Back in September of 2022, CM Punk won the AEW World Championship when he defeated Jon Moxley in the main event at All Out, but it was what he did after the show that really got people talking. Punk proceeded to go off on The Elite and other AEW names which led to a physical altercation between Punk and The Elite backstage.
Cody Rhodes was one of the key figures that helped to launch AEW alongside Tony Khan and The Elite. During a recent appearance on The MMA Hour, Cody noted that he had a great relationship with Punk, and still has a great relationship with The Elite, but he was bummed out when he saw how things unfolded.
“I remember somebody texted me, ‘Man, you’re the smartest guy in the room. I wanted to write back like, ‘F— you, man.’ I don’t feel that way. I feel this thing we built got damaged. I’m not putting any blame on anybody. Sorry, super Switzerland.”
“I’m not putting any blame on anybody. I just hated seeing that. Because as the company grows, and I hope it continues to grow. I hope people remember the mission in the first place and why we were there. If you bring in people who don’t know the mission, then things like that can happen. I’m not saying he didn’t know the mission or anything of that nature, but I was just bummed out.”
“That’s how I felt, I was bummed out. Because I have — you win the title, it’s a feather in your cap. You win the Royal Rumble, it’s a feather in your cap. Building an alternative wrestling promotion is definitely a feather in the cap. I don’t want that to be erased. I don’t want that to go away. Plus, there’s not as many jobs in wrestling as people think. There’s about 1000 people who work there structurally, infrastructure and talent. I’m proud of them. I want to make sure they’re able to feed their families and that was a situation that was so big and heavy. I don’t think it was helpful. I don’t know, maybe you could make it helpful. Maybe you can do something with it. That’s how I felt.”
“No heat on Punk. No heat on Matt, Nick, Kenny, or Tony, I was just bummed out when I saw it. That’s not how we envisioned it. The spirit of ‘All In,’ if you ever lose the spirit, you’re lost. I think the spirit was gone in that moment, doesn’t mean can’t get it back, but it was just a bummer.”
Cody Rhodes is currently set to challenge for the Undisputed WWE Universal Championship at WrestleMania 39 while CM Punk’s future in wrestling remains unknown. Stay tuned for updates.
H/T Fightful
