10 Wrestling Grudges That Changed The Business

4. CM Punk Vs The Elite & Friends, 2023

Vince McMahon Jesse Ventura
AEW

CM Punk made it to one of the biggest wrestling shows of all time by working Samoa Joe in an immediate cult classic at All In London, but as tensions built between the warring factions along the way, it became increasingly likely he wouldn't make it much further.

This was as good as confirmed when things got physical backstage literally minutes before 'The Voice Of The Voiceless' was set to go out to the ring. Punk and Jack Perry were involved in a real fight after the former Jungle Boy referenced an argument they'd had over fake glass down the lens of the camera during the pay-per-view pre-show. The situation followed weeks of stories emerging about who could and couldn't be on Collision with Punk, who was and wasn't welcome in AEW locker rooms, and what exactly was the nature of the relationship between Punk and boss Tony Khan. When Khan himself revealed that he was left "fearing for his life", it was clear things were untenable.

AEW released the former World Champion "with cause" later that week, preparing in the process to embark on a new era conclusively without one of the most divisive figures in industry history.

Contributor
Contributor

Michael is a writer, editor, podcaster and presenter for WhatCulture Wrestling, and has been with the organisation nearly 8 years. He primarily produces written, audio and video content on WWE and AEW, but also provides knowledge and insights on all aspects of the wrestling industry thanks to a passion for it dating back over 35 years. As one third of "The Dadley Boyz" Michael has contributed to the huge rise in popularity of the WhatCulture Wrestling Podcast and its accompanying YouTube channel, earning it top spot in the UK's wrestling podcast charts with well over 62,000,000 total downloads. He has been featured as a wrestling analyst for the Tampa Bay Times, GRAPPL, GCP, Poisonrana and Sports Guys Talking Wrestling, and has covered milestone events in New York, Dallas, Las Vegas, Philadelphia, London and Cardiff. Michael's background in media stretches beyond wrestling coverage, with a degree in Journalism from the University Of Sunderland (2:1) and a series of published articles in sports, music and culture magazines The Crack, A Love Supreme and Pilot. When not offering his voice up for daily wrestling podcasts, he can be found losing it singing far too loud watching his favourite bands play live. Follow him on X/Twitter - @MichaelHamflett