CM Punk says AEW Collision competes with itself, no matter what other shows are on.
CM Punk has arguably been the face of AEW Collision since it premiered on June 17. The show has faced some tough competition so far, but August 5 will be a major test, as Collision will be up against WWE SummerSlam.
Speaking with Justin Barrasso of Sports Illustrated, Punk addressed the fact that the August 5 episode of AEW Collision will be running against WWE SummerSlam. He stated that Collision is not competing with SummerSlam; instead, AEW is focused on competing with themselves every week and trying to put on a great show.
“We are not competing with SummerSlam. We are going to go up against college football soon. We have already been up against monster UFC cards every single Saturday. We are not competing with them. We are competing with what we did last Saturday. I am competing with who I was yesterday as a human being and a pro wrestler, and we, as the Collision team, are competing with what we did last Saturday. That’s always going to be what we are striving to do, and I think that’s an important message for the fans to understand," Punk said.
Punk went on to preview his match against Ricky Starks, which will likely be main event of the August 5 episode. He stated that Starks has stepped up to the plate and knocked everything out of the park, and he's getting an opportunity to shine on Collision.
The former world champion then noted that Collision has a tough time slot on Saturday night, but on the plus side, selling tickets for Saturday shows is easier than those that fall on a weeknight. He stated that it's an uphill battle, but the team loves the challenge.
“Collision is on a bad night for television, but the trade off is that I think it’s a lot easier to sell a ticket to a Saturday night show than it is on a Wednesday or Monday or Friday. I knew it was going to be an uphill battle, but we absolutely love the challenge. I think we’ve outdone ourselves so far," he said.
Punk also highlighted the collaborative nature of building up AEW Collision, as he called it a team effort. He stated that there is a group of talent that he wants to be lighted on AEW Collision. Punk named FTR (Cash Wheeler and Dax Harwood), Samoa Joe, Jay White and Juice, the Gunns (Austin and Colten Gunn, Ricky Starks, all three members of House of Black, Andrade, among others.
“It’s a team effort. FTR is a big part of it. There is a group of people I want highlighted on Collision almost every Saturday. It’s a lot of people and it’s hard to get them in there, but it’s FTR, Samoa Joe, Jay White and Juice, the Gunns, Ricky Starks, all three members of House of Black, Andrade, and we just got Rush–that guy is f------ awesome, I want him on Collision, too–Hobbs, Miro, and I don’t want to forget anyone else," Punk said.
Punk emphasized that seeing stars every Saturday night will help AEW Collision hold its rating, and the show aims to bring new people up. He pointed to The Gunns as an example. The self-proclaimed "real world champion" also made it clear that the show isn't just about him, and he's trying to elevate others.
“It’s not about me at all, it’s about us,” says Punk. “It’s not just me on Collision. It’s not one single person. Sure, there is numerical evidence that points to people selling the most merchandise and doing everything else, but all that stuff is garbage if you’re not trying to bring people up into our orbit," he said.
Punk also stated that he has been pleasantly surprised with the way AEW Collision has been built up so far.
Ricky Starks recently discussed working with Punk. Click here to see what he had to say.
Check out the card for the August 5 episode of AEW Collision here. Fightful will have coverage of the show as it airs.
