Eric Bischoff On Tony Khan Bringing 'Cancer' Into AEW, Importance Of The Brand
Eric Bischoff has once again hit out at AEW President Tony Khan, this time about his handling of the CM Punk situation.
On a recent edition of his "Strictly Business with Eric Bischoff" podcast, the Hall of Famer credited AEW for not depending on one star, but came down heavily on Punk.
"WWE is comprised and is represented by all of these Superstars but it's the brand that people are buying into not any one person," argued Bischoff. "And, again, that's one of the reasons why I am supportive and will continue to be supportive of AEW, for not relying on any one piece of talent. I no longer think that's the way to do business."
He criticized Punk, once again, calling him overrated and unprofessional, and feels that Khan hasn't managed the former AEW World Champion well.
"CM Punk is a draw — I don't like him, I think he's unprofessional, I think he's highly overrated, and I don't think he's worth nearly the amount of money or the compromises that Tony Khan is making along the way. I think that Tony will realize that at some point in time. I said this before, as soon as CM Punk came back, this is making a bad situation worse. You're bringing cancer into your company and you're not managing it," said Bischoff. "Rather than putting CM Punk in a box and reminding him that he's talent, he's not management, they gave him the keys to the kingdom."
Bischoff recalls being in a similar situation
Eric Bischoff said that he was in a similar situation when he was in charge of WCW and had to file a lawsuit against Ric Flair. Bischoff filed a lawsuit against the 16-time world champion after he didn't appear for an episode of "Thunder." Bischoff encouraged Tony Khan to be a better leader and stated that the situation will worsen before it gets better.
"It's going to get worse before it gets better. At some point Tony is going to have to learn how to be a leader, he's going to have to take it on the chin, just like I did with Ric Flair," said Bischoff. "When I decided to sue Ric Flair because we couldn't work our sh*t out and he was going public with his side of the story, [I said] I can't play anymore. I have to do ... I have to take a position and it was a painful one to take, it still is. Ric Flair still resents me to this day for what I did. He hates when I even talk about it. But I was forced to do something I didn't want to do, and something I knew was going to hurt financially because Ric had such an amazingly loyal fan base, and deservedly so."
He feels that the issues surrounding Punk and AEW will aggravate because there's no risk or punishment for Punk when he talks openly and criticizes fellow stars.
Their responsibility is to help build the brand: Bischoff
Eric Bischoff feels that the ultimate goal for every pro wrestler should be to build the promotion's brand, even if it means dealing with people that they don't like.
"That's their responsibility, to help build the brand. That's what they're getting paid for, in some cases millions of dollars more than they are actually worth on the open market. But Tony's willing to take that chance and to fund whatever his vision is. Their responsibility is to contribute in building the brand, even if it means putting up a situation that they really don't like," argued Bischoff. "Everybody that I know that has a job has to put up with situations every single day and work with people every single day and are assigned to do things they absolutely detest every single day. But that's what you're getting paid for."
The WWE Hall of Famer said he has worked with many people that he hasn't liked, and that peers only require respect and trust to make it work. He thinks that every wrestler should focus on moving the brand forward and look past personal agendas and even work with those that they don't see eye-to-eye with.
Over the last few weeks, there have been a number of issues that have surfaced regarding Punk in AEW, with rumored tense encounters between Punk and Jack Perry, as well as Ryan Nemeth. Punk has reportedly offered to have discussions with The Elite to bury the hatchet, but AEW management scuppered those plans.