Top AEW Star Headed Up Disciplinary Committee That Fired CM Punk

The last few years have certainly been eventful for CM Punk as he returned to wrestling when he joined AEW in August of 2021, but his run with the company came to an end when his contract was terminated back in September of this year. When Tony Khan announced that Punk’s contract was terminated he also noted that a disciplinary committee was involved with the decision.

Fightful recently reported that Megha Parekh had stepped back from a lot of her duties as AEW’s Chief Legal Officer by the time the situation unfolded and had nothing to do with the disciplinary committee. AEW General Counsel Chris Peck assumed many of Megha’s duties and he was part of the three person committee along with an outside attorney.

Now Fightful Select is reporting that Bryan Danielson was the third person on the committee. One AEW source called Bryan an, “appropriate moral compass who exemplifies objectivity” and said he effectively headed up the committee.

Bryan Danielson was said to have spoken to the AEW roster about Punk’s termination and noted that the decision was a hard one. Danielson reportedly cited his friendship with Punk as well as the positives that go along with Punk being a part of AEW, but said that the decision had to be made.

People who spoke on the subject believe that Punk is aware of Bryan’s involvement with the committee as Punk is friends with people who were included in the meeting where Bryan Danielson addressed the situation. This role is said to be a continued duty for Danielson as he’s also responsible for handing out fines in AEW.

Bryan recently posted a tweet which said, “My dad always told me, ‘The right thing is often the hardest thing to do.’ It won’t always make the most money. It won’t always be the most popular. But it’s still the right thing.”

It’s being reported that the quote Bryan Danielson included in his tweet is what he said to talent at the meeting months before.