CM Punk’s time in AEW is still one of the most discussed periods of his career, and now Matt Hardy has shared his thoughts on what he believes was happening behind the scenes between Tony Khan and him.
The current TNA star recently looked back on Punk’s controversial AEW run and suggested that Punk knew exactly how much influence he had in the company and wasn’t afraid to use that influence when it benefited him.
Matt Hardy thinks Tony Khan allowed CM Punk to flex his power
Speaking on The Extreme Life of Matt Hardy podcast, Hardy compared the CM Punk he saw in AEW to the version fans have seen since Punk returned to WWE.
In Hardy’s view, Punk realized early on that he had Tony Khan’s trust and attention, which gave him the confidence to push for things he wanted.
“I feel like when Punk was in AEW, he knew he had a hold on Tony Khan to a degree, that he could kind of get away with what he wanted. If he had something he was dead set on wanting to do, that he could kind of flex his muscles and he could get away with it. I think he could sniff that out of Tony, from Tony not being around and running a wrestling company for decades or years, whatever,” Hardy said.
That said, Hardy didn’t suggest that Punk manipulated every situation. Instead, he feels Punk understood how much leverage he had and occasionally used it to his advantage. Hardy also had positive things to say about Punk’s current WWE run.
“I think when he came back to WWE, I think he knew he couldn’t get away with that same type of attitude or mentality. It is what it is. He came back there and a lot of people thought he was going to stir up some sort of controversy or conflict, and he didn’t. He was a by-the-book guy, and it seemed like he was a model company employee. I think it’s hard to dispute that,” Hardy said.
For Hardy, that’s the biggest difference between Punk’s AEW and WWE runs.
Read More: Current Plans for CM Punk’s WWE Return Call for Significant Change — Report
