Scott D’Amore gives his honest thoughts on CM Punk.
The TNA (Impact) Executive VP spoke about the controversial Second City Saint during a recent chat on the What Do You Call It? podcast. D’Amore details the experience Punk had when he came to visit the TNA locker room at Bound For Glory last month in Chicago.
He was there the next day, at our TV, which is not unheard of. He was in Chicago at an event of ours earlier this year. We have a pretty open door policy. If you want to come by and visit at TNA Wrestling, you’re more than welcome. There is one simple rule. Don’t be an A-hole. Be respectful and you’ll be respected. Punk, when he showed up earlier this year, was a pleasure to have in the locker room. When he asked if he could come the day after Bound For Glory, come by the TV and say hello and watch some of the show, we said, ‘Of course.’ He came back and again was a pleasure to have. He chatted with some of the talent. I got to sit back and watch him and Josh Alexander have a nice long chat. What a great opportunity to have somebody like CM Punk in there. Even if it’s just a conversation and it’s not all about wrestling, there is no way you don’t learn something out of a conversation like that. He is welcome at events of ours.
D’Amore would later be asked if he would want Punk to join the TNA roster following all of the trouble he stirred up in AEW. D’Amore reiterates that Punk has always been wonderful to the people in the locker room when he came to visit, and that they would be happy to have him as long as he showed them the same respect again.
You asked me if I would like Will Opsreay to be the face of the brand, sure. Would we be open to having CM Punk join IMPACT Wrestling? Of course. Why wouldn’t we? You look at the business he drove for WWE and you look at what he did in AEW, he lifted AEW and ticket sales went up, viewers went up, pay-per-view buys went up. If it’s the right fit and it works for him and for us, business wise, and if it’s a good fit relationship-wise, the one thing that is unwavering is, you come into our locker room, it has to be somebody who is going to come in, fit in, be respectful. Punk has been that anytime he has come around us. We don’t judge based off what you hear, we judge based on what you do around us, and he’s been nothing but a pleasure to be around. Is it a possibility? Never write it off as being something to happen. I get a kick out of all the stories I read. ‘Oh, we made an offer? We did this?’ Somebody should tell me some of this stuff. We remain open to any possibilities, whether it’s joint venturing, doing collaborations with other companies, talent coming in, whatever it is. If it’s good for business and it makes sense and the fans are into it, we’re open.
In a separate interview, D’Amore spoke about Will Ospreay and why he believes the Aerial Assassin is the best wrestler in the world. You can read about that here.
(H/T and transcribed by Fightful)