Posted in: AEW, Sports, TV | Tagged: aew, cm punk, kenny omega, wrestling, young bucks

Report: Kenny Omega, Young Bucks Suspended; CM Punk May Exit AEW

Published Wed, 07 Sep 2022 09:07:12 -0500

CM Punk may be gone from AEW following his explosive media scrum behavior, and an ensuing physical altercation, according to a new report from Sports Illustrated. Punk used the post-PPV media scrum after All Out to air grievances against former friend Colt Cabana, current co-worker Hangman Adam Page, and AEW Executive Vice Presidents and co-founders Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks in a profanity-laden tirade. Punk blamed the group known as The Elite, for which All Elite Wrestling is named, for spreading rumors about Punk trying to get Cabana fired in the wrestling media and Page for making vague shoot comments related to the same situation during a promo over three months ago.

CM Punk drops a pipe bomb on the AEW All Out media scrum

Following Punk's rant, a violent altercation between The Elite vs. Punk and his lackey Ace Steel reportedly occurred backstage. Omega and the Bucks are reported to have confronted Punk in his locker room, where the fight soon broke out, though there are mixed reports as to who "started" it. During the brawl, backstage producer Ace Steel is reported to have struck AEW executive and World Trios Champion Nick Jackson in the eye with a steel chair and bitten and pulled the hair of Kenny Omega. There are also rumors that Punk may be injured, either as a result of the altercation or from the match earlier in the night in which he won the AEW World Championship from the company's most protected babyface, Jon Moxley, in front of his hometown Chicago crowd at a PPV that has now been completely overshadowed by the ensuing drama.

It's been widely reported that everyone involved in the altercation has been suspended and won't be at AEW Dynamite tonight. Sports Illustrated confirms those suspensions, and goes on to claim sources say Punk could be gone from the company for good and that he has already met with Tony Khan to discuss how to handle his exit from the company:

Punishment for that backstage fight, Sports Illustrated has learned, will include suspensions for every person involved. The list of those receiving suspensions includes Omega, Matt and Nick Jackson, Pat Buck, Christopher Daniels, Michael Nakazawa, and Brandon Cutler. Multiple sources have shared that Punk and Ace Steel will either be among those suspended, or will no longer be with the company by the end of Wednesday. Punk met with Khan on Tuesday, so the two had an opportunity to discuss how that exit could be handled.

In the aftermath of the fight and Punk's comments, pretty much the entire wrestling news cycle has been fixated on the event and its aftermath. In particular, the question of how Tony Khan, who spent the entirety of Punk's near 30-minute tirade either looking shell-shocked by the whole thing or seemingly nodding in apparent approval, would respond. If it's true that Punk will be released from AEW due to the event, it would be a really strong and in some ways unexpected display of leadership from Khan that will have a short-term negative impact on the company, but in the long term, is almost certainly what's best for the health of the locker room and the company as a whole. Hopefully, we'll have something official soon.

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