In a recent appearance on the “Wrestling With Rip Rogers” podcast, former AEW producer Ace Steel discussed CM Punk’s return to WWE, his favorite moments while working for AEW and ROH, the infamous backstage altercation at All Out 2022, and more.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On producing CM Punk vs. MJF’s Dog Collar Match: “I was Punker’s producer, so I produced some good stuff, produced his dog collar match [against MJF]… I did have fun, I had a lot of fun. I got to expand my skills as far as that went for producing.”
On working with Mercedes Martinez and Serena Deeb: “When Mercedes had the ROH Women’s Title, there wasn’t a lot going on with it. She’s like, ‘I really wanna do something with this, Ace.’ And I’m like, ‘Okay, well, let’s put our heads together.’ And I turned around one day and saw Serena walking out, and I go, ‘Why don’t we do something with Serena?’… So I had a lot of input with them that we would put in the mix to get their feud going last year.”
On his experience in AEW: “Well, I worked with a lot of great people, some great, some not so much. Family still exists in this business, there are things none of us can say, and none of us will, you know, I think my wife’s the only one who could probably tell the story [of All Out] since she was there. Maybe someday.”
On CM Punk’s return to WWE: “I’m very proud of my number one student that I’ve ever coached in the world for heading back to show the world who the f**k he is… The reason people hate him or whatever is he’s not about the bulls**t, and the guy doesn’t take s**t, and he doesn’t take it lightly. And when you’ve had enough s**t, you either explode, or you take care of business yourself, and you defend yourself.”
On the All Out altercation: “You might hear something; I’m sure it’s gonna be on f**king Dark Side of the Ring someday; I laughed at the time, going, ‘All this s**t’s gonna be on Dark Side of the Ring someday,’ you know, someone’s going to want to know.”
On his exit in the aftermath of All Out: “No one gave a s**t about my mental health when that went on. I used to work for AT&T as a manager. For 10 years, I was a high-end manager of fiber splicers. No one knows why I left that position… That’s not reported out there; no one knows why you left this place to go work at this place. Why does that f**king matter?”
Steel had initially joined AEW in March 2022 following his WWE release in January of that year. He was fired following the backstage incident at AEW All Out 2022.
Steel was later brought back earlier this year following CM Punk’s return to AEW TV. He was released once again after AEW fired Punk this past September.
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Former AEW producer Ace Steel recently appeared on the “Wrestling With Rip Rogers” podcast, where he discussed various topics including CM Punk’s return to WWE, his favorite moments working for AEW and ROH, the backstage altercation at All Out 2022, and more.
During the podcast, Steel mentioned that he produced CM Punk’s dog collar match against MJF and had a lot of fun working on it. He also talked about his experience working with Mercedes Martinez and Serena Deeb, where he collaborated with them to create interesting storylines and feuds.
When asked about his time in AEW, Steel mentioned that he worked with both great and not-so-great people. He emphasized that the wrestling industry is like a family, and there are certain things that cannot be discussed openly. He hinted at an incident at All Out 2022, saying that it might be featured on the show “Dark Side of the Ring” in the future.
Steel also expressed his pride in CM Punk’s return to WWE, calling him his number one student and praising his authenticity and refusal to tolerate any nonsense. He mentioned that Punk is someone who defends himself when necessary and doesn’t take things lightly.
Regarding his exit from AEW after the All Out altercation, Steel expressed disappointment that no one cared about his mental health during that time. He mentioned his previous job as a manager at AT&T and questioned why people are so interested in knowing the reasons behind someone’s career choices.
Steel initially joined AEW in March 2022 after being released by WWE in January of the same year. However, he was fired following the backstage incident at AEW All Out 2022. He was later brought back after CM Punk’s return but was released again when AEW fired Punk in September.
In conclusion, Ace Steel’s appearance on the “Wrestling With Rip Rogers” podcast provided insights into his experiences working in the wrestling industry, including his time at AEW, his involvement in producing memorable matches, and his thoughts on CM Punk’s return to WWE.