In an unforgettable post-show press conference for All Out in 2022, CM Punk tore into The Elite and the backstage conduct of AEW's EVPs. Moments after he was done eating muffins and dropping pipe bombs, the Second City Saint allegedly got into a fight with Kenny Omega, The Young Bucks, and "Hangman" Adam Page.
An NDA was reportedly signed - on AEW President Tony Khan's orders - which has stopped those involved from sharing any specifics. However, Omega has now opened up on his involvement and it very much sounds like he wasn't part of the problem.
"I thought my duty as EVP during 'Brawl Out' would be to enter the situation while there was chaos, de-escalate it, and create a peaceful environment for everyone," he explained, confirming past reports that he stepped in to get Punk's dog, Larry, out of the line of fire.
Omega would go on to say that he doesn't have a problem with wrestlers coming to blow backstage if it means they can resolve their issues and, reading between the lines, it seems he thinks Punk's firing after All In wasn't justified (that came after he came to blows with Jack Perry).
"Unfortunately, try as I may, things were too chaotic for me to be able to do anything by my own power. I also thought of myself as a liability because I just played a lot of contact sports and I've gotten into jiu-jitsu and boxing and mixed martial arts. When you're in an environment like that, sometimes emotions get the best of you and people will wanna throw hands."
"I am unfortunately - or fortunately - a believer of it. I'm actually a believer in fighting. I am, and that sounds terrible to say which is why, like, don't make me an EVP in 2024. We can't do that stuff anymore. I just feel that sometimes that's how you have to settle things."
Omega added that he hasn't "had power" within AEW for more than four years, and considers himself a "terrible EVP," undeserving of the title. Something isn't quite right in AEW, that's for sure, and it's beginning to feel like the Young Bucks may be the problem (they were the ones who presented the All In security footage to disastrous results this past Wednesday).
As for his relationship with Punk, Omega said, "We were never bad. Honestly, if it wasn't for a complete other factor, we would have been able to have that talk on the night of 'Brawl Out'. There's no issue between him and I, as far as I know."
"I don't wanna seem stand off-ish or secretive about what happened. Yes, there's legalities and all that stuff, but even if there wasn't...I'm actually not a huge fan of pulling back the curtain on stuff that doesn't need to be public."
You can hear more from Omega in the X post below.