10 Biggest Mysteries In The Secret War Between AEW And CM Punk
5. Why Did CM Punk Wait?
Mystery:
You know the story: during the All Out press conference, the guy who used to cut pipe bomb promos instead lobbed a molotov cocktail at the bridge connecting him with All Elite Wrestling...
...as a result of an offscreen war with the management team that erupted before Double Or Nothing, during the press conference after which he was all smiles.
Well, not all smiles - Punk did allude to "nobodies" having a problem with him backstage, which tracks with his idea that Hangman Page hasn't "done anything" in the wrestling business - but generally, he was happy and relaxed in mood.
He looked prepared to be the face of the company and was very humbled that he was chosen for the role. He also said that, the two botches aside, his main event with Page was "damn near perfect" and that he worked very well in collaboration with Page, particularly given that it was the first ever time they had even locked up.
Fast-forward three months, and Punk, who was hardly raw and angry in the moment, unleashed on Page out of nowhere and called him a coward on live TV.
Why didn't he do this during the Double Or Nothing press conference?
Theory:
This is pure armchair psychology and inference, but maybe Punk experienced a bout of deep self-loathing over the summer, after injuring himself with the stage dive, and projected/lashed out after the fact?
And maybe all of this saga isn't fascinating gossip between a billionaire-funded wrestling promotion and a temperamental egotist, and may well be reframed one day as a significant mental health conversation.