How Did AEW's Locker Room React to CM Punk's Collision Promo?

By Liam Crowley

Where CM Punk goes, controversy follows. The Second City Saint made his long-awaited return to All Elite Wrestling this past weekend on the premiere episode of AEW Collision, opening the broadcast with a promo and closing the show in a trios tag match alongside FTR. His speaking segment turned the most heads, as the often polarizing Punk cut loose on the microphone. All things considered, his words were fairly tame, but he did take a couple of subtle jabs. He referred to the fans' favorite wrestlers as "soft" and used a double entendre to label the Young Bucks as "counterfeit."

According to Fightful Select, some of Punk's comments did not go over well with the AEW locker room, but there "were definitely people on both sides of things." For some of the crowd, there was a feeling that Punk "was just getting out what he needed to get out" while others felt his words were "hypocritical." This was specifically in reference to Punk's line about the wrestlers fans like being "soft," as Punk himself has complained on both social media and in interviews about "Hangman" Adam Page's "worker's rights" line as well as his stiff chop to his face during their AEW Double or Nothing match. Regarding the "counterfeit Bucks" line, those close to Matt and Nick Jackson said that the brothers "took it lightheartedly." 

Another headline-grabbing line Punk dropped during the promo was when he referenced Warners Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav calling him "One Bil Phil." Fightful's report adds that the internal speculation on that line is that it is alluding to the long-rumored AEW broadcast deal with WBD that would have the valuation of $1 billion dollars.

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With The Elite not scheduled for Wednesday's AEW Dynamite, it is said that Punk is being "actively planned" for the show. This will likely be the show where his AEW x NJPW Forbidden Door match is either confirmed or alluded to. NJPW STRONG Openweight Champion KENTA has been calling out Punk on social media for years and has dialed up the digs in recent weeks, but emphasized that he would only do the match for a big bag. AEW is reportedly still hopeful that Punk vs. KENTA will happen at Forbidden Door.

Stay tuned to ComicBook.com for updates on CM Punk's upcoming AEW schedule as well as live coverage of AEW Dynamite on Wednesday.

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