Wrestling veteran discloses he initially believed CM Punk could leave AEW following backstage melee

Konnan recently revealed that he thought CM Punk might never return to AEW if president Tony Khan had to pick between him and The Elite.

The alleged backstage brawl following the All Out media scrum has become the most infamous development in AEW this year. Multiple All Elite personnel and wrestlers have been suspended after the controversial event. For the time being, CM Punk, Kenny Omega, and the Young Bucks are out of action.

During the Keepin' it 100 podcast, Konnan recalled a conversation with Nick Hausman where the latter outlined why Punk would be a more logical choice to bring back.

"Who do you think they get rid off, The Elite or Punk? (...) I said I think it's gonna be Punk, and he [Nick] said, 'I think it's the Elite' and he was saying that he thought Tony was there, he never cut off Punk's mic, he kinda knew Punk was gonna say that... He never said 'Hey knock it off' or 'I don't think we need to go there', cut off the mic. And he is a real big Punk fan, that's who he wanted from the very beginning, and I was thinking to myself that is kinda true..." (7:35 - 8:15)

The wrestling veteran stated his opinion of what he would do in Tony Khan's shoes.

"To me at the end of the day, if there is enough people in the dressroom that do not want Punk back, why would you bring him back? If I were Tony I would sit everybody down and say 'Hey, let's be professional and let's all work,'" added Konnan. (9:00 - 9:10)

With Punk currently expected to take a while to recover from his injury, it remains to be seen if Konnan's opinion will be shared by Tony Khan as well.

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Dutch Mantell believes that CM Punk can take legal action against AEW

While things seem to have cooled down lately, WWE veteran Dutch Mantell thinks that the Second City Saint could potentially sue the promotion following the controversial events.

Speaking on an episode of Story Time with Dutch Mantell, the veteran stated that Punk had enough money to be able to legally pursue matters. He further noted that the AEW star might choose to sue even if Tony Khan took his side.

With neither The Elite nor Punk back in AEW right now, it remains to be seen how the situation will pan out in the foreseeable future.

Do you agree with Konnan and Dutch Mantell's views? Sound off in the comments below!

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If you take any of the above quotes, please credit Keepin' it 100 and give a H/T to Sportskeeda Wrestling for the transcription.