Cody Rhodes respects CM Punk but makes it clear that their assessments of their tenures in AEW are not the same.
Cody Rhodes and CM Punk are two of the top talents who were once in AEW and are now back in WWE.
Cody Rhodes would leave first, departing the company he helped found in 2019 to build to his WWE return at WWE WrestleMania 38 in 2022. CM Punk would return to WWE at the 2023 WWE Survivor Series event.
Responding to recent comments CM Punk made about AEW and Tony Khan, Cody Rhodes told Ariel Helwani on the MMA Hour that their assessments of their time in AEW do not align and he is still proud of what he created in 2019.
"That’s his assessment. It’s not my assessment. It’s important for me to remind people that I am so proud of what me, Matt, Nick, Kenny, Tony, Bernie, Brandi, Dana, and Chris. I name all these people because I was in those meetings. As much as the internet will try to spin a narrative one way. If one of those people had not been at that start-up level, the company would not have happened. I am so proud of what was created," he said. "I am so insanely proud of what it does for the industry overall, for wrestlers and their well-being, and their ability to feed their families. I have an unbelievable love for so many people in that locker room, including the Bucks and Kenny. We’re bonded forever over this thing that we did. It’s not my assessment. In my time there, the infrastructure was just being built up. We were trying new things and doing new things. It was a start-up company. A big-time start-up company, but a start-up company. I wish them nothing but the best."
Cody says he didn't foresee the specific issues that arise while CM Punk was part of AEW he did feel that eventually there would be clashes between those that were on the ground floor of AEW and more established names that would come in over time.
Still, he has nothing but love for all involved, from The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega to CM Punk.
"I don’t think I foresaw any of those issues," said Cody. "I did kind of predict, it was unrelated to those guys, but I do remember predicting that there were going to be certain guys who had been there, who wanted to wave the banner, ‘Hey, you’ve not been here,’ and then brand new guys, you always need fresh blood, like Punk coming back to WWE is a great call. I think those always would mesh. I just think what happened there is a ton of misunderstanding, a ton of miscommunication. You will see on indies and wrestlers that aren’t properly trained. I’m not talking about bullying etiquette, but you do need to have a little old school in you to know the collaborativeness of what this is. I think they were ships in the night. I love Matt, Nick, and Kenny, and I love CM Punk. I don’t know how, but I do. I’m happy for everyone involved. I think it was a ships in the night thing. I wasn’t there though."
The Young Bucks recently commented on the strength of their relationship with Cody Rhodes. Read their comments here.
For more of a clearer depiction of CM Punk's viewpoint on Tony Khan and his different philosophies on what draws a crowd to professional wrestling from those in AEW, read his comments on the matter at this link.
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