Ace Steel opens up about his exit from AEW and talks about CM Punk.
Ace Steel was involved in Brawl Out, a backstage altercation between CM Punk and The Elite (Kenny Omega and The Young Bucks) in September 2022. Steel reportedly bit Omega, and AEW fired him. Punk was absent for several months, but he returned to the company in June 2022. Steel was brought back as well, but Punk’s contract was terminated following a second backstage incident at AEW All In. Steel was then fired by AEW again.
Speaking on Wrestling with Rip Rogers, Ace Steel discussed his experience in AEW and his controversial exit. (H/t John Pollock of POST Wrestling for the transcription)
“I worked with a lot of great people – some great, some not so much,” Ace Steel said. There are things that none of us say and none of us will … I think actually my wife is the only one who can tell the story because she was there, and maybe someday….You don’t f—k with family, you just don’t, you just don’t, and we came out just fine….I have a great lawyer, Stephen P. New, he is the man, let’s just put that in the world. Stephen P. New is a gem. He is for the wrestlers, he is for the boys, and he is on the right side of the world.
Ace Steel On How CM Punk Handled Everything
Steel then made it clear that he was proud CM Punk, and he shared his thoughts on the way Punk handled everything.
“I’m very proud of my number one student that I’ve ever coached in the world for heading back (to WWE) to show the world who the hell he is,” Steel said. “The reason people hate him or whatever is he isn’t about bullshit and the guy doesn’t take shit and he doesn’t take it lightly and when you’ve had enough shit you either explode or you take care of business yourself and you defend yourself.
“People don’t like him because he defends himself or calls stuff out when it’s not proper. But if you treat him right, he treats everyone else right.”
Steel also expressed how the experience was challenging, and he felt like nobody was concerned for his mental health, but he persevered.
The full video can be seen here:
Punk referenced his backstage incidents in a promo on the December 8 episode of WWE SmackDown. More information is available here.
