Report: Has The Backstage Drama Between CM Punk and AEW's Locker Room Ended?

By Connor Casey

CM Punk returned to AEW for the first time since last year's "Brawl Out" incident at the AEW Collision premiere last month. While his return promo made a few passing mentions of the backstage brawl that included himself, Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks after last year's All Out pay-per-view, he has since kept his attention firmly on his in-ring work. After a pair of multi-man matches involving FTR, Samoa Joe, Ricky Starks and Bullet Club Gold, Punk entered this year's Owen Hart Cup tournament and has managed to make it all the way to the finals. He'll face Starks in the final round on this week's AEW Collision. 

Ever since the initial reaction to Punk's return promo (and his interview with ESPN) died down, there's been a noticeable lack of any backstage drama reports involving Punk. According to Wade Keller of PWTorch, there's a reason for that. 

"The word from backstage at Collision is that he is taking seriously that this is 'his show' and he's taking pride in putting his stamp on the on-air product and off-air vibe in the locker room. Our sources don't necessarily reflect the views of everyone in the back and some may have different experiences that are less positive, but overall the vibe appears to be moving in the right direction after some tension in his first week back related to his early dig at The Young Bucks," Keller wrote.  "There has been no such 'insider digs' in his promos since his first week back alluding to the issues he had with The Elite and others in the past."

"Tony Khan has assembled the Collision roster strategically to remove people who had conflicts with Punk from being around him on Saturday nights and that appears to be paying off," he added.

Related:

Will CM Punk Be In This Year's Blood and Guts Match?

Sean Ross Sapp reported over the weekend via Fightful Select that Punk pitched the idea of being involved in this year's Blood and Guts Match between The Blackpool Combat Club and The Elite, two groups that he has yet to interact with since being back on AEW TV. 

But while both teams are currently in need of a fifth member for the upcoming match on July 19 in Boston, Punk's offer was declined. Sapp wrote via a source that neither team wanted him and that the two men who will be added to the match have been determined. 

AEW Dynamite Card (July 12, 2023)

  • Blind Eliminator Tag Team Tournament: MJF & Adam Cole vs. Brian Cage & Big Bill
  • Blind Eliminator Tag Team Tournament: Orange Cassidy & Darby Allin vs. Daniel Garcia & Sammy Guevara
  • Owen Hart Cup Tournament: Ruby Soho vs. Skye Blue
  • Chris Jericho vs. Komander
  • Swerve Strickland vs. Nick Wayne

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