Paul Wight recently spoke with DAZN for an in-depth interview covering all things pro wrestling.
During the discussion, the pro wrestling legend spoke about the rumored backstage issues in AEW surrounding CM Punk, as well as the ALL IN 2023 premium live event this Sunday at Wembley Stadium in London, England.
Featured below are some of the highlights from the interview.
On his belief that CM Punk is best for business: "Star power. A lot of people may not like Phil’s attitude. I’ve known Phil for a long time. We’ve been friends for a long time. Phil is super competitive and super driven. He expects a lot from himself, and he expects a lot from others around him. I think a lot in the beginning here is just a communication breakdown. People might not understand how passionate Phil is. Phil is a guy that’s going to let you know if he’s upset about something, and he’s not going to give a crap if he hurts your feelings. He’s not. He’s never been that way with me. If I’ve screwed up and done something, he’s letting me know right away, ‘What was I thinking?’ and it goes back and forth. I kind of have the same attitude. Not quite as intense as Phil, but mine is very business-oriented. What’s best for the program? What’s best for the overall show? A lot of times in a business, when you have this many incredible talents with this many egos, feathers are going to get rubbed the wrong way. There’s going to be conflict. I mean, it’s not Romper Room. This is a serious business with serious athletes, and everyone has to learn to communicate their passion in different ways. Still, the one thing that unequivocally nobody can deny is CM Punk brings star power."
On what it means for the success of All In and a large UK audience this Sunday: "I know what it means. I think some other guys who have worked bigger shows like this know what it means. I think some of our younger talent haven’t comprehended yet because they haven’t worked in front of a crowd like this one. A lot of them haven’t worked in front of a hot UK crowd and I haven’t even worked in front of a UK crowd this big. So this is going to be a moment in time for, I think, all the crew on AEW and, I think the UK fans as well. That’s what’s so incredible about this is this is the moment in time when I first had my first meeting with Tony Khan. I was very adamant about needing to get to the UK. It’s good for our talent to work in front of those fans to experience that environment. It really helps you understand your character. And I know that sounds weird because you can work all the time in different places, but I’ve always found that I’ve made monumental leaps in my career, character, and understanding of the industry working here in the UK. With that being said, my ambition was like, Yeah, we get a great show, we get a great show at O2 Arena. That would be amazing. Well, if we can fill that place up, it would rock. It would be great. Well, now we’ve got Wembley, ‘like, wow.’"
Check out the complete interview via the YouTube player embedded below. H/T to Fightful.com for transcribing the above quotes.
