Colt Cabana was reportedly afraid that CM Punk's arrival to AEW would result in him losing his job.
Punk joined AEW in August 2021 after over seven years away from wrestling following his WWE walkout in January 2014.
The Chicago-Made wrestler has captured two AEW World Championships in the company, the first at Double or Nothing 2022 and the second at September's infamous AEW All Out event.
Losing a Job
Not long after Punk's arrival in AEW, appearances by Cabana on TV dried up, and some have said that this was something Punk had orchestrated.
During the latest episode of his Keepin it 100 podcast, Konnan recalled meeting with Cabana at an AEW event and asking about Punk.
“When I saw Colt Cabana backstage, I remember asking him, ‘So what’s up with you now that Punk is back?’ He was like, ‘Yeah, man. We’re not really talking.’ I go, ‘Come on, dude. After all these years, you guys were boys’ He said, ‘Yeah, man. He just won’t talk to me.’ He would kind of look around, like, he knew [he was going to be fired.]"
Konnan added that looking back, it was clear that Colt thought he was "going to get the ax" and said that Khan would have done so to make Punk happy.
Cabana has not been fired from AEW, but has been moved to the Ring of Honor roster, which some have suggested was done to keep the former friends apart.
No Going Back
Punk and Cabana were once the closest of friends, but that changed due to a legal dispute regarding WWE.
When WWE physician Dr. Chris Amann sued the pair for defamation (over comments made by Punk on Colt's podcast) Punk allegedly offered to pay Cabana's legal fees.
Punk has claimed that this wasn't the case, which led to the fallout between the two, something that Colt believes can't be fixed, according to Konnan.
"I remember telling him ‘Bro, you can’t even sit down and just say, Hey, let’s reset our relationship.’ He said, ‘Nah, man. He won’t even talk to me.’"
Konnan recalls a conversation with Colt Cabana about CM Punk.
Konnan added that he was pleased to see Colt make his AEW TV return recently, challenging ROH World Champion Chris Jericho on the November 2, AEW Dynamite.
This marked Cabana's first AEW TV match in close to a year, which Konnan summed as down to "chicanery" and "politics."
h/t - WrestlingNews