Jack Perry Denies Apologizing For CM Punk Fight, Says AEW Return Plans Were Scrapped

On Friday morning, the latest edition of Dave Meltzer's Wrestling Observer Newsletter provided an update on displaced AEW star Jack Perry, saying he had apologized to AEW CEO Tony Khan following the incident at All In 2023 that led to CM Punk's departure from the company. Meltzer also said that Perry's recent work in New Japan Pro-Wrestling, which has a working relationship with AEW, is part of a storyline leading to Perry's AEW return. However, it's now clear that Meltzer's source for this information was not Perry himself, as Perry contacted the Observer and provided a very different story.

According to the latest Observer report from Bryan Alvarez, Perry denies that he ever apologized to Khan for All In, saying he refused to initiate first contact and didn't hear from the AEW president for two months following the incident. He finally met with Khan in November 2023, before AEW's Full Gear PPV, where they discussed a December return. However, according to Perry, these plans were scrapped when Punk returned to WWE at Survivor Series. Afterward, Khan and Rocky Romero worked with Perry to set up his NJPW debut in January, which saw him rip up an AEW contract and begin referring to himself by the term "scapegoat." Perry claims none of this was approved by AEW. He's still under AEW contract, but only because AEW denied his request for a release; he says he hasn't spoken to Khan in months and there are currently no plans to bring him back.

Perry was suspended by AEW following All In, where a line spoken by Perry during his Zero Hour match — "Real glass, cry me a river" — enraged Punk to the point that the two got into a physical altercation backstage. The incident ultimately resulted in Punk being fired by AEW.