Former AEW stars Bobby Fish and CM Punk have a long-standing feud, which originated from a match on “AEW Dynamite” in October 2021.
The match ended with Fish kicking out of Punk’s Go To Sleep just after the three-count, leading many to perceive it as a botch or a slight from Fish.
Recently, Fish spoke about his issues with “The Second City Saint” on TMZ’s “Inside the Ring,” providing insight into their troubled past.
Punk made a glorious return to professional wrestling in AEW after 7 years away in 2021, but he would only last two years – which included a long time out injured – after backstage issues resulted in the company letting him go.
Fish explained that he initially didn’t want to believe the rumours surrounding Punk’s behaviour, preferring to form his own opinion based on personal interactions.
“The story was always kind of put out there that he’s a politician,” Fish said. “I don’t judge people on hearsay. I wait until I have an interaction with them, then that’s when I start to form my opinion.
“And, that AEW match, and what would come after it is what my first impression was, and my interaction… with Phil Brooks was that. So, to me, he proved everything that I needed to know about him in those moments and in those interactions.”
Fish started addressing Punk directly: “Phil, you tattled on me,” he said. “Like, I get to the back and you’re already in the proverbial principal’s ear, Tony Khan, and then, you both not only walk away from me, but walk away from each other when I approach? Like, there’s nothing man about that.”
The feud between Fish and Punk has been well-documented, with both parties exchanging words in the media.
While we don’t know exactly what either party was meant to be upset about, a lack of communication is clear and that was a trend in AEW for a while with Eddie Kingston and Sammy Guevara falling out as their beef was allowed to stew too.
Punk fell out with The Elite, going off on them in the All Out post-show press conference and subsequently having a much-debated fight backstage afterwards.
That led to a suspension from AEW and upon his return, he was placed on their Saturday night Collision show away from The Elite. From there, he then fell out with Jungle Boy Jack Perry over a spot with real glass and that culminated in a backstage altercation moments before he performed for AEW at Wembley.
Conversely, life has been pretty pristine for Punk in WWE. No fallings out, two world title reigns – including being the current world heavyweight champion – and plenty of praise from his peers.
