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When All Elite Wrestling signed CM Punk in 2021, it was seen as a massive coup for the fledgling company.
Less than three years later, however, Punk is out of AEW, back with WWE and the signing has backfired in spectacular fashion.
On Wednesday, Punk trolled his former employer on Instagram after it released previously unseen footage of the backstage altercation that led to his firing.
This clip further proves CM Punk was right and he told the truth.
pic.twitter.com/M9oDF0pbBw— Ghost of Madness (@AmbrLeila) April 11, 2024
The incident shows Punk getting into a backstage altercation with fellow AEW wrestler Jack Perry (the son of former 90210 star Luke Perry).
As the story goes, Punk told Perry not to do a spot involving breaking a car window weeks earlier. Perry listened to Punk initially. But weeks later, on AEW’s “All In’ pay-per-view in London, he then did the move anyway. Perry then turned to the camera and said “real glass, cry me a river.”
That prompted a backstage discussion that ultimately turned into a (minor) physical altercation and Punk’s firing.
The video had been under wraps since it happened. But after Punk gave an interview to Ariel Helwani discussing what happened, AEW opted to show the footage.
It backfired in a major way.
The overwhelming majority of fans felt the incident was blown out of proportion and that Punk should not be fired. Fans in the arena began chanting “CM Punk” throughout the following segment.
Punk, meanwhile, is now at the center of one of WWE’s biggest feuds with Drew McIntyre.
After the video came out, Punk took to social media to take a shot at his former employer.
Punk posted a picture of former United States president George Bush on his Instagram story with a banner behind him that reads “Mission Accomplished.”
It’s clear he wanted the video released and ultimately got what he wanted.
AEW, meanwhile, is left to regroup and wonder what went wrong.