Editor's note: This is what is called an "OPINION ARTICLE."
Oxford defines a paradox as “a seemingly absurd or self-contradictory statement or proposition that when investigated or explained may prove to be well founded or true…a situation, person, or thing that combines contradictory features or qualities.
Wrestling is legitimately the wildest thing I have ever enjoyed in my life. Even when it’s calm, it’s insanity. This past weekend was no exception. When fans have been at their absolute peaks of calamity and vitriol over the last couple of years, it’s been in reaction to CM Punk. Conversely, when they’ve been at their absolute and most emotionally joyous, it’s also been in reaction to CM Punk.
One man. Two very different but very real and acceptable states of mind.
Before I get too deep into this, I need to preface. I enjoy watching and listening to CM Punk inside the ring. I respect greatly many of his political and social views. I cried for an hour straight when he returned to professional wrestling at the United Center after seven years away. Am I a fan of his work? Absolutely. Am I a fan of his oftentimes erratic and destructive behavior? I am not.
Do with that information what you will. This article is not meant to prop him up or tear him down. It’s merely an examination and a discussion of observations made.
I find him fascinating. He’s quite literally the most polarizing figure in professional wrestling across my generation and is near the top of the list all time as well. That’s not an indictment one way or another. It’s just the truth. I don’t necessarily know why he is that, but I suspect it’s because he’s just really good at doing the thing he loves. He understands it on a level very few do. And maybe that’s one of the problems.
That one isn’t on him. It’s on us.
I do sense some ego when he speaks. I don’t think that’s an off-base assumption, as he’s a professional wrestler, a former champion, and is a time and again proven top draw across multiple companies and eras. I also think he’s very good at working. He’s acutely aware of both his reach and the potential impact of everything that escapes his mouth. It’s something that can work for or against in ways big and small alike.
This should be obvious, but I should also make clear that I do not know CM Punk in any way, shape, or form. I am a fan reacting to the things I’ve seen and heard reported by reputable news sources. I was not present at any of the reported on backstage confrontations in AEW, so I can only assume pieces of blame are shared amongst all of those involved. It’s all any sane human can assume.
The problem though is that there were ever confrontations at all. And after there was one, why was there another? Certainly, there is enough blame to go around, that much is clear. I’m not going to sit here and explain to you whose fault anything was or why things escalated when they could have been avoided. Maybe the couldn’t have been. Who am I to say?
What I can say is that violence in the workplace is a nonstarter in almost every environment. Sports are an exception, whether I think they should be or not. Still, in the year 2023, there seems to be a firm cap on what is tolerable and what is not, even in sports. I think that’s fair. At some point, we’re all responsible for our own actions. Good and bad. Most human beings do not jump straight into violence when offended or inconvenienced. Maybe one instance can be chalked up to adrenaline or exhaustion or any number of things. But when it happens again?
Then again, are there situations where it might be warranted? Possibly, but that’s where we wrestle with personal responsibility once more. Where does that line blur and where does it stand firm? Only those
directly involved can make that call. All us spectators can do is judge, and that’s a dirty word, you guys. It really is. I’d love it if we could do less of it as a community.
From the management side, it’s murky, but it never had to be. I’ve been in management. In my experience, when it becomes a pattern, it becomes a problem.
Look, I get the frustration. All Elite Wrestling started as one thing for him. Somewhere along the way, it evolved into something very different. I don’t mean to be crass, but that’s life. It happens to all of us.
I don’t have a lot of empathy towards CM Punk for what he decided to do at the now infamous All Out press conference. It was unprofessional and exceedingly destructive to the company. It was done in front of his boss, the same man who gave him the chance to come back in the first place. Whatever took place in his dressing room after the fact aside, that public tantrum should have never happened. And if it didn’t, are we all still sitting here today faced with what we are? I don’t know the answer to that question.
CM Punk loves professional wrestling. I believe that with everything I have. Look at his face when he’s got a mic in his hand and tell me otherwise. Peep his eyes when he’s making magic in the ring and tell me you don’t see the passion still burning as bright as it ever has. Did you see his smile on Saturday night? That was real, y’all.
On the other hand, it took an awful lot of trouble to get to that smile on Saturday night. If you recall, his run in All Elite Wrestling started with a smile too, an awfully big one. It came with ice cream sandwiches. It came with rally cries. It came with promises. Yet here we are.
CM Punk is a flawed person. Before you attack me, we’re all flawed people. All of us. How those flaws manifest and how we each choose to deal with them is vital. Those choices shape us. That’s how we grow. And that’s what life is.
I think it’s more than fair if CM Punk loves aspects of professional wrestling but also hates aspects of professional wrestling. I don’t want to speak for everyone, but I’ve never met anyone who adored every single part of their job and everyone they encountered there.
Fans can blame Tony Khan for not being a strong enough leader during CM Punk’s time in AEW, and there may be truth there. But you cannot blame one without blaming the other. You cannot have what we had at All Out without a leader lacking control AND an insubordinate employee. Wrestling or not, it was an explosive situation that was completely manageable in the moment, if not avoidable all together.
I believe that CM Punk wanted AEW to succeed. I don’t believe that his goal was always to end up back on WWE television. I could be very wrong, but I strongly feel both of those things. We are where we are now out of necessity. Things broke down in one place, and they were built up in another. That’s business. And on and on it goes.
I wish everyone the best in this new endeavor. I want CM Punk to succeed. It would be quite beautiful if he could allow himself to write his final chapter in his own words. Everyone deserves that. Do I believe that will come to pass? I honestly don’t know, but more importantly, it really doesn’t matter what I think.
For the adults reading this, how many times in your lives have you been your own worst enemy? I know for me, that number is much higher than I’d like to admit. I believe strongly in growth and emotional evolution. The fan in me very much wants to give CM Punk the benefit of doubt one more time. The realist in me is hesitant to do so. So where does that leave us?
I do believe the WWE environment is probably better suited for him and his habits. I do believe AEW is better off without his antics overshadowing their every move. On the surface, everybody wins. It’s just unfortunate that everybody had to first lose to get here.
