Eric Bischoff Baffled By Ace Steel/AEW Issue, Says CM Punk Is Worse Than Hulk Hogan

If AEW's refusal to re-hire Ace Steel is the sticking point hindering CM Punk's "AEW Collision" debut, Eric Bischoff believes Punk is not worth the drama. Addressing the reports on his "Strictly Business" podcast, Bischoff called out AEW CEO Tony Khan for allowing Punk to dictate the future of AEW's new Saturday night show.

"Unfortunately, Tony will find a way to allow this to continue, and Punk will be back, which will be a big mistake," Bischoff said. "Who the f–k is Ace Steel anyway?"

When informed of Steel's friendship with Punk, and the role played by Steel in the infamous AEW All Out brawl, Bischoff double down on his earlier take. 

"Just because he's a confidant of CM Punk's? Why is he allowed to jeopardize the network premiere of a brand-new show? Are you f—ing kidding me? People say I'm just being negative when I refer to the dysfunction within the infrastructure and the business side of AEW, but this [is a good example]."

Bischoff then took a step back and recapped Punk "eviscerating" the AEW roster and brand during a press conference, referring to the infamous post-All Out media scrum. Bischoff believes Punk should not be rewarded for his behavior, and that AEW management should force him to pay Steel from his own pocket.

"They bring him back and make him the focal point of an entirely new show but he decides to wet the bed because his confidant isn't allowed at the venue," Bischoff said of Punk. "Who cares? Let Punk pay him, he's making $5 million dollars a year or more than that. Let Punk pay him."

Bischoff then proceeded to compare Punk's antics to that of Hulk Hogan, who was notorious for using his stroke, especially during his time in WCW. If anything, Bischoff believes Punk is a hypocrite for being anti-Hogan.

"All these hardcore wrestling fans and Punk himself is so anti-Hogan because [they think] he's selfish and whatnot. Punk's worse!" Bischoff said.

Bischoff is still puzzled as to why AEW would announce a new show while still dealing with "open-ended legal issues" that, he suspects, have yet to be resolved.   

"There is no clear meeting of the minds here," Bischoff added. "It [legal issues] has not been cleared up, and yet we're moving forward with this big announcement. That is a total, abject failure on the part of the business side of AEW and quite frankly, TBS. Did they check what was going on? They were certainly aware of all the drama and legal issues."

With or without Punk, AEW is set to air"Collison" every Saturday night starting June 17. According to Dave Meltzer of The Wrestling Observer, AEW has a backup plan in place in the event that the issues with Punk and Steel are not resolved. While the preliminary promotional material for the show features the likes of Samoa Joe, Thunder Rosa, Miro, Powerhouse Hobbs, and Andrade El Idolo, Punk was originally slated to be advertised at the WBD upfronts, per multiple reports.