Mick Foley On Why CM Punk's AEW Scrum Comments Were 'Disastrous'

Speaking on his podcast, "Foley is Pod," hardcore legend Mick Foley weighed in on the now-notorious CM Punk press conference following AEW's All Out pay-per-view earlier this month. Foley started off by saying that WWE has done a good job of keeping their top titles feel meaningful with Roman Reigns as champion, but noted that the same can't be said for CM Punk in AEW.

"Anything that takes away from the joy and the prestige of winning that title is counterproductive. So if Punk is on camera and he's not filled with joy, and he's letting bitterness and anger come out, I think that detracts from the title," Foley said. "By that standard, everything that ... Punk did was disastrous, because it put Tony Khan in a bad position. ... It was just really unfortunate. You don't want to see that side of your superstars."

Foley went on to talk about winning the WWF title belt from The Rock and how a win like that should be treated in the eyes of the fans. "I can't imagine going backstage and being angry or bitter, or taking the joy out of the experience for our fans," he said. "There's a time and a place, maybe, to play with emotions, and if you have something substantial that can make people feel strange in their gut, but not after a title win."

Overall, Foley felt the press conference and confrontation that followed was not in the best interest of the company.

"That wasn't good for business," Foley continued. "I mean, it might pay itself off in some way, but I think it was unfortunate, and sad, and it was a bad statement about the prestige of that title, that anything could be so meaningful that it took center stage over a title victory."