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Wrestling veteran Konnan believes that a former WWE Champion's return to pro wrestling was grossly mishandled.
The star in question is none other than CM Punk. After his departure from the pro wrestling world in 2014, many thought he had retired for good. However, he returned after seven years, choosing AEW as his new home. His matches in Tony Khan's promotion had him facing off against several home-grown stars in an attempt to elevate them.
According to Konnan, these booking decisions were not intelligent choices. Speaking on a recent episode of Keepin' It 100, the WCW veteran explained his opinion on Punk's comeback:
"I hear it was Punk and not Tony that he [Punk] wanted to wrestle with these young talents. But he was wrestling with young talents that, number one, weren't over and, to this day, still aren't over. Lee Moriarty and all these other people that he was wrestling. In my mind it was like, you don't do what Punk wants, you do what the fans want. And that was a big mistake. They mishandled him coming back (...) If all of a sudden Nate Diaz is coming back, you don't put him against Joe Shmoe." (2:25 onwards)
Konnan believes AEW cannot afford to lose The Elite to WWE
While the real-life heat between The Elite and CM Punk is seemingly proving to be a hurdle for the latter's return, Konnan believes that firing Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks is not the solution to this issue.
On the Keepin' It 100 podcast, Konnan explained how WWE could pick up The Elite if Tony Khan fired the stable.
“Who knows what problems they’ve had with CM Punk that we don’t know about that they’re like, ‘We can’t work with this guy’. Because CM Punk does have a history of being toxic, The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega don’t. (…) The problem is that if you let The Young Bucks and Kenny Omega go and WWE picks them up, that might be something you may not be able to come back from.” [02:45 onwards]
With reports of CM Punk returning to action this year, it remains to be seen what the future holds for the former WWE Superstar.
Do you agree with Konnan? Sound off in the comments section below.
If you use quotes from here, please credit Keepin' It 100 and add a H/T for the transcription.
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