In a recent appearance on the “Gabby AF” podcast, WWE Hall of Famer D-Von Dudley analyzed AEW’s decision to air the All In 2023 footage of CM Punk and Jack Perry’s backstage altercation on this week’s episode of Dynamite.
Dudley believes AEW airing out its dirty laundry on live television was a bad idea.
You can check out some highlights from the podcast below:
On what happened in AEW with CM Punk: “Well, you know, it is a sad thing that happened in the business when CM Punk was there. Nobody should have to go through that stuff, no company should have to see that — but at the same time, when you have the inmates running the asylum, this is what happens. Again, I’m not there, I’m not in AEW, so I don’t really know the going on there, but I don’t think it should have been appropriate to air something that, even though it happened months ago, that’s something that you just don’t air out. That’s your dirty laundry, you keep that to yourself.”
On how AEW needs to move on: “The problem was handled, time to move on, time for AEW to move on. Jack Perry is somewhere in Japan and let’s just leave it like that. To act like that, I’m not sure why they did that and I don’t get it, nor do I understand it. ‘Oh, well we need to expose this because Punk needs to be exposed’, no, you did it for a cheap rating. I’m sorry, I’m not the only one that feels that way, there’s a lot of AEW hardcore fans that feel the same way. I’m not saying anything negative about the company, but I do feel like this is one of the problems that Tony Khan has, he has a lot of yes people and not enough people to tell him, no, don’t do this. If he is in fact really running the show on his own, he should’ve known better to not do something like that, it’s just gonna cause negativity.”
On how many fans were behind CM Punk: “Sometimes negativity works, but in that aspect, not so much. I look at it like this also — A lot of people kind of agreed with Punk and what happened and what he did. There was a lot of AEW fans that agreed with him. There was some that didn’t, but there were a lot of people that did agree with him because it just seems like the inmates are running the show over there. Look, again, I don’t know because I don’t work for the company. I’m a big fan of a lot of the talent that is there, I met a lot of them on the Jericho cruise, great guys. Really great guys, I have nothing negative to say about anybody in that company. Everybody that I’ve met has been nothing but respectful towards me and it’s been giving right back.”
On how AEW can’t have inmates running the asylum: “But, in saying that, you cannot have the inmates running the asylum. This is exactly what happened with WCW. There was no one to say no, there was no Vince McMahon, who regardless of the allegations, he did keep a tight ship and you would think twice about doing anything if Vince said no to something. You didn’t question him, you did exactly what he said and that was it or you were gone. I think that’s why Tony is missing over there, I think he has to get control over his organization because if not, it’s gonna be another WCW.”
In a recent episode of the “Gabby AF” podcast, WWE Hall of Famer D-Von Dudley shared his thoughts on AEW’s decision to air the footage of CM Punk and Jack Perry’s backstage altercation during the All In 2023 event. Dudley believes that airing out their dirty laundry on live television was a mistake and that AEW needs to move on from the incident.
Dudley expressed his sympathy for CM Punk and stated that no one should have to go through such an experience in the wrestling business. However, he believes that AEW should have kept this incident private and not aired it on television. He emphasized the importance of keeping such matters within the company and not exposing them to the public.
According to Dudley, AEW needs to move on from the incident and focus on the future. He mentioned that Jack Perry is currently in Japan, and it would be best to leave the situation behind. Dudley questioned why AEW felt the need to expose this incident, suggesting that it may have been done for cheap ratings rather than genuine reasons. He also mentioned that many AEW hardcore fans share his sentiment and feel that airing the footage was unnecessary.
Dudley also touched upon the issue of negativity within AEW. While he acknowledged that negativity can sometimes work in wrestling, he believed that in this case, it did not. He mentioned that some AEW fans agreed with CM Punk’s actions, as they felt that the company was being run by the wrestlers themselves. However, he made it clear that he personally has nothing negative to say about anyone in AEW and has had positive experiences with the talent he has met.
Drawing a comparison to WCW, Dudley emphasized the importance of having control over the organization. He stated that AEW cannot have “inmates running the asylum” and needs someone like Vince McMahon, who can maintain order and make decisions without question. He warned that if Tony Khan does not gain control over his organization, AEW may face similar issues to what WCW experienced in the past.
In conclusion, D-Von Dudley believes that AEW made a mistake by airing the footage of CM Punk and Jack Perry’s backstage altercation. He suggests that AEW needs to move on from the incident and focus on the future. Dudley also emphasizes the importance of having control over the organization to avoid potential issues in the future.