Tony Khan admits he wanted to reconcile with CM Punk after the All In incident

Tony Khan has once again referred to the controversial altercation between CM Punk and Jack Perry that took place at AEW All In 2023, a backstage confrontation that ended with Perry being suspended and Punk being fired from the company. Today, with Punk established as one of the main figures in WWE, Khan reflects on the situation and admits that his intention was always to fix things.

In an interview with Ariel Helwani, Khan explained his decision to air the footage of the altercation on AEW Dynamite in April 2024, after Punk publicly criticized AEW and its management. For the AEW president, Punk's version did not match what he witnessed:

“I didn't agree with how he described what happened. He said he 'choked Perry a little' and yelled at me that he was leaving. I felt like people should really see what happened.”

Khan pointed out that airing the video generated a huge attention for Dynamite: "It's a television show and it had a very strong number." Although he states that "it made sense to air it", he acknowledges that not everyone agrees: ”It's in the eye of the beholder”.

On television, the decision was justified as part of the narrative of The Young Bucks, who argued that the distraction from the incident influenced their defeat at All In. Still, Khan admits that what happened with Perry marked a before and after: "That fight was a big part of why I think he couldn't continue with us."

Despite this, Khan confesses that he did want to keep Punk in AEW and that his intention was to build bridges: "It's clear that I wanted to reconcile".

But fate took a different turn. Punk returned to WWE in November 2023 and is currently the reigning world champion. His time in AEW seems completely closed, with no signs of a possible return to a Khan ring.