Worrying speculation on the future of CM Punk and former WWE Superstar in AEW

There is growing speculation surrounding former AEW World Champion CM Punk and close friend Ace Steel following the backstage brawl that occurred after All Out 2022.

Punk and Steel were involved in a scuffle with The Elite after the Straight Edge Superstar used all of his favorite four-letter words to describe the Executive Vice Presidents of AEW.

Since then, The Elite have been suspended, Ace Steel has been taken off the road and all the champions involved (CM Punk, Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks) have been stripped of their respective championships.

However, Dave Meltzer of the Wrestling Observer has stated that things could go from bad to worse for CM Punk, as he believes that it would be incredible if Punk or Steel were seen in the company again:

“It’s hard for me to see Punk or Steel back. As far as the other guys I don’t know. I know from talent that’s not affiliated with anyone that… you know, with the Punk thing, there was already a lot of divisiveness when it came to Punk. It had nothing to do with the Young Bucks or anything like that, it was just a feeling. I don’t know how to really explain it." (H/T Inside the Ropes).

Meltzer would also note that he believes that Punk was already rubbing people the wrong way, and that people weren't listening to him when he tried to give advice:

"He was rubbing people the wrong way. I know from his standpoint, his feeling was that he’s trying to teach these guys how to draw money. Kind of the veteran thing, how to draw money, how to do stuff, he’s trying to give them good advice and he was very frustrated. There were people that were listening, and there were people that weren’t listening." (H/T Inside the Ropes).

Who will replace CM Punk as the AEW World Champion?

Unless Danhausen put a legitimate curse on CM Punk after winning the AEW World Championship the first time around, the Straight Edge Superstar can only put his injury woes down to bad luck.

Punk would have likely been stripped of his title anyway due to what happened at All Out, but the injury he sustained in his match with Jon Moxley gave AEW president Tony Khan no alternative but to vacate the title.

So who is in the running to become the new AEW World Champion? At the time of writing, Bryan Danielson, Chris Jericho, Jon Moxley, Darby Allin and Sammy Guevara are all still in the "Tournament of Champions" which will conclude at the Grand Slam edition of Dynamite on September 21.

There is also the wildcard element of MJF, who has a guaranteed title match after winning the casino ladder match at All Out. The Salt of the Earth hasn't disclosed when he will cash in his opportunity, but it will be interesting to see the development over the next few weeks.

Who do you think will be the next AEW World Champion? Let us know in the comments section down below!