This past Saturday, hours before AEW: Collision went live from The United Center in Chicago, IL, Tony Khan, and AEW announced the termination of CM Punk, real name Phil Brooks. Khan went on to address Punk’s termination in a pre-taped video that appeared at the beginning of Collision and confronted the hostile Chicago crowd in person before the show went live, as well. As Khan explained in both addresses, he feared for his life during the AEW: All In London confrontation between Punk and Jack Perry. The AEW President had been advised to release the “Real AEW World Champion” but took full responsibility for the final decision.
On My World with Jeff Jarrett, the AEW Director of Business Development, was asked by his co-host Conrad Thompson to weigh in on Punk’s termination.
“There are only two people in the world that have full context,” he said. “I think some people would say, ‘Well, I knew this, or I knew that, or I knew this.’ Well, you may, but you don’t know what Tony knows, and you don’t know what Phil knows. You just don’t. So, and nobody does but them two, you just don’t.”
With Jarrett’s reaction to Punk’s release out of the way, the two men began to look toward the future. With Punk no longer with AEW, many are wondering what Punk’s next move will be. He has found some success in Hollywood and seems content pursuing that career, so Thompson asked Jarrett whether he thought Punk was done wrestling.
“Now, Conrad, you even asking me that question is just silly,” he laughed back. “Silly. Silly, silly, silly, silly.”
Thompson took note that Jarrett was pessimistic toward the idea of Punk staying away from pro wrestling and listed some of the potential suitors that could be available for The Second City Saint. A few of the possible landing spots he included were New Japan Pro-Wrestling, GCW, Rev Pro, Impact, and, of course, WWE.
“My immediate knee-jerk reaction when you started running down that list, I started thinking, nope, nope, nope, nope, nope,” Jarrett said. “But that’s how I would think. I don’t know his headspace. You know? I don’t know any of that. But, speaking of Draft Kings, download the app, promo code MyWorld; if I was a betting man, what’s the downside to doing something completely on his own?”
Jarrett went on to discuss how Punk is in his mid-40s and has many years left where he could contribute as a wrestler and backstage. From his perspective, Punk checks off all the boxes to be a successful promoter, even if he does not want to do it long-term. If Punk wanted to do a one-off show, or more, to “cut through the clutter,” Jattett thinks he could deliver “a different type of show.”
If you use any quotes from this article, please give a h/t to Haus of Wrestling and credit My World With Jeff Jarrett