Booker T Weighs In On The CM Punk-Jack Perry Incident, Backstage Drama In AEW, More
Booker T, speaking on the latest episode of his “Hall of Fame” podcast, discussed the backstage fight between CM Punk and Jack Perry at AEW All In 2023 this past Sunday, and all the drama surrounding the incident.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On young talent not being receptive to veterans’ advice these days: “I heard about the kerfuffle between CM Punk and Jungle Boy Jack Perry. We could talk about it right now… Well, look here. Maybe [not taking advice from veterans] falls under all the young guys’ premise these days. ‘Well look man, we ain’t got time to be listening to some guy who thinks they know what it’s all about.’ Maybe that’s it…
On how anti-Punk sentiments may have developed in the AEW locker room, why they continue to persist: “Hey, I get it, man. I get it. A lot of these guys aren’t going to fall in line with CM Punk. That’s just the way it is, I think. After the press scrum and everything got out of hand, you remember what I said? I said, ‘Man, if I was in that company, I would have a bad taste in my mouth every time I saw CM Punk.’ Just because, you know, [if] I was one of those originals, I felt like I built that thing and then a guy just came [in]. That’s just me. Maybe there’s still some residual feelings after that. I don’t know.”
On CM Punk potentially being upset about his travel issues, how that might have played a role vis-a-vis the Jack Perry incident: “Me personally, I don’t know. I don’t think I’m going to be getting into a fight at the building before the match. But then again, I might be getting into a fight. If tensions are that high between the two people. I don’t know. CM Punk might have been upset about a plethora of things. I did read earlier today when I was scrolling through the social media sites and saw CM Punk landed at Heathrow Airport and nobody had from AEW, representatives, none of their people were there to pick him up and he had to buy his own train ticket to get to the hotel.
“That right there — look here. I know if I land in Heathrow and my people aren’t there to pick me up, I’m getting back on the damn plane and I’m going back home. I’m serious. And you know what? And then if I had to get to the hotel, I’m gonna be hot about it. You know what I mean? I’m-a still mad. I’m-a still balling a little bit, especially after I just did Rampage. From what I read, I’d be hot on it. So it could have been a multitude of things that, you know, flicked that switch to where those guys said, ‘Man, let’s go, let’s go, let’s get this done.”
On CM Punk being the focal point of AEW’s backstage issues, his perspective: “You’ve gotta understand the pecking order, though. I mean, I’m not jumping on CM Punk’s side here or anything like that. But you got to know the pecking order, you know? Tony Khan brought CM Punk in to quarterback this thing. When the quarterback comes in, what letter does he have on his jersey? “Everybody fall in line, dammit!’”
On how social media has exaggerated and exacerbated backstage turmoil: “It’s always been that way in this business where two guys are just going to butt heads. And when it happens, boom! It’s some friction. That’s just part of the game. It’s just reported a whole lot more, because of social media and whatnot. But if these guys do have a problem, and we’re making news like this? You know, you use that.”
On Jack Perry using real glass for an angle: “There should be some rules and regulations. No one should be having to use a real glass to bash over their head and cut an artery or something and bleed all over the place, and end up perhaps dying.”
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