Backstage News On Colt Cabana's AEW Dynamite Appearance

Colt Cabana being the opponent for Chris Jericho was the decision of one man, according to a new report. Dave Meltzer wrote in his latest "Wrestling Observer Newsletter" that it was AEW boss Tony Khan's ultimate decision to have Cabana make his return on "AEW Dynamite." Khan reportedly made the decision more for the morale of the locker room than it was to fire a potential parting shot at CM Punk. The decision was made mostly for the friends of Cabana, after months of his seemingly being ostracized due to the overall All Out situation.

As far as what the future holds for Cabana, he is still under contract with ROH, but Meltzer is speculating that the "Dynamite" match for him was unofficially a one-off. Cabana had been previously moved to the ROH roster, but CM Punk has made a point to make clear he had nothing to do with the move, despite his differences with his former friend. Khan also made clear that Punk never had any involvement with moving Cabana to the ROH roster.

The status of Punk in AEW going forward remains gray, but he and the company have reportedly been working on a buy-out of his contract. Punk's ultimate future in pro wrestling is still in question, but Fightful has reported that the Second City Saint has gotten the "wrestling bug" since his 2021 comeback. A potential return to the ring will be on extended hold as Punk recuperates from a torn triceps, an injury he suffered while wrestling Jon Moxley at All Out. The camp of CM Punk recently reported to Wrestling Inc. some other aspects surrounding his side of the fight at All Out, including that his dog Larry was injured in the melee.