AEW world champion CM Punk spoke with Sports Illustrated ahead of his highly anticipated title match against Jon Moxley on this evening’s Dynamite from Cleveland, Ohio. In the interview Punk addresses rumors that he is unhappy with the promotion following a series of reports surfacing on the subject, which included his “unplanned” promo on Adam Page from last week. He adds that he is an adult and that his locker room is always open.
Says he doesn’t put too much stock in internet rumors:
“You try not to put too much stock in internet rumors. But for AEW, I definitely think that’s part of our audience. Twitter’s not real life, though. On top of that, a lie makes its way around the world twice before the truth puts his boots on or gets out of bed. If I addressed every rumor, I’d be here all day. I love AEW. It’s not a competition of who loves it more or who’s the heart and soul, or who’s this and who’s that. AEW allowed me a second chance to do what I do best, and that’s professionally wrestle.”
Says his locker room is always open and people can come talk to him:
“It’s one side of the story. My locker room is never closed. It’s always open. Anybody who wants to DM [the Wrestling Observer’s Dave] Meltzer some bulls— can come talk to me about it. It’s not macho, stupid bulls—. I’m an adult. Come talk with me.”
On his world title match with Moxley:
“I don’t want to let the team down, but I don’t want to reinjure myself. I told my wife, my surgeon, and Tony [Khan] that I’m in a rush to be healthy, not in a rush to get back. Whereas, in the past, two weeks after knee surgery, it was, ‘I’ll owe you one, pal. We need you to do this match.’ I didn’t feel comfortable about that. I feel 100% testing my limits on Dynamite.”