CM Punk still is under contract with All Elite Wrestling, but that might change after Thursday.
The former AEW world champion posted and soon after deleted an Instagram story where he took a shot at the company, Jon Moxley, Chris Jericho and the Wrestling Observer's Dave Meltzer.
"Sigh. I wasn't cleared to come back to wrestle yet," Punk wrote, per WrestlingNews.co "I sat and listened to Moxley's 'Rocky III' idea. I explained how I'd never seen a 'Rocky' movie, and I thought the idea sucked, but if the boss (Tony Khan) wanted to do it, whatever. He (Moxley) said he wouldn't lose to me. I'd never experienced someone refusing to lose to me. I just laughed.
"I asked Tony if this was what he wanted. He said yes. He's the boss, so I said okay, but I'd need to be cleared first. They kept saying it could just be a squash, so I didn't need to be cleared. I scoffed at that. My health is more important. Dave Meltzer is a liar. Jericho is a liar and a stooge. There were plans, but plans always change, but I'll never put a company above my health ever again."
Punk responded to Meltzer's post on the Wrestling Observer board regarding the build to the main event of "All Out" last year. Jericho has been a staunch defender of AEW since leaving WWE, and he seemingly responded to Punk with an Instagram story of Matt Hardy doing the "delete" gesture.
At "Double or Nothing' on May 29, Punk was injured during his match with "Hangman" Adam Page, where he won the AEW title. He returned on Aug. 10 to challenge Moxley, who won the interim title. A unification title match soon was booked on the Aug. 24 episode of "Dynamite," where Moxley beat Punk soundly in three minutes.
A month later, Punk beat Moxley in their rematch at "All Out" to regain the AEW world title. After the pay-per-view, the new world champion ranted about Kenny Omega, Matt Jackson and Nick Jackson -- collectively known as The Elite. He addressed rumors he felt they leaked to give him a bad reputation, which led to the infamous "Brawl Out," where the parties fought backstage. After an internal investigation, Punk's mentor, Ace Steel reportedly was let go by the company.
Punk reportedly suffered an arm injury at "All Out" that would take him out for eight months. The 44-year-old has not been mentioned nor seen on AEW television since the incident on Sept. 4.
The Elite were off TV until they returned at "Full Gear" on Nov. 19. AEW founder and president Khan has been unclear on Punk's status within the company, but his comments Thursday signal he seemingly has no interest in coming back to AEW.
