Kevin Sullivan Takes Issue With How Tony Khan Handled CM Punk Situation In AEW

It's been well over a month since CM Punk was fired by AEW following an alleged physical confrontation between Punk and Jack Perry at AEW All In. While the full story of Punk's controversial AEW run may never be publicly known, it seems it will stay a topic of discussion for a long time to come. On a recent episode of "Tuesday With The Taskmaster," former WCW star Kevin Sullivan shared some criticism on how the problem was handled. Sullivan stated that the issues with Punk seemed to first come to a head during the media scrum that followed AEW All Out 2022.

"Obviously, this had been brewing for a long time," Sullivan said. "I know that everybody knows this is sports entertainment, but some things should be left in the back."

Sullivan pointed out the ways in which Punk's words and body language during the press conference were disrespectful to AEW President and co-owner Tony Khan. The former wrestling booker then jumped ahead in time to the last few months, discussing the conflict between Punk and Perry.

"What gave [Perry] the right to chest-bump [Punk], [he gets] suspended and Punk [gets] fired?" Sullivan continued. "Can you tell me what that was about? I think I got it. It is a group of people that outnumber Punk, and they probably went to [Khan] and said, 'It's either him or us.'"

It's still not quite clear what exactly occurred backstage between Punk and Perry, but it seems to be generally agreed upon that there was some kind of physical altercation. Days later, appearing on "AEW Collision," Khan publicly addressed the situation and Punk's firing, stating that he had feared for his life at one point.

"How does that come across to the average wrestling fan?" Sullivan asked. "Would Vince McMahon say that?"

If you use any of the quotes in this article, please credit "Tuesday With The Taskmaster" with a h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.