Tony Khan sets the record straight.
During a recent interview with Forbes, Tony Khan was asked about the speculation that CM Punk and Colt Cabana’s fractured relationship played a role in the latter being designated for the Ring Of Honor brand. Khan commented on the rumors and denied Punk having anything to do with Cabana’s status.
“There is certainly a perception out there that I don’t think is accurate that when I purchased Ring of Honor and also [as] some of the contracts were coming up and I was starting to make moves—whether it was renewing them in most cases or not renewing them or in some cases reassigning people—there was a misconception that was perpetuated unfairly that CM Punk had anything to do with me wanting to move Colt Cabana to the Ring of Honor roster when his contract came up.”
Khan went on to specifically state that CM Punk did not play a role in the decision at all.
“I will clarify that, just to take it head on, that he [Punk] had nothing to do with any of the contracts I picked up, whether I did or didn’t. But in particular, I did pick up Colt Cabana’s contract and gave him a similar contract to do different work,” said Khan. “I don’t know if it was fair that that got perpetuated…I also didn’t think that was fair to Punk.”
CM Punk and Colt Cabana were close friends for many years, but the relationship soured after the pair were involved in a legal battle over a breach of contract claim. WWE doctor Chris Amann was suing Punk for defamation claims made during the infamous Art of Wrestling podcast he recorded with Cabana in November 2014. Cabana later sued Punk for breach of contract after claiming Punk reneged on his offer to cover his legal fees for the Amann case.
In May, F4WOnline.com reported Colt Cabana signed a new contract with All Elite Wrestling, but he was designated for the Ring Of Honor brand when it officially relaunched. According to a subsequent report from Fightful, there were initial rumblings from some talent that Cabana’s move to ROH was linked to Punk. It was noted that his belief shifted after they saw the overall scaling back of plans for the Dark Order (including Alan Angels and Stu Grayson’s departures), but some still believed this was the case.
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