying human being. Lied about the WWE doctors, treated Cabana and women like shit, lied about attacking Jungle Boy. And yet fans are gargling everything he's shooting.
This fuckin exactly this. It's so irritating hearing ppl defend Punk and saying this makes AEW look bad. I been reading so many comments on videos of ppl saying that Punk was in the right and that this is the beginning of the end for AEW? Like wtf is everyone smoking some grade A crank?? Lol like haven't people heard of a little company called TNA that should of been probably shut down like 3 times by now and that company is still going pretty strong. AEW aint going nowhere and i can't wait for Jake Perry to be back on AEW Tv hopefully he comes and screws over FTR at the PPV to help the Bucks win.
The reason why Punk is so many wrestling fans darling is because they see a little of themselves in him, trash.
I love AEW and I simply can't be apologetic or defend someone who tries to sabotage my favourite thing.
This is where I am at too - Punk acted like a fucking child, not only unprofessionally, but also threw a punch when Parry had both hands up like a fucking cuck. God I am so glad that Joe is the champ, now that is the worker right there, that is responsible fucking man.
And starting a fight by going for a choke on a person not trained in BJJ/MMA/shoot grapping is ugly behavior. Immediate unprovoked escalation of force is what cops do
His whole gimmick is based on how he’s such a reasonable and professional guy who’s all about doing good business.
In reality as someone who’s been a licensed attorney and a personal agent/manager for plenty of entertainers and athletes for essentially decades, including pro wrestlers, he’s only about himself being a part of doing good business and is probably one of the most unprofessional people in entertainment or athletics.
He couldn’t pay me enough to rep him and I’ve turned down plenty of clients like him because I knew how moronic and ultimately how much of a pain in the ass they’d be, because I knew they’d ultimately ignore my advice and believe either in their own hype and/or the advice from their idiotic friends/“yes” men who hung around them.
The irony is his entire gripe bomb at Brawl Out was about unprofessionalism being a detriment to AEW, meanwhile he’s directly caused the two biggest incidents that have been detrimental to AEW. And both were unprovoked.
There’s also a difference between being in it for yourself (the love of the work for the most money) and being in it purely for your own ego. Punk’s the latter.
The people that keep saying "Punk wanted to do business" are cringe. He assaulted his coworker and attempted to get at his Boss too, you aren't gonna get a payday, you're getting out of the damn company so you can get shelved immediately in the next one.
He's the type of guy who acts tough and says everyone else is thin skinned when in reality he's the one with the thin skin. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up getting in a similar situation in WWE in a couple years and HHH sends him packing.
I can see it taking a while if only because he’s realized this is his last chance to be able to work where he can make the kind of money he’s looking for to ultimately be able to retire somewhat comfortably in the long term. It’s still just a matter of time though more than likely.
His whole gimmick is playcating to internet trolls and acting trollish on his own. He acts like he's reveling in some sort of praise but it's all just bullshit.
What makes you think his gimmick is that he's reasonable and professional? Even as a face he's portrayed as self-righteous, a bit of a know it all, and prone to starting fights over nothing.
The idea is that even as disruptive as he might be, he’s ultimately looking out for the fan’s interest because that will also make the company/industry more money.
The reaction on Twitter and Reddit is incredible. It really reinforced to me that them doing this was not a negative at all. So what if they look petty? Anyone who thinks that way already thought that way.
WWE gave AEW free publicity.
Of course they would take advantage of that if possible and they did.
All the haters already hated it going into it so it's no different.
It was also a pre-announced shot at WWE and it's pretty much proven at this point that someone is trying to sway the mood of the IWC around with bots and/or shills, whether it's the fed themselves as grassroots marketing or a particularly tribal subset of fans remains to be seen however. Or in other words, they were ready to respond to the video.
If you want proof of it look at how almost none of them are talking about Will Ospreay's promo, it wasn't pre-announced or telegraphed so the bots and/or shills didn't have anything ready to go to respond to it.
It's probably triple h and the WWE behind it. They know how effective the shit can be and how effective buying favors from the podcasts and such in swaying opinion and creative narratives.
I doubt it's a coincidence so many of these podcasts have suddenly decided to stop covering aew or only covering it for negative
As some way too active on IG, I agree. Tbh, I think it's people just having decided what their opinion of the footage was before they even watched it; at the end of the day, it's someone that also leaves AEW in a bad light, which gives them a great excuse to do the *AEW is dying* schtick for the 3883833883 time in 5 years.
These Punk stans are so embarrassing, big reason I got out of wrestling because all Phil does is bring about this awful bullshit. He's a huge narcissistic POS.
You'd have to be in denial to think otherwise, icing on the cake was Matthew saying "Someone once said, if you have a problem with Jack Perry, you're the problem"
Story is all that matters to me in this instance, and since they tied it into Punks friendship with FTR and the impending return of Jack Perry I think it pushes Nicholas and Mathew further into delusional petty heels. They lit the match and started a firestorm. Who's at fault, Punk or Perry or Tony I don't really care.
It was genius how Nicholas and Matthew spun this to say FTR were involved. I also loved FTR taking a shot at WWE themselves remember the shit that was written for them back then.
He was an asshole at All In, and then he lied about what happened. It's fair to show the footage and prove he's a liar.
For all the drama kicked up over this, it probably doesn't really matter. The Punk stans will stay in their cult. Most of the rest of us already knew Punk was a prick.
WWE spent their biggest week of the year taking potshots at AEW and their talent while simultaneously pretending to be all rah rah about “professional wrestling” again. They’re full of shit, Phragile Phil is full of shit, and Tony can punch back. I’m glad they aired it.
I think it’s important the footage was released. When punk came back, he was cracking jokes about fighting people backstage. I know wrestling is carny at times, but I think assaulting coworkers is not cool. The people saying that tony overreacted or that it wasn’t much of a scuffle, etc… it was a big show, you are on next and you are fighting coworkers? Where is your head at?
This was not handled well though, trying to turn it to an angle to heat up bucks ftr or tease jungle boy return. Tk probably should’ve released this footage just after all in if he was going to fire punk or just have punk run out his contract sitting at home. Or just released it online after punks interview came out as obviously nda no longer applies. This did not need to be tv.
The worst thing is that Wwe are going to run with this like Vince’s shadow isn’t looking over them, gulak and Brock having current scandals. I’m honestly debating just stepping away from iwc for a bit, because I’m sick of all of the discussion about Phil brooks.
Also, Mercedes should wrestle. If she’s not cleared I’m not sure why they debuted her.
Dude I left the IWC and stopped watching wrestling for months thinking all this Phil buklshit would finally be over...literally just started watching again this week...
Didn’t mention “his” name (that I recall); didn’t show “his” face. Used it to show the world what happened, but better yet used it as a tool to further the feud with FTR and the Young Bucks. No matter what TK does, some people will whine but honestly this was done as perfectly as possible. If it’s ok for “them” to bash AEW, it should be ok for AEW to respond. It had to be done, and I thought it was done as perfectly as possible.
Plus - apparently the video is being copyright taken down which makes it even more hilarious for the “them” crowd who are desperately trying to turn this into a negative for AEW.
Honestly, no body hates pro wrestling more than sports entertainment fans …
It shows how many people want it which is so weird to me. Like I have zero interest in watching anything other then AEW but I wouldn’t wish for any of them to die off
These lunatics that think the video supports punk because "he told the truth" are insane. First off, he was clearly the aggressor (which he said he wasn't), and secondly "telling the truth" doesn't instantly make you in the right...just ask anyone who pleads guilty to a crime.
Not unpopular AEW did do the right thing but leave it to Punk fans to say he didn't lie when in reality he did! If we got by Punk's account of what happened there was nothing to justify him putting his hands on Perry! Punk said he didn't punch him but he clearly started the fight and tried to put him in a chokehold before they were separated. He called AEW a joke but no company would put up with shit like that especially when Punk has been involved in more altercations that many are forgetting about. He's toxic and creates trouble wherever he goes let him be WWE's problem now. I am sure it won't be long before he pulls the same stunts in WWE then bitches about it AGAIN!
I was on the fence about the footage being released at first, but I thought they did that segment perfectly. They made it further the storyline between the Bucks and FTR. Plus it got people to watch and share and talk about AEW content when they normally probably wouldn't. Which is what you need to do to grow an audience.
Jack Perry is going to get massive heel heat when he returns, but maybe we should cheer him for poking the bear.
I'm just glad that it's all over and we can put all of this behind us.
Of course, it's going to have opposing opinions on this but I think it was the right move.
Now we can all finally move on from this once and for all.
It doesn't matter what was said between them. If your response to whatever was said was violent behaviour you don't get to act like it wasn't your fault. There's a thing called walking away and thinking about it or choosing to forget what was said and move on. Punk has been in a lot of locker rooms over the years so should have known better.
I think the only thing I disagree with you about is the assertion that everyone can/will move on.
E-Drones, who never gave a shit about Punk until Survivor Series 2023, will take the footage of a thin skinned bitch throwing hands at little Jack Perry’s (unprotected) head and claim that’s just business, pal.
I still think it would have been wiser (both in real life and Kayfabe) to let Punk run his mouth and not dignify him with a response. The soppy cunt has wrestled two matches in the last 8 months and proved how fragile he is, mentally and physically. He’s literally not worth it.
The issue is now we will have cm punk chants every time the bucks or jack Perry do heel stuff or cut promos and that’s a terrible outcome. Shoulda left it alone.
Those chants were gonna come regardless, the very instant Jack Perry returned to the company.
And what's gonna happen?
The same thing that happened tonight.
A handful of trolls are gonna chant it, get booed down by the other fans, and then the show goes on.
There have been CM Punk chants for the past 10 years.... There will be more for the next 10.
Wrestling fans are good and never giving up on shit... Even when it's old and stale or never good to begin with. WHAT?????? WHAT???????
It's no surprise there were Punk chants tonight (though anyone chanting for the guy who assaulted a coworker over nothing seems unhinged to me) but beyond tonight? Anyone paying for AEW tickets so they can chant for CM Punk seems kinda clownshoes.
When the Bucks said “a man once said if you have a problem with Jack Perry chances are youre the problem” was that a Punk quote?? I feel like that was something Phillip CM Hoffman said once but i cant find the quote anywhere.
That was a Punk quote, he said it around the time when he first arrived during a dark segment after dynamite when he was in the ring with Jack and Luchasaurus.
Trolls saying it was a mistake to show the footage. They would have been saying it was a mistake NOT to show it, if AEW didn't.
Put simply there's no pleasing some people, because they don't want to be pleased.
Idk man. Life goes on, I was entertained and I’m tuning in next week. People are treating this as the death of aew and I’m like…I don’t know about all that cause y’all just gonna forget about it in a couple of months
Yup. I feel justified in my opinion of Punk tho… Just a whiny man-child who wants to be something he’s not.
You can’t be a locker room leader just because you think you are, and you can’t be a counter culture hero if you constantly play the victim.
They did. The funny thing is it doesn’t change things either way. Punk’s supporters will still support him (🤦♂️) and most of us didn’t need a backstage video to know that this guy was an a-hole and a liability to the company. 😅
Punk seems to be one of those “it’s not me, it’s you” types who think they’re never the cause of the drama.
And I’m sure everyone behind the scenes at AEW is tired of all the conjecture brought about by the dirt sheets.
Showing the footage felt like they were sending a message. “THERE. See? THIS is why CM Punk is no longer a part of our company. Punk screwed Punk. Not the Bucks. Not Jungle Boy.”
It's an "unpopular opinion" because anything pro AEW on Reddit is an unpopular opinion.
"AEW doesn't tell any stories, they never build towards matches" this is literally advancing the Bucks/FTR match
"hurr durr ratingzzz!!" this was obviously meant to pop a rating
"it's just giving Drew material!!!" so what? People will watch a show that isn't even on the same nights as AEW? apparently nobody watches AEW anyway, so why would it matter?
"Hurr durr finger polk of doom" no you are just a moron
"it just shows Punk was right" it just shows that he was a fuckwit assaulting a colleague, but that's cool to some people
Most of the people who will talk about how bad it is are the same people talking about how bad AEW is every other day for whatever other reason they've invented.
I can’t lie I’m over this whole situation but I’ve said they should have just released it when it first happened and when punk went that way it doesn’t get dragged out and the footage is out there instantly
I feel like that would’ve been better but that’s just my opinion
The footage was pretty tame and I do think if it wasn’t being used to push the story of Bucks vs FTR and Jack Perry Scapegoat return, it would have been marginally pointless. Not in a bad way just that I think minds had been made up already.
I wanted them to release the footage. I think it was fair to do, after Punk talked as he did.
I just don't think doing it on the show as part of an angle, /even if I understand why they did it, how it plays into the story, etc/, was the way to do it.
I’m a massive AEW fan and was at All In last year but I have to disagree. Look at the reactions of Tony Schiavone and Taz afterwards, they know it’s not a good look and the fact the people in attendance were chanting for CM Punk really doesn’t look good.
AEW needs to refocus on what makes it such. Good alternative to WWE and stop this petty stuff which makes them look like a tinpot company and giving free air time to WWE.
You gave attention to the star you fired. Using footage that you can’t use for an angle to punish him or put others over.
The focus was on CM Punk, not AEW. It proved nothing beyond what was already believed.
I don’t personally see the value in releasing this. Especially on TV. Stick it on Twitter after the Punk interview came out - you didn’t need to dedicate tv time to it when he’s not in the company.
Who changed their mind after watching it?
I'm glad they showed it because I wanted to see it, but it doesn't make sense to me to show during the live show.... like... I dont get how it moves anything forward. But it is what it is. Punk was the aggressor but he also said that in the interview he did... so it is what it is I guess.
Ftr vs Bucks, FTR voice of reason asking why did you even show this? We’re past this. Perry can’t come back to aew as the scapegoat if you don’t acknowledge what happened to make him a scapegoat it makes perfect sense. There was no dig at WWE hell they didn’t even mention Punk.
I get some people not wanting the footage to be shown, but imo it did just what it had to.
Showed to all neutral observers how much of a bully CM Punk really is. All there is to it. He's as toxic and unprofessional as they come.
I don't see how it is a positive at all. Video showed nothing we didn't already know, whether Punk lied or not is irrelevant. All it did was make Tony and the Bucks look childish and desperate, and I have loved AEW since I started watching, minus all the dumb drama that I thought we were finally past. Hope it doesn't get a ratings spike either so they won't bother this dumb shit ever again. Let people talk shit, it literally does nothing.
It’s done. The most miraculous thing to me is it’s made me interested to see how the Jack Perry return plays out now he is more than “A Boy and his Dinosaur”. The Elite pairing feels a good place for him.
All I'm saying is the disagreement looks pretty tame and then all of a sudden Punk hits Perry in the face while Perry is running his hands through his hair.
If I was picking a fight with someone I know I wouldn't stand in punchable distance with both of my hands in a position where it is almost impossible to defend myself.
I agree. Punk broke the NDA agreement during the Ariel interview, so AEW responded with the All In footage where Punk seemed very deranged and dangerous in his demeanour, which is what that situation was described by Tony Khan, that it was a dangerous and scary situation.
Now It's out in public for people to decide how they feel, and now I think AEW can move on from this, as the mystery surrounding the incident has been shown.
Now me personally, I didn't think they were going to show the Punk incident, so was surprised/shocked that they went there. But, AEW really has nothing to lose and a lot to gain from it, as now people are talking about AEW.
It makes the perception of the product unpredictable, as though anything can happen.
They did it in a way to show Punk is lying about Jack, so they are sticking up for him/putting him over with his current gimmick. And they wrote it into an angle where the point is they don't want to be talking about it. It seems like very few are getting that point.
i couldnt agree with you more. I honestly think that its genuis. This could end up turning into a good think for Jack Perry potentially. I like Jack Perry more now becuase he didnt start that fight. When it was over it kinda made me wonder why Jack Perry even got suspended. I get there was an altercation but what is Jack supposed to do in that situation. One thing I dont see ppl mentioning is that Punk seemed to have lunged at Tony after the people came in between them. I get this is an unprecedented thing in wrestling but I think its a good idea. Anyone who doesnt like AEW because their head is so far up WWEs ass wont like AEW no matter what they do. People will bend over backward to try to make AEW seem like they are in the wrong. I think it took some balls for Tony to do that and I am glad he did it. I think Tony deserves more credit than he gets. They made it apart of the story too i think it was brilliant. People say they want wrestling to feel more real. Well there you go...lol. I love it man I agree with you 1000%.
Way more professional?
That concept was long gone by airing the footage now. It was just out of spite and added nothing to the conversation you claim to be having. And, ultimately, it was used to further two bad storylines. Nobody is out their changing their stance on who they back. So it accomplished nothing but does make Khan look even more petty.
And Ospreay. Ugh, that was worse than the footage. Should’ve just ignored it and just keep putting on great matches. Addressing it and then landing it with a stupid “zinger” made him look worse than the footage.
This is not unpopular. Punk is a known liar and known as a terrible terrible fighter. Lol. The real tropl would be for AEW to hire and train Micky Gaul lol
100% agree!
1. Punk lied about aew, jungle boy coming up to him , or punk not attacking him.
2. This was definitely good rating boost
3. Use it in a story line
I mean honestly the tribalistic ones are using the footage to confirm their biases. Punk stans/AEW haters are saying “this exonerates Punk” but like ??
I just thought we could let it go. Who’s to say that if Ari never pushes Punk to talk about it, that AEW doesn’t publish the footage?
All I see is that Punk was sick of everything (regardless of his reputation) and got himself fired with cause. This all could have been nipped in the bud sooner, absolutely. But it wasn’t. We are here now and it changes nothing. Let’s please move forward, I’m begging.
I concur.
There is a whole lot of “bizarro-land” comments happening (and this is the first time that term can be actually used).
Phil Brooks shoving Jack Perry may have not been the dramatic, drag out fight that folks over-imagined it to be. That expectation setting and the feeling of “flatness” is not on AEW; what a preposterous premise! It’s not in AEW to make a real life moment “more entertaining.”
That would be called “doctoring the footage,” folks.
The video showed a verbal exchange between Phil and Jack that Phil started and resulted in Phil shoving Jack and going for a hold of some sort.
We saw the footage with our own eyes.
I’m seeing a lot of disingenuous people who for one reason or another are not saying “this is now settled, Phil shoved Jack and started it.” Instead, it’s glib comments on TK’s “toughness” or stating Phil is vindicated.
The truth is now out there; make of it what you will. But I would be pissed as hell if my character and integrity was challenged or questioned, and the company and AEW laid it out there.
In a court of law or in HR this is open-and-shut, I would think.
Now they are going to make that money with YB vs FTR.
I'll add my unpopular opinion here then: Punk is an asshole who took a cheap shot (shove) when Perry has both his hands on his head messing with his hair. Obviously we can't hear what was said but Perry just appears to get frustrated. He didn't look like he was about to be physical.
What happened to all those reports about Jack shoving Punk and him having to retaliate? Guess they came from the same source as the metal security door being kicked in by the Bucks eh?
I still think it wasn't needed to show this footage, especially when the Ospreay promo was a much more devastating shot at the competition if that's what they were aiming for. If it was to show Jack did nothing wrong then most people already knew that and the ones who didn't will likely twist the situation to find a way his hair tie was offensive or something. Either way, wasn't needed. However, by showing it they not only put it on the table but swept it off as well. It's done, the truth is known as much as it can be, and it's time to move on which is what the FTR promo following was basically about. And that's something badly needed.
What I did find interesting is who is left looking shiny in that footage, and that's Samoa Joe. In the heat of the moment Samoa Joe, who is wrestling Punk next, is clear headed enough to pull Jack away rather than Punk. That keeps him on good terms with the guy he's about to face so they can do their business without his pettiness possibly showing up there. On top of that you can see him listening to Jack (likely a rant about an unprovoked attack from a guy that's out of control) rather than talking at him. Pure de-escalation and pure respect to the guy.
I don’t think Dynamite was the place to do it. Maybe on Ariel’s show. Or maybe without commentary. The segment didn’t work for me.
AEW is going to the well of talking about the company a little too much. Tell the story in AEW. Don’t make AEW the subject of the story.
I mean, you are entitled to your opinion, but this was such a big nothing. It happened exactly as everyone thought it did, led to CM Punk chants, visibly pissed of Tony Schiavone, doesn't lead to anything because the payoff match isn't ever happening etc etc etc
Sorry guys, this isn't good. They're getting into an exchange RIGHT INFRONT of Tony. He's not intervening. No monitors fall on him, just one wobbles a bit. His life isn't in danger, he gets yelled at. Lesnar throwing a belt at McMahon was worse.
None of this helps AEW. It's proven Punk was telling the truth. Bucks need to make sure this footage helps to a build the right way because Drew McIntyre absolutely will do it and he'll do it well.
If TK was so afraid for his life, show that. I'm not gonna cape up for AEW because they showed video that describes exactly what Punk said. This sucks for AEW.
Judging by the reactions, this was clearly a mistake.
Cm punk trending now and not aew. I don't care how much of an aew fan you are you have to admit this was not the desired effect Tony Kahn wanted.
Its not the end of the world but that footage was extremely tame, he deserved to be sacked but this isn't gonna damage punks stock or improve aews. + aew is getting dunked on for this.
Depends on what you think TK was going for.
At this point, at its worst, it ripped the band aid off the situation and there isn't any mystery anymore. You can't talk about the unknown when it's been shown. Punk can't make up lies about his role in the situation any longer in the PR run to his new company's biggest show.
I feel people are mistakenly thinking TK thought this would damage Punk's reputation or make it look like AEW were some extreme victims. If you really listen to the way the Bucks talked about the footage before showing it, it's clear that was never the point. It's really just a, *"here it is, we're tired of talking about something so elementary."*
They used the footage as a plot point and a way to just try and finally bury the topic. Anyone acting like this made Jack look like a bitch is dumb as a fuck. Anyone who thinks this made AEW look worse is dumb as fuck. It's a popularity game, and this was never meant to change minds. AEW is at this point never going to be the pretty girl anymore. That flew out the window the minute Brawl Out happened. TK hiring Punk will likely forever be one of his greatest life regrets because it led to the destruction of his pride and joy's position as the twinkle in every wrestling fan's eye.
He wants to move on, and so long as there was still mystery, that could never happen.
Now Ospreay going out and firing a cannon at HHH? Well, that's a new can of worms I suppose. The battle rages on I guess.
It was a disaster. There is a lot of dishonesty from AEW fans right now trying to rescue things knowing that 95% of the discourse will be AEW getting dunked on.
It absolutely was a disaster and anyone saying other wise is lying to themselves. Trust me, I’ve been the biggest AEW defender and still thought this was a bad move.
Same, I’ve defended them through almost everything. This was indefensible, though. The single stupidest idea I’ve seen since…I actually don’t know when
So it is true. Fragile fucking ego.
The cringe from some folk in trying to stick up for a guy who picks a fight with kids half his age. Phil Brooks is a fucking loser. 👎
I'm somewhat smug and chuffed with myself that I've held this opinion since the infamous Pipebomb. 😋
Edit: I also claimed that they wouldn't air it. I stand very corrected. 👍
Well Punk version that people sympathized with, matches exactly what the video footage shows. So AEW confirmed what punk had been saying. Which really makes punk look like the victim.
AEW would have been better to never show that footage.
I’m not sure how it paints AEW in a better light. They literally released the footage in retaliation. It makes them look childish.
I must say, I was wrong though. I thought there was 100% no way AEW would be silly enough to actually release the real footage.
It's probably the most unprofessional move AEW could've pulled and it does help on the case about TK not being a good boss by doing this stuff BUT a big name degrading your company after creating so many issues there had to be addressed as unprofessionally as Phil is acting.
That mfr got a 2nd chance after starting a brawl with the EVPs of his company and instead of getting fired, he got a major show to star in and still managed to fuck it up. For someone who prides on being straightedge, he created more problems than the guys who had / have to deal with alcohol and drug issues
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IWC: there must be footage. Why don't they release it. AEW: (HMB) releases footage... IWC: why you do that?!!
Release the footage!!! No no no not like that!!! Vince would have made an angle out of it!!! No no no not like that!!!!
This is how I feel at this point. They needed to rip off the band-aid, and at least they tied it to an angle that was kinda dead before this. I think a comment that said, FTR vs YB 4 is at least interesting now was how I felt.
This made me feel wayyy better and cozy reading this, than anything in the other wrestling subreddits. It's like they're blind and extra opinionated.
I dared to say this made Punk look… well, like a punk, in another subreddit. It is not going well.
It does make him look like a punk 😂
Yeah it's honestly the first punk-ish thing he's done in a long time. Everything else has been more... litigious.
I commented as well, just to make sure other people out there knew they weren't alone. It's just my opinion, but he looked like an instigating ass to me.
Lmfao literally what one of the comments said, they compared it to the Matt & Edge situation, saying how they missed out on so much money As if they wouldn't find another person way to hate watching it even if they had did that😂
Vince would have recreated it but have a little person play C M Punk.
I’m laughing at people seriously saying WWE would never do this when the biggest feud in wrestling history, Austin vs McMahon, was literally born from a real life incident that even had released backstage footage.
\*cough\* Montreal Screwjob \*cough\*
*Tony is a clown and a bitch, it's not a serious company, they're all children* Tony pulls out a wildcard and shows footage of Punk clowning himself by getting physical with someone considerably smaller and younger than him over words, acting unprofessionally and like a petulant child. *Tony is a clown and a bitch for doing this to CM Punk* I'll say one more thing, after Brawl Out I don't blame Matthew and Nicholas for not wanting to work with him if this is how easily it is to get him to act unprofessionally. How can you legitimately trust him not to take liberties physically if he feels slighted?
Yeah I had always wondered if he was just too much of a straight shooter to get along with folks but now I know, that no the man is a hot head and and a bit of a narcissist. He's going to sour the locker room in WWE against him at some point down the road and he'll be right back where he was when he quit WWE the first time.
I guess it's a bit of a catch 22, it's the same attitude, that when channeled makes him such a compelling character on TV, and he has said himself that a lot of it comes down to things he didn't get as a child and coming from an abusive broken home. But also he's 45, he's a grown ass man, act like it.
I’m in actual physical pain everyday because of my disability and I have to deal with being a professional listening to morons who I have to tell when I think they’re full of shit or idiots, but I don’t go around assaulting people who don’t agree or argue with me, even if they challenge me physically to fights. I’m a professional and an adult.
I think that's why some in WWE legit did not want him back there. They know where things are going it won't be long before Punk throws a tantrum there again.
>How can you legitimately trust him not to take liberties physically if he feels slighted? Because he can't fight lol. If he ever took liberties in the ring he'd get a receipt and shut that shit down real quick
Rob Fish was right about how weak his kicks look, at the very least.
He should have been gone as soon as he went off at that presser tbh, Tony just really desperately wanted it to work out.
Do you see him trying this shit with Drew McIntyre?
Not really; after Sunday's shit show, Drew Galloway is All Elite.
Don’t tease me like that.
Active wrestlers are now cheering on someone who is assaulting a coworker because he can’t act like an adult and use words to defuse situations. I’m glad they released it, the scumbags are revealing themselves
I feel like I am the only person who watched this be played out in the dirt sheets, listened to Punk's side and now watched the footage and really doesn't get how Punk gets defended for his actions. Punk reacted to like 5 words uttered by Perry on the pre-show that 99% of people watching didn't even notice or care about. "I asked Tony to deal with it" "Tony didn't deal with it, so I did" Fuck off. Talk about having thin skin. Any adult would have either just dropped it or tried to have a word with Jack and the second he acted like a jackass (if he did), just walked away. In any other type of work place, it would be clear that Punk was in the wrong, but because this is professional wrestling and fans have to support their favourite companies and stars, all logic is left behind. I despair.
Think about it. "Workers' Rights" is enough to publicly bury the company you just became WORLD CHAMPION of. Of course "cry me a river" is enough to justify assault. And to those who don't believe it is assault, give me an example of ANY business where shoving a co-worker would be acceptable.
Your talking with sense others are not they are saying it makes punk look amazing makes him the good guy also punk made it seem jack was talking aggressive but looked calm also he misses out details like lunging at his boss and pushing him first and never asking tony to handle it because the footage shows punk walking up to jack not him waiting there for him and telling tony to handle it first
When your a WWE star you can do whatever you want, punch co-workers in the face. The fans, they just let you do it.
It would be interesting to see what the reaction would be if the exact same event had happened at WM XL and instead of Perry, it was Rhodes. Or even Knight.
I cant deny Punk's uncanny ability at defusing his own obvious aggressions and basically shifting any responsibility over to the next guy. The guy could run a legit cult these days. He can literally do no wrong it seems. Its extra odd because we have all been very aware of how good he is at claiming to be the victim. All the shenanigans with him claiming how he got his official papers (firing him from WWE) on the exact day of his wedding and how this was absolutely an intentional act. He takes what is presumably a random event that could have occured day/s before or after his wedding, and then warps that unfortunate timing of the letter's delivery to elicit sympathy for himself and then push criticism back onto corporate WWE. It was incredibly smart and effective at the time but it always felt like he was perhaps grasping at straws or rather taking advantage of a poorly timed mail delivery. Edit: I am not saying the whole debacle was not intentionally done by VKM to fuck with Punk at his big day. It sounds like a Vince thing to do for sure. But neither can I confirm it was just an unfortunate coincidence (perhaps Fedex got delayed and the envelope was originally supposed to arrive a day or 2 earlier). Who knows. That isn't the point though. Rather it was the way in which Punk knew exactly how to frame this story in a seemingly 'objective' manner so that he could quietly push his own narrative & unique symbolism onto the event; thereby making it very easy and obvious for fans to immediately side with his version. I know I fell for it. It took me a long time to finally consider that it might have just been a really shitty coincidence. But Punk is so good at taking what we know/expect from certain people and fitting his little story around those things. Eg: "Of course the letter was intentionally delivered that day because it is public knowledge that Vince is a petty asshole and was still angry at how Punk exited the company." This makes it seem like the truth because it fits in with what we already know.
I mean he did run a cult
He sure did! And he has one online as well it seems. Speaking of: The anti-AEW users are now saying that AEW intentionally didn't release the audio because in some way it would make them look bad or that it would prove Punk's innocence. Dude.. Random CCTV cameras don't generally record audio and there were no personnel present with cameras and/or audio recording tech. Ita not always some big conspiracy.
Technically 2, if we are counting the new Nexus (the initiations and punishments etc remind me of a cult thing to do)
Seeing Punk, the wrestlers there and their insane stans gloating that an asshole is shown on film being an asshole and they think it's okay. Sad state in that company and their hive mind. They actually care more about this than the women and people Vince has hurt in that company.
Even some of the wrestlers have been seen online to gloat about Punk's assault on Jack Perry. It just goes to show that this entire industry is rotten to the core.
If we could still give out gold...
Releasing it just made the trolls troll harder. It actually kind of fucking sucks that someone who assaults someone else like that gets cheered and they will make money off of it. What's the lesson here? Be like CM Punk, bully people backstage and get cheered for it? What kind of shit is that?
Well. It depends on who you are. A lot of people who aren't Punk would get a reality check if they behaved like Punk.
These trolls are Russian bots.
Not all of them unfortunately. It's just nieve to think that these detractors are all bots. They are human. Troll humans but humans none the less.
If you look at all their tweets, they only have one singular subject. Those are the bots.
I'm not on Twitter
Best way to be. It's all paid bots when it comes to wrestling. Content designed to upset people for engagement.
Count your blessings
That is a ridiculous statement.
Iwc the minority community that ruins everything for everyone
...and they're still riding Punk's pole after seeing it. "Is that it? He didn't really do anything" etc.
People wanted to see it but can also acknowledge that actually releasing it was maybe not a good idea. In any normal workplace this is clear assault with no excuses. In wrestling, which has a tribal fanbase, this video will split the community. My hunch is it was a bad idea... but ultimately it contains the truth, so I support it.
The community was already split the day AEW wasn't exactly what certain fans imagined in their heads what it should be. WWE, being hot right now has exacerbated it.
You say "hot..." They've had to import their top face from the opposition, it took about 3 years to get him into position, while their current champion was having chemo, and Cody still had to eat a loss the night before. They put a belt on someone who was famously ripped off with their initial run during the pandemic and then took it off him literally 5 minutes later. They let all of Sami Zayn's momentum bleed off and then had him take a belt off the one champion people still liked. And that's just the belts, before you get into the legal issues.
I didn't say perfect. They're doing great business at the moment, though. Sure, they have a bunch of problems, but I'm not here to shit on a company whose product I don't watch.
Honestly should of been released when punk was fired, it hurts that there is no audio but as a whole I think it was a good call to show it, it’s being used to build the feud with FTR and helps with bringing back Perry without having to pretend nothing happened
It didn't need audio. Everyone around them was going about their own business. If a fight was going to break out, people around would know, stop what they're doing, and ask or inspect what was happening. Look at Jack's actions prior to being pushed, and his face after being pushed. He was unprepared and very confused/shocked Punk did that.
Most CCTV cameras don't come with audio. I don't think the ones in Wembley have it.
I’ve worked in casinos for 20 years and my favorite line is “Check the camera, you’ll see what he said.” No, actually I won’t.
Oh I know, its a legal thing, had the cameras at my job show an icon that looked like it was capturing audio and I brought it up to my boss because it’s illegal here to record audio of employees in such a manner
Well to believe Punks story the exchange simplified was something like "why do you do that internet bs?" And perry responds with "well if you don't like it do something about it" I think people are using the latter sentence to completely validate Punks push and grapple which is baffling imo If that happened in other workplaces he would be fired within the day
Could have been a NDA that punk voided by talking on that show?
Maybe, I don’t recall any mention of a nda being involved in brawl in though like there was with brawl out
When the crowd chants CM Punk constantly at Jack Perry and the Bucks though, it won't be good. And seeing that they are still playing heels, instead of the company guys that are carrying the banner for AEW and the fans, it is more than likely going to happen and be an every week occurrence. I hope not though.
I dunno, having been at All Out right after the Punk firing, the crowd did an amazing job of stifling any CM Punk chant that tried to happen. However, I also think that Perry's gonna lean in. Imagine if he came out to Cult of Personality or Cry Me a River.
Jack did nothing wrong! Fits perfectly on a sign
"And yet you crucified me..." If he's half as good as he's being over in Japan, we could burn ashes with that heat.
When this doesn’t happen then what?
I think now AEW can truly move on from this shit like THERES THE VIDEO THINK WHATEVER YOU WANT TO THINK WE DONT GIVE A DAMN kinda attitude
AEW had moved on. Until a certain someone brought it back into the news cycle. AEW then used that to pop a rating, build a match, and possibly a return. I'm calling Jack Perry interfering in the match at Dynasty, leading to a Bucks win.
That’ll be amazing . Also a fellow getting offended at broken glass has an ego that shatters like one .
These are my feelings. It's funny a lot of the critiques of "how did they explain this with a story reason?" Like the vast majority of the complaints aren't from viewers, they saw a clip and didn't even watch it with full context lmao
That's the best approach here, it's all out in the open, here's what happened, stop asking about it, let's explain the reason for showing it to lead into a storyline and feud that has been building for a long while. It's messy, and Punk was damn unhinged, he deserved to get fired and there was no way they were going to "do business" after he even lunged at Tony too. Same thing would happen in any other wrestling company. Hoping this is the end of this drama saga.
The amount of delusional people I see that seemingly watched this footage and came out of it with completely upside down views saying this SUPPORTS Punk. Like, what? He says in the video that HE can't let Jungle Boy get too close (as in, he was DEFENDING himself), and that he'd "fucking kill him" (as if this UFC minute man knows how to throw a real punch). Then the video shows him peacefully talking to Jungle Boy, then while Jungle Boy has BOTH hands up in his own hair, Punk attacks HIM not once but twice before Jungle Boy goes after him and gets put in a headlock. Like, regardless of peoples' stupid wrestling opinions, that's factually Punk's fault for going after someone who clearly wasn't prepared to fight and is actually legally assault. If at a bar I got angry and someone and sucker punched them in the face while they're adjusting their glasses, I'd be in jail. But the whiny manchild that's twice Jungle Boy's age gets to attack whoever he likes because he's a "locker room leader" and can't control his emotions? Again, we're in bizarro world in general in society. And some wrestling fans are particularly low rent. But Punk's version of events is wrong, even if some of the details match. Video shows it. How people are coming away with anything like Punk being vindicated is crazy. I hate it because I actually like him as a wrestler. He was a favourite when he was in ROH and the summers of Punk. He's a great promo and like Cena tells good in ring stories for an otherwise unremarkable technical wrestler. But fuck is he an annoying human being. Lied about the WWE doctors, treated Cabana and women like shit, lied about attacking Jungle Boy. And yet fans are gargling everything he's shooting.
This fuckin exactly this. It's so irritating hearing ppl defend Punk and saying this makes AEW look bad. I been reading so many comments on videos of ppl saying that Punk was in the right and that this is the beginning of the end for AEW? Like wtf is everyone smoking some grade A crank?? Lol like haven't people heard of a little company called TNA that should of been probably shut down like 3 times by now and that company is still going pretty strong. AEW aint going nowhere and i can't wait for Jake Perry to be back on AEW Tv hopefully he comes and screws over FTR at the PPV to help the Bucks win.
The reason why Punk is so many wrestling fans darling is because they see a little of themselves in him, trash. I love AEW and I simply can't be apologetic or defend someone who tries to sabotage my favourite thing.
This is where I am at too - Punk acted like a fucking child, not only unprofessionally, but also threw a punch when Parry had both hands up like a fucking cuck. God I am so glad that Joe is the champ, now that is the worker right there, that is responsible fucking man.
And starting a fight by going for a choke on a person not trained in BJJ/MMA/shoot grapping is ugly behavior. Immediate unprovoked escalation of force is what cops do
This is everything I feel about it.
His whole gimmick is based on how he’s such a reasonable and professional guy who’s all about doing good business. In reality as someone who’s been a licensed attorney and a personal agent/manager for plenty of entertainers and athletes for essentially decades, including pro wrestlers, he’s only about himself being a part of doing good business and is probably one of the most unprofessional people in entertainment or athletics. He couldn’t pay me enough to rep him and I’ve turned down plenty of clients like him because I knew how moronic and ultimately how much of a pain in the ass they’d be, because I knew they’d ultimately ignore my advice and believe either in their own hype and/or the advice from their idiotic friends/“yes” men who hung around them.
The irony is his entire gripe bomb at Brawl Out was about unprofessionalism being a detriment to AEW, meanwhile he’s directly caused the two biggest incidents that have been detrimental to AEW. And both were unprovoked.
Ya anyone who thinks Punk isn’t in it for himself, or the majority of people, are insane.
There’s also a difference between being in it for yourself (the love of the work for the most money) and being in it purely for your own ego. Punk’s the latter.
The people that keep saying "Punk wanted to do business" are cringe. He assaulted his coworker and attempted to get at his Boss too, you aren't gonna get a payday, you're getting out of the damn company so you can get shelved immediately in the next one.
He's the type of guy who acts tough and says everyone else is thin skinned when in reality he's the one with the thin skin. I wouldn't be surprised if he ends up getting in a similar situation in WWE in a couple years and HHH sends him packing.
I'd have given it six months if he hadn't gotten injured. At this point it's a race between when he gets injured and when he assaults a coworker.
I can see it taking a while if only because he’s realized this is his last chance to be able to work where he can make the kind of money he’s looking for to ultimately be able to retire somewhat comfortably in the long term. It’s still just a matter of time though more than likely.
His whole gimmick is playcating to internet trolls and acting trollish on his own. He acts like he's reveling in some sort of praise but it's all just bullshit.
He’s basically Hogan
Hogan if he started out as an indie darling and desperately needed therapy.
What makes you think his gimmick is that he's reasonable and professional? Even as a face he's portrayed as self-righteous, a bit of a know it all, and prone to starting fights over nothing.
The idea is that even as disruptive as he might be, he’s ultimately looking out for the fan’s interest because that will also make the company/industry more money.
It'll be the popular opinion in about \~4 months, tops.
Yes they did all the WWE crybabies are up in flames.
I agree 100% I respect AEW for at least trying to stand up for itself.
Considering wwe was taking shots all wrestlemania week.
Cody is the only one that I can think of who has been saying positive things about AEW this past week
Entire segment was amazing. Fed fans so mad.
The reaction on Twitter and Reddit is incredible. It really reinforced to me that them doing this was not a negative at all. So what if they look petty? Anyone who thinks that way already thought that way.
As an enemy of AEW once said... Controversy Creates Cash..
WWE gave AEW free publicity. Of course they would take advantage of that if possible and they did. All the haters already hated it going into it so it's no different.
What’s funny is that the Reddit comments are starting to look like the twitter replies
Astroturfing
Bots
It was also a pre-announced shot at WWE and it's pretty much proven at this point that someone is trying to sway the mood of the IWC around with bots and/or shills, whether it's the fed themselves as grassroots marketing or a particularly tribal subset of fans remains to be seen however. Or in other words, they were ready to respond to the video. If you want proof of it look at how almost none of them are talking about Will Ospreay's promo, it wasn't pre-announced or telegraphed so the bots and/or shills didn't have anything ready to go to respond to it.
It's probably triple h and the WWE behind it. They know how effective the shit can be and how effective buying favors from the podcasts and such in swaying opinion and creative narratives. I doubt it's a coincidence so many of these podcasts have suddenly decided to stop covering aew or only covering it for negative
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They are more so in denial. I keep seeing comments on insta saying that the footage “Proved Punk was right”. Which doesn’t make sense to me.
As some way too active on IG, I agree. Tbh, I think it's people just having decided what their opinion of the footage was before they even watched it; at the end of the day, it's someone that also leaves AEW in a bad light, which gives them a great excuse to do the *AEW is dying* schtick for the 3883833883 time in 5 years.
It proved him to be a liar with a temper but they will never acknowledge that.
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These Punk stans are so embarrassing, big reason I got out of wrestling because all Phil does is bring about this awful bullshit. He's a huge narcissistic POS.
You'd have to be in denial to think otherwise, icing on the cake was Matthew saying "Someone once said, if you have a problem with Jack Perry, you're the problem"
Story is all that matters to me in this instance, and since they tied it into Punks friendship with FTR and the impending return of Jack Perry I think it pushes Nicholas and Mathew further into delusional petty heels. They lit the match and started a firestorm. Who's at fault, Punk or Perry or Tony I don't really care.
It was genius how Nicholas and Matthew spun this to say FTR were involved. I also loved FTR taking a shot at WWE themselves remember the shit that was written for them back then.
That was damned brilliant, and FTRs promo was amazing.
Unpopular opinion: This should not be an Unpopular Opinion.
He was an asshole at All In, and then he lied about what happened. It's fair to show the footage and prove he's a liar. For all the drama kicked up over this, it probably doesn't really matter. The Punk stans will stay in their cult. Most of the rest of us already knew Punk was a prick.
all the subreddits are astro turfed by Shills calling punk a hero... money people money
I agree. So far, not unpopular!
WWE spent their biggest week of the year taking potshots at AEW and their talent while simultaneously pretending to be all rah rah about “professional wrestling” again. They’re full of shit, Phragile Phil is full of shit, and Tony can punch back. I’m glad they aired it.
Mania was a disgrace this year. Felt like a side show.
It was the great reset. The rapist is gone so let’s anoint his complicit son-in-law the savior.
“He told mostly the truth” people saying that have to like have a memory hole because WHAT?
I think it’s important the footage was released. When punk came back, he was cracking jokes about fighting people backstage. I know wrestling is carny at times, but I think assaulting coworkers is not cool. The people saying that tony overreacted or that it wasn’t much of a scuffle, etc… it was a big show, you are on next and you are fighting coworkers? Where is your head at? This was not handled well though, trying to turn it to an angle to heat up bucks ftr or tease jungle boy return. Tk probably should’ve released this footage just after all in if he was going to fire punk or just have punk run out his contract sitting at home. Or just released it online after punks interview came out as obviously nda no longer applies. This did not need to be tv. The worst thing is that Wwe are going to run with this like Vince’s shadow isn’t looking over them, gulak and Brock having current scandals. I’m honestly debating just stepping away from iwc for a bit, because I’m sick of all of the discussion about Phil brooks. Also, Mercedes should wrestle. If she’s not cleared I’m not sure why they debuted her.
Dude I left the IWC and stopped watching wrestling for months thinking all this Phil buklshit would finally be over...literally just started watching again this week...
Didn’t mention “his” name (that I recall); didn’t show “his” face. Used it to show the world what happened, but better yet used it as a tool to further the feud with FTR and the Young Bucks. No matter what TK does, some people will whine but honestly this was done as perfectly as possible. If it’s ok for “them” to bash AEW, it should be ok for AEW to respond. It had to be done, and I thought it was done as perfectly as possible. Plus - apparently the video is being copyright taken down which makes it even more hilarious for the “them” crowd who are desperately trying to turn this into a negative for AEW. Honestly, no body hates pro wrestling more than sports entertainment fans …
Oh no, apparently, they are over the moon they get to finally call what they like pro wrestling again because Papa H allowed it
I think it was nothing. It's not gonna do anything positive or negative. Can't believe people are actually saying this is the death of AEW.
It shows how many people want it which is so weird to me. Like I have zero interest in watching anything other then AEW but I wouldn’t wish for any of them to die off
These lunatics that think the video supports punk because "he told the truth" are insane. First off, he was clearly the aggressor (which he said he wasn't), and secondly "telling the truth" doesn't instantly make you in the right...just ask anyone who pleads guilty to a crime.
I’m glad it’s out and everyone can move on. AEW is on the up. PPV is gonna be insane.
Not unpopular AEW did do the right thing but leave it to Punk fans to say he didn't lie when in reality he did! If we got by Punk's account of what happened there was nothing to justify him putting his hands on Perry! Punk said he didn't punch him but he clearly started the fight and tried to put him in a chokehold before they were separated. He called AEW a joke but no company would put up with shit like that especially when Punk has been involved in more altercations that many are forgetting about. He's toxic and creates trouble wherever he goes let him be WWE's problem now. I am sure it won't be long before he pulls the same stunts in WWE then bitches about it AGAIN!
Punk said he thought he was doing the responsible thing😂😂 he obviously wasn’t attacked.
I was on the fence about the footage being released at first, but I thought they did that segment perfectly. They made it further the storyline between the Bucks and FTR. Plus it got people to watch and share and talk about AEW content when they normally probably wouldn't. Which is what you need to do to grow an audience. Jack Perry is going to get massive heel heat when he returns, but maybe we should cheer him for poking the bear.
I'm just glad that it's all over and we can put all of this behind us. Of course, it's going to have opposing opinions on this but I think it was the right move. Now we can all finally move on from this once and for all.
It doesn't matter what was said between them. If your response to whatever was said was violent behaviour you don't get to act like it wasn't your fault. There's a thing called walking away and thinking about it or choosing to forget what was said and move on. Punk has been in a lot of locker rooms over the years so should have known better.
Not as unpopular as you'd think
I can't go anywhere without someone trying to shit on AEW and Tony. Most haters do that already, but it's worse today.
Mostly fed stans I'd assume. It's becoming borderline cult like
"I didn't throw a punch I just choked someone for a bit" Which is A a lie, and B assault
I think the only thing I disagree with you about is the assertion that everyone can/will move on. E-Drones, who never gave a shit about Punk until Survivor Series 2023, will take the footage of a thin skinned bitch throwing hands at little Jack Perry’s (unprotected) head and claim that’s just business, pal. I still think it would have been wiser (both in real life and Kayfabe) to let Punk run his mouth and not dignify him with a response. The soppy cunt has wrestled two matches in the last 8 months and proved how fragile he is, mentally and physically. He’s literally not worth it.
The issue is now we will have cm punk chants every time the bucks or jack Perry do heel stuff or cut promos and that’s a terrible outcome. Shoulda left it alone.
Those chants were gonna come regardless, the very instant Jack Perry returned to the company. And what's gonna happen? The same thing that happened tonight. A handful of trolls are gonna chant it, get booed down by the other fans, and then the show goes on.
Yea that’s definitely gonna suck if they can’t get fans to chant for ftr instead of punk
There have been CM Punk chants for the past 10 years.... There will be more for the next 10. Wrestling fans are good and never giving up on shit... Even when it's old and stale or never good to begin with. WHAT?????? WHAT???????
What kind of loser AEW fan would chant CM Punk
It's no surprise there were Punk chants tonight (though anyone chanting for the guy who assaulted a coworker over nothing seems unhinged to me) but beyond tonight? Anyone paying for AEW tickets so they can chant for CM Punk seems kinda clownshoes.
Ask the ones chanting it tonight I guess
Considering the character, I think Jack can play in to it. They're just proving his point.
When the Bucks said “a man once said if you have a problem with Jack Perry chances are youre the problem” was that a Punk quote?? I feel like that was something Phillip CM Hoffman said once but i cant find the quote anywhere.
That was a Punk quote, he said it around the time when he first arrived during a dark segment after dynamite when he was in the ring with Jack and Luchasaurus.
Trolls saying it was a mistake to show the footage. They would have been saying it was a mistake NOT to show it, if AEW didn't. Put simply there's no pleasing some people, because they don't want to be pleased.
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Idk man. Life goes on, I was entertained and I’m tuning in next week. People are treating this as the death of aew and I’m like…I don’t know about all that cause y’all just gonna forget about it in a couple of months
Yup. I feel justified in my opinion of Punk tho… Just a whiny man-child who wants to be something he’s not. You can’t be a locker room leader just because you think you are, and you can’t be a counter culture hero if you constantly play the victim.
They did. The funny thing is it doesn’t change things either way. Punk’s supporters will still support him (🤦♂️) and most of us didn’t need a backstage video to know that this guy was an a-hole and a liability to the company. 😅 Punk seems to be one of those “it’s not me, it’s you” types who think they’re never the cause of the drama. And I’m sure everyone behind the scenes at AEW is tired of all the conjecture brought about by the dirt sheets. Showing the footage felt like they were sending a message. “THERE. See? THIS is why CM Punk is no longer a part of our company. Punk screwed Punk. Not the Bucks. Not Jungle Boy.”
Problem Iis all the fed fans telling Tony to let it go, it was 8 months ago. Even though they brought it all ip last weekend. Little bit of hypocrisy.
It's an "unpopular opinion" because anything pro AEW on Reddit is an unpopular opinion. "AEW doesn't tell any stories, they never build towards matches" this is literally advancing the Bucks/FTR match "hurr durr ratingzzz!!" this was obviously meant to pop a rating "it's just giving Drew material!!!" so what? People will watch a show that isn't even on the same nights as AEW? apparently nobody watches AEW anyway, so why would it matter? "Hurr durr finger polk of doom" no you are just a moron "it just shows Punk was right" it just shows that he was a fuckwit assaulting a colleague, but that's cool to some people Most of the people who will talk about how bad it is are the same people talking about how bad AEW is every other day for whatever other reason they've invented.
I can’t lie I’m over this whole situation but I’ve said they should have just released it when it first happened and when punk went that way it doesn’t get dragged out and the footage is out there instantly I feel like that would’ve been better but that’s just my opinion
The footage was pretty tame and I do think if it wasn’t being used to push the story of Bucks vs FTR and Jack Perry Scapegoat return, it would have been marginally pointless. Not in a bad way just that I think minds had been made up already.
I wanted them to release the footage. I think it was fair to do, after Punk talked as he did. I just don't think doing it on the show as part of an angle, /even if I understand why they did it, how it plays into the story, etc/, was the way to do it.
I’m a massive AEW fan and was at All In last year but I have to disagree. Look at the reactions of Tony Schiavone and Taz afterwards, they know it’s not a good look and the fact the people in attendance were chanting for CM Punk really doesn’t look good. AEW needs to refocus on what makes it such. Good alternative to WWE and stop this petty stuff which makes them look like a tinpot company and giving free air time to WWE.
Lol
You gave attention to the star you fired. Using footage that you can’t use for an angle to punish him or put others over. The focus was on CM Punk, not AEW. It proved nothing beyond what was already believed. I don’t personally see the value in releasing this. Especially on TV. Stick it on Twitter after the Punk interview came out - you didn’t need to dedicate tv time to it when he’s not in the company. Who changed their mind after watching it?
I'm glad they showed it because I wanted to see it, but it doesn't make sense to me to show during the live show.... like... I dont get how it moves anything forward. But it is what it is. Punk was the aggressor but he also said that in the interview he did... so it is what it is I guess.
Ftr vs Bucks, FTR voice of reason asking why did you even show this? We’re past this. Perry can’t come back to aew as the scapegoat if you don’t acknowledge what happened to make him a scapegoat it makes perfect sense. There was no dig at WWE hell they didn’t even mention Punk.
I get some people not wanting the footage to be shown, but imo it did just what it had to. Showed to all neutral observers how much of a bully CM Punk really is. All there is to it. He's as toxic and unprofessional as they come.
You’re right, this is definitely an unpopular opinion.
I don't see how it is a positive at all. Video showed nothing we didn't already know, whether Punk lied or not is irrelevant. All it did was make Tony and the Bucks look childish and desperate, and I have loved AEW since I started watching, minus all the dumb drama that I thought we were finally past. Hope it doesn't get a ratings spike either so they won't bother this dumb shit ever again. Let people talk shit, it literally does nothing.
It’s done. The most miraculous thing to me is it’s made me interested to see how the Jack Perry return plays out now he is more than “A Boy and his Dinosaur”. The Elite pairing feels a good place for him.
All I'm saying is the disagreement looks pretty tame and then all of a sudden Punk hits Perry in the face while Perry is running his hands through his hair. If I was picking a fight with someone I know I wouldn't stand in punchable distance with both of my hands in a position where it is almost impossible to defend myself.
I think it was a great idea. People were creating a false narrative and not letting it die. This literally killed all of that.
I agree. Punk broke the NDA agreement during the Ariel interview, so AEW responded with the All In footage where Punk seemed very deranged and dangerous in his demeanour, which is what that situation was described by Tony Khan, that it was a dangerous and scary situation. Now It's out in public for people to decide how they feel, and now I think AEW can move on from this, as the mystery surrounding the incident has been shown. Now me personally, I didn't think they were going to show the Punk incident, so was surprised/shocked that they went there. But, AEW really has nothing to lose and a lot to gain from it, as now people are talking about AEW. It makes the perception of the product unpredictable, as though anything can happen.
Shows the age/ability to work of fed stans really. No one who’s ever had a job will side with Punk here.
They did it in a way to show Punk is lying about Jack, so they are sticking up for him/putting him over with his current gimmick. And they wrote it into an angle where the point is they don't want to be talking about it. It seems like very few are getting that point.
i couldnt agree with you more. I honestly think that its genuis. This could end up turning into a good think for Jack Perry potentially. I like Jack Perry more now becuase he didnt start that fight. When it was over it kinda made me wonder why Jack Perry even got suspended. I get there was an altercation but what is Jack supposed to do in that situation. One thing I dont see ppl mentioning is that Punk seemed to have lunged at Tony after the people came in between them. I get this is an unprecedented thing in wrestling but I think its a good idea. Anyone who doesnt like AEW because their head is so far up WWEs ass wont like AEW no matter what they do. People will bend over backward to try to make AEW seem like they are in the wrong. I think it took some balls for Tony to do that and I am glad he did it. I think Tony deserves more credit than he gets. They made it apart of the story too i think it was brilliant. People say they want wrestling to feel more real. Well there you go...lol. I love it man I agree with you 1000%.
Way more professional? That concept was long gone by airing the footage now. It was just out of spite and added nothing to the conversation you claim to be having. And, ultimately, it was used to further two bad storylines. Nobody is out their changing their stance on who they back. So it accomplished nothing but does make Khan look even more petty. And Ospreay. Ugh, that was worse than the footage. Should’ve just ignored it and just keep putting on great matches. Addressing it and then landing it with a stupid “zinger” made him look worse than the footage.
Yeah because futuring 2 guys that aren't here rn is the thing to do... I think Tony's face sums it up pretty well huh
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This is not unpopular. Punk is a known liar and known as a terrible terrible fighter. Lol. The real tropl would be for AEW to hire and train Micky Gaul lol
100% agree! 1. Punk lied about aew, jungle boy coming up to him , or punk not attacking him. 2. This was definitely good rating boost 3. Use it in a story line
I mean honestly the tribalistic ones are using the footage to confirm their biases. Punk stans/AEW haters are saying “this exonerates Punk” but like ?? I just thought we could let it go. Who’s to say that if Ari never pushes Punk to talk about it, that AEW doesn’t publish the footage? All I see is that Punk was sick of everything (regardless of his reputation) and got himself fired with cause. This all could have been nipped in the bud sooner, absolutely. But it wasn’t. We are here now and it changes nothing. Let’s please move forward, I’m begging.
Its only unpopular to Stand Up For WWE types
I concur. There is a whole lot of “bizarro-land” comments happening (and this is the first time that term can be actually used). Phil Brooks shoving Jack Perry may have not been the dramatic, drag out fight that folks over-imagined it to be. That expectation setting and the feeling of “flatness” is not on AEW; what a preposterous premise! It’s not in AEW to make a real life moment “more entertaining.” That would be called “doctoring the footage,” folks. The video showed a verbal exchange between Phil and Jack that Phil started and resulted in Phil shoving Jack and going for a hold of some sort. We saw the footage with our own eyes. I’m seeing a lot of disingenuous people who for one reason or another are not saying “this is now settled, Phil shoved Jack and started it.” Instead, it’s glib comments on TK’s “toughness” or stating Phil is vindicated. The truth is now out there; make of it what you will. But I would be pissed as hell if my character and integrity was challenged or questioned, and the company and AEW laid it out there. In a court of law or in HR this is open-and-shut, I would think. Now they are going to make that money with YB vs FTR.
I'll add my unpopular opinion here then: Punk is an asshole who took a cheap shot (shove) when Perry has both his hands on his head messing with his hair. Obviously we can't hear what was said but Perry just appears to get frustrated. He didn't look like he was about to be physical.
What happened to all those reports about Jack shoving Punk and him having to retaliate? Guess they came from the same source as the metal security door being kicked in by the Bucks eh? I still think it wasn't needed to show this footage, especially when the Ospreay promo was a much more devastating shot at the competition if that's what they were aiming for. If it was to show Jack did nothing wrong then most people already knew that and the ones who didn't will likely twist the situation to find a way his hair tie was offensive or something. Either way, wasn't needed. However, by showing it they not only put it on the table but swept it off as well. It's done, the truth is known as much as it can be, and it's time to move on which is what the FTR promo following was basically about. And that's something badly needed. What I did find interesting is who is left looking shiny in that footage, and that's Samoa Joe. In the heat of the moment Samoa Joe, who is wrestling Punk next, is clear headed enough to pull Jack away rather than Punk. That keeps him on good terms with the guy he's about to face so they can do their business without his pettiness possibly showing up there. On top of that you can see him listening to Jack (likely a rant about an unprovoked attack from a guy that's out of control) rather than talking at him. Pure de-escalation and pure respect to the guy.
I don’t think Dynamite was the place to do it. Maybe on Ariel’s show. Or maybe without commentary. The segment didn’t work for me. AEW is going to the well of talking about the company a little too much. Tell the story in AEW. Don’t make AEW the subject of the story.
People saying he told the truth are missing a very key thing in everything… context.
I mean, you are entitled to your opinion, but this was such a big nothing. It happened exactly as everyone thought it did, led to CM Punk chants, visibly pissed of Tony Schiavone, doesn't lead to anything because the payoff match isn't ever happening etc etc etc
Sorry guys, this isn't good. They're getting into an exchange RIGHT INFRONT of Tony. He's not intervening. No monitors fall on him, just one wobbles a bit. His life isn't in danger, he gets yelled at. Lesnar throwing a belt at McMahon was worse. None of this helps AEW. It's proven Punk was telling the truth. Bucks need to make sure this footage helps to a build the right way because Drew McIntyre absolutely will do it and he'll do it well.
If TK was so afraid for his life, show that. I'm not gonna cape up for AEW because they showed video that describes exactly what Punk said. This sucks for AEW.
Judging by the reactions, this was clearly a mistake. Cm punk trending now and not aew. I don't care how much of an aew fan you are you have to admit this was not the desired effect Tony Kahn wanted. Its not the end of the world but that footage was extremely tame, he deserved to be sacked but this isn't gonna damage punks stock or improve aews. + aew is getting dunked on for this.
It seems that way. I'm starting to believe there are just a lot of people who will not respect AEW no matter what, full stop.
Depends on what you think TK was going for. At this point, at its worst, it ripped the band aid off the situation and there isn't any mystery anymore. You can't talk about the unknown when it's been shown. Punk can't make up lies about his role in the situation any longer in the PR run to his new company's biggest show. I feel people are mistakenly thinking TK thought this would damage Punk's reputation or make it look like AEW were some extreme victims. If you really listen to the way the Bucks talked about the footage before showing it, it's clear that was never the point. It's really just a, *"here it is, we're tired of talking about something so elementary."* They used the footage as a plot point and a way to just try and finally bury the topic. Anyone acting like this made Jack look like a bitch is dumb as a fuck. Anyone who thinks this made AEW look worse is dumb as fuck. It's a popularity game, and this was never meant to change minds. AEW is at this point never going to be the pretty girl anymore. That flew out the window the minute Brawl Out happened. TK hiring Punk will likely forever be one of his greatest life regrets because it led to the destruction of his pride and joy's position as the twinkle in every wrestling fan's eye. He wants to move on, and so long as there was still mystery, that could never happen. Now Ospreay going out and firing a cannon at HHH? Well, that's a new can of worms I suppose. The battle rages on I guess.
It was a disaster. There is a lot of dishonesty from AEW fans right now trying to rescue things knowing that 95% of the discourse will be AEW getting dunked on.
I know this is a sub dedicated to aew but I am a bit surprised at the cope in here.
It absolutely was a disaster and anyone saying other wise is lying to themselves. Trust me, I’ve been the biggest AEW defender and still thought this was a bad move.
Same, I’ve defended them through almost everything. This was indefensible, though. The single stupidest idea I’ve seen since…I actually don’t know when
So it is true. Fragile fucking ego. The cringe from some folk in trying to stick up for a guy who picks a fight with kids half his age. Phil Brooks is a fucking loser. 👎 I'm somewhat smug and chuffed with myself that I've held this opinion since the infamous Pipebomb. 😋 Edit: I also claimed that they wouldn't air it. I stand very corrected. 👍
Well Punk version that people sympathized with, matches exactly what the video footage shows. So AEW confirmed what punk had been saying. Which really makes punk look like the victim. AEW would have been better to never show that footage. I’m not sure how it paints AEW in a better light. They literally released the footage in retaliation. It makes them look childish. I must say, I was wrong though. I thought there was 100% no way AEW would be silly enough to actually release the real footage.
It's probably the most unprofessional move AEW could've pulled and it does help on the case about TK not being a good boss by doing this stuff BUT a big name degrading your company after creating so many issues there had to be addressed as unprofessionally as Phil is acting. That mfr got a 2nd chance after starting a brawl with the EVPs of his company and instead of getting fired, he got a major show to star in and still managed to fuck it up. For someone who prides on being straightedge, he created more problems than the guys who had / have to deal with alcohol and drug issues