Eric Bischoff discusses CM Punk's potential return.
Punk has been absent since "Brawl Out", the physical altercation between the AEW World Champion and The Elite (Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks) after Punk took shots at the trio during the AEW All Out 2022 post-show press conference. Everyone involved was stripped of their titles and suspended, but The Elite returned at AEW Full Gear 2022. Punk has also been sidelined with a torn triceps, but Fightful Select recently reported that CM Punk was close to being physically able to return. In another report, Fighful Select reported that Punk told AEW that he wants to return, and the June 21 episode of AEW Dynamite could potentially be the place for it.
Speaking with co-host Jon Alba on Strictly Business, WWE Hall of Famer Eric Bischoff shared his thoughts on Punk's potential return.
“Don’t give a fuck. Who cares? This is just such drama for the sake of drama. It’s a good thing that this drama is actually taking place because there’s nothing worthwhile watching AEW. It is what it is, and if you’re a fan of AEW, god bless you, go with god, enjoy the product. But it’s flat, it’s boring. There’s nothing going on except for the drama outside of the ring. If Tony Khan had the ability to somehow manufacture a fraction, a small fraction, an infinitesimal amount of the drama that’s taking place outside his company and figure out a way to integrate it inside his television product, it would be another situation. But it’s not. When the drama outside of your company far exceeds the drama that you’re able to create inside your company, if you’re a scripted wrestling company, you’ve got a problem, and I think this is indicative of a much bigger problem," Bischoff said.
Bischoff continued by noting that Punk has leverage, and he doesn't blame him for using it. However, he shared his belief that Punk is overrated, and what fans have seen from Punk doesn't live up to the hype. Bischoff then stated that even if Punk returns, it won't make a difference in the long run, at least as it relates to AEW's product or its business.
"Look, CM Punk’s got leverage. Two of the cosplay executive/members of the executive committee, whatever they were, executive vice presidents, got into a physical confrontation with him. CM Punk’s got leverage, and god bless him for using it. I don’t blame him. He’s a smart guy. I don’t particularly think he’s that talented. I think he’s overblown. I think he’s highly overrated. I think he’s been able to manage and create this persona that has somehow survived, and good for him for doing that. That’s an art form in and of itself. But in terms of what he can actually deliver in the ring, we’ve seen it, we’ve experienced it. It’s doesn’t live up to the hype of CM Punk. But hey, he’s got leverage. He’s probably got a multimillion dollar lawsuit waiting in the wings, and attorneys that are more than willing to go after that. He’s probably getting a check every month. I don’t know what Tony Khan is paying him. I’ve heard numbers ranging from $4 million to $7 million dollars a year. So while he’s waiting in the wings for Tony to figure out what Tony is going to do and the attorneys representing Tony, he’s got all the leverage, and he’s taking advantage of it. Wrestling fans are right there, and they’re waiting for him. They’re there for him. It is what is. I think if he comes back, it’ll make a lot of noise. Everybody in the AEW world will be foaming at the mouth and can’t wait, they’re all excited. A month later, things will be right back to where they are right now, which is an average viewing audience of 850-900 thousand people. Nobody will give any more of a damn six months from now than they do today," he said.
When asked if he thinks there’s an opportunity to create a great story that could bring viewers in, given the real-life conflict that's involved, Bischoff stated that he didn't feel confident in AEW's ability to do so from a creative perspective. He then questioned how sincere Punk is in his intent to return, given his infamous since-deleted Instagram post in which he took a shot at Chris Jericho.
“Not with the current brain trust involved in creative at AEW, I don’t. That would take imagination and cooperation. That’s the other thing. Because I’m not involved, I don’t have a dog in the hunt, I really don’t give two shits whether CM Punk goes back to AEW or not. It’s not gonna affect my life one way or the other. But if I did care, which I don’t, I would have to ask myself, how honest is CM Punk about coming back? How wiling is CM Punk to mend the fences that were torn down not that long ago? If I were the type of person to give CM Punk the benefit of the doubt, if [he] were to wake up one day and say, ‘You know what, this is kind of a messed up situation, this is not the way I wanted to go out of the industry, I think I wanna come back,’ would the first thing you expect him to do be to bury Chris Jericho, and to continue to bury other members of AEW? Which is what he did, just a week or two. So how sincere, how honest is he about making amends and making things work? It’s stupid. The people involved are equally as stupid for engaging in this, knowing that the outcome is gonna be pretty much the same as it’s been," Bischoff said.
Bischoff continued by comparing the situation to a demolition derby and noting that, with them, one beat-up car celebrates a win at the end. He described how that potential outcome awaits AEW, and in this case, he believes the company would be stuck with the same product and a talent he believes is overrated.
"We all love watching a good demotion derby. Demolition derby has been at the core of every state fair since probably cars were invented. Demolition derbies are fun because cars just bang into each other, and nobody really gets hurt, and at the end of it, you’ve got one beat-up old [car] that’s worth about $75 spinning around in the dirt track, celebrating a win. That’s what this is. This is a demolition derby. People love watching demolition derbies, and people will love watching demolition derbies, but when it’s done, it’ll be over with, and you’re stuck with the same product you’ve been stuck with for a long time with a talent that is highly overrated and very, very limited," Bischoff said.
Bischoff went on to wonder whether Chris Jericho would be willing to potentially work with Punk, or at least move past their issues. He then argued that, if he was in Tony Khan's shoes, he'd cut his losses with Punk and move on.
"I know I wouldn’t take the risk of getting into the mud with this guy again. He’s a proven commodity, and it’s not somebody that I’d want to be in business with. If I was Tony, I’d just eat the, whatever it is, however many millions of dollars a year he’s paying, just pay the cat off and chalk it up as a learning experience. You’re gonna keep learning, one way or the other. You’re either gonna pay this cat off and learn a hard lesson, and move on with your life, or you’re gonna let this festering wound continue to infect the rest of your business going forward, and you’re still paying him. I don’t get it," Bischoff said.
Dax Harwood recently stated that he believes a match where FTR and CM Punk take on The Elite (Kenny Omega and the Young Bucks) could take AEW to the next level. Check out his comments here.
Chris Jericho has said that AEW will thrive with our without Punk. Click here to see what he had to say.
Jim Ross recently stated that he thinks AEW needs CM Punk. Check out his comments here.
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