Top wrestling star CM Punk, real name Phil Brooks has been fired by All Elite Wrestling following a fight with fellow wrestler Jack Perry at the All In show at Wembley Stadium last Sunday.
The 44-year-old returned to AEW earlier this year after overcoming an injury but it came under a cloud of controversy following his comments and a subsequent fight 12 months ago with The Elite at All Out 2022.
Punk, as the top star in the company, was given his own show 'Collision' upon his return and began a storyline where he was declaring himself the 'Real World Champion.'
However, things reportedly turned sour upon Punk's return with reports of several disagreements breaking out between him and other wrestlers including Jack Perry, who made a thinly veiled comment about Punk at Wembley on Sunday which sparked an incident backstage between the pair.
Now in a statement released by AEW, the company has confirmed that his contract has been terminated: "All Elite Wrestling (AEW) has terminated the wrestler and employment agreements between Philip Brooks (CM Punk) and AEW with cause, effective immediately. The termination was confirmed today by Tony Khan, CEO, General Manager and Head of Creative of AEW.
"The termination follows a weeklong internal investigation of an incident occurring backstage at AEW – All In London on Sunday, August 27. Following the investigation, the AEW Discipline Committee met and later convented with outside legal counsel before making a unanimous recommendation to Khan that CM Punk be terminated with cause."
In addition, AEW's co-founder and owner Tony Khan said: "Phil played an important role within AEW and I thank him for his contributions. The termination of his AEW contracts with cause is ultimately my decision, and mine alone. Of course, I wish I didn’t have to share this news, which may come as a disappointment to many of our fans. Nevertheless, I am making the decision in the best interests of the many amazing people who make AEW possible every week – our talent, staff, venue operators and many others whose efforts are unsung but essential to bringing our fans great shows on television and at arenas and stadiums throughout the world."
Talk has immediately sparked debate as to what Punk will do next with many speculating that he could return to WWE, a company he walked out on in 2014. Earlier this year, the current World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins was asked for his thoughts on Punk returning to his former employer.
Speaking to journalist Nick Hausman, Rollins said: "Philly Phil, stay away. Stay away, you cancer, get away from me forever. I don't like Phil. I don't like Phil, he's a jerk. Did we just figure that out? Everybody in the room is like, ‘did he say that?' Yeah, he's a jerk. Come on. We figured it out over there, we knew it over here. I don't want him back. Go do something else. Bye bye. See you later.”
Punk's last match for AEW was to open the start of the record-breaking All In show at Wembley where he successfully defended the 'Real World Championship' against Samoa Joe.
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