UPDATED 10:00 PM ET
F4WOnline has provided even more details on the CM Punk/Jack Perry altercation backstage at Sunday’s All In at Wembley Stadium.
Bryan Alvarez of F4WOnline said it was described to him that Perry was backstage Sunday having cuts worked on after getting dropped on the windshield of the car during the match when Punk walked over to him and asked him (Perry) if he had a problem with him.
Perry then said something to the effect to Punk of “Well, you heard what I said out there.” According to several people, Punk said then responded back with something to the effect of, “You know I can beat your ass, right?” It was at that moment, there was a quick incident and nearly 100 percent of the people Alvarez spoke with said that Punk made the comment and either shoved or pie-faced Perry and then put him in a guillotine headlock.
The incident was then said to have immediately broken up soon after. Punk and Perry reportedly got close enough to Tony Khan, who was in the gorilla position, to have TV monitors apparently knocked down onto Khan. It was also noted that unlike the brawl following last September’s All Out, there were a lot of witnesses to this all happening, including Khan himself.
Alvarez said Punk was furious about the situation and several people said he threatened to quit the company and did not want to go out for his match against Samoa Joe which caused a delay. This reportedly resulted in AEW personnel going to FTR and The Young Bucks about opening the show, but they were not ready to do so. Personnel then went to the participants for The Golden Elite vs. Bullet Club Gold/Konosuke Takeshita trios match and they said that they could do it if needed.
Alvarez said he was told that Samoa Joe was furious and apparently talked Punk into doing their match.
Afterwards, there was apparently another near-incident when Punk came back through the curtain. Miro went up to Punk and asked about what happened with Perry. Punk then asked if he had a problem with him now which then resulted in an argument. Punk asked had asked Miro if he wanted to step outside. However, the situation did not escalate into anything and Punk headed to the trainer’s room.
After the initial report, both Nick Hausman and PWInsider had denials that altercation even happened. Fightful’s Sean Ross Sapp reported Tuesday evening that the dialogue between them described above was done in a joking manner.
Per Dave Meltzer, Punk and Perry are suspended pending the outcome of an investigation into the matter. It is possible Punk and Perry will work at this Sunday’s All Out PPV, but that is only if the investigation is cleared by then. However, Alvarez was told Monday from the Warner Bros. Discovery side they were told Punk was indeed suspended and off Sunday’s All Out.
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Below is our original report from Tuesday.
Fightful Select has provided some new details regarding the CM Punk/Jack Perry situation.
The report indicates there was a lot of eye rolling and “this again?” reactions to the altercation.
According to the report, Perry told some people that he was planning on making a comment at All In during his FTW Title match with Hook on the Zero Hour Pre-Show, in which he said “It’s real glass, cry me a river!” The comment was made in reference to the reports of him and Punk having a disagreement backstage during a previous AEW Collision episode in regards to a spot that Perry wanted to do using real glass.
Fightful Select notes the stories of what exactly happened are inconsistent depending on who you speak with.
The report states that while Punk’s side of the story has been clear, there are details from the side of Perry. It was said that one AEW source claimed with “100 percent certainty” Perry did not throw the first punch and that “Punk shoved him (Perry) and put him in a choke.” There are however, several stories that differ – which is that Punk shoved Perry, Punk pie faced Perry, Punk threw the first punch. One person claimed Samoa Joe attempted to play the peacemaker and keep other people out of the situation.
Several people had said to Fightful Select that Punk had asked Perry if they had a problem and Perry then called the line his “receipt” for Punk starting something online regarding the situation pertaining to Collision.
The report further notes that people close to Punk said there was not much communication between himself and Tony Khan after the event. It was then stated that Punk apparently had told some people he “hates this place” in reference to ongoing issues in AEW.
The report concluded by saying the production team was told of a potential switch in matches due to the situation.
As of this writing, Fightful and other media outlets are reporting that Punk has not been informed of any suspension.
There is also no word on if Perry has or has not been informed.
We will continue to provide more information as it becomes available.