NWA owner Billy Corgan appeared on the latest edition of the “Mat Men with Andrew Zarian” podcast and was asked about NWA’s interest in CM Punk, a free agent, after AEW released him due to his backstage altercation with Jack Perry at All In 2023.
“Many people behind the scenes have asked me, ‘should we make a play for Punk? Have you reached out to Punk?’ The answer, in terms of reaching out, is no. I respect him a lot. He deserves top money. He’s a top star. That sounds almost self-defeating, ‘you’re almost admitting that you wouldn’t want him.’ No, trust me, the NWA would go hand over fist to have Phil walk through the door and be part of the NWA, even for a pay-per-view,” said Corgan. “What I would say to Phil, and I’m not trying to use this as an open forum, I’m saying to you what I would say to Phil, and again, I have not reached out and I certainly know how to get in touch with him. What I could say to him is, he would have a lot of fun in the NWA. I think Phil, the person, loves professional wrestling. He’s had his public confrontation….I’m very similar, I got sued by a record company for $150 million. I eventually made a deal with them and continued working for them. I’ve had massive battles behind the scenes with every segment of the record and touring business, some of which aren’t public. I have a reputation in rock n roll, behind the scenes. If Phil, the person has a rep with whoever, he doesn’t have that rep with me because I feel I understand where he’s coming from.”
Corgan noted that Punk loves wrestling before diving into his pitch for Punk to join the NWA. He said,
“That man loves professional wrestling. He may not love the professional wrestling business, but he loves professional wrestling. My only appeal to Punk would be, if you want to have some fun, I can’t pay you what you’re worth, but if you want to have some fun, come have some fun in the NWA. We’ll kick some ass, we’ll have some laughs, and I’ll buy you a vegan sandwich,” he said.
Corgan continued, “I’m a rockstar, I’ve been a rockstar for over 30 years. There are moments in my life, as a rockstar, where I’ve played Madison Square Garden. Sold it out, I’ve done it. There is no argument, but there are times where you’ve been there and done that, like Phil has, where you need to go back to the ground and say, ‘How did I get here, where this thing that I love doesn’t feel like the thing I love? Where it’s gotten so twisted and turned around, and somehow, I’m the bad guy on something I don’t feel like I’m the bad guy in.’ I’m not trying to get in the middle of what happened. I wasn’t there, but I do understand the man’s heart, I feel. I’m not his friend, I wouldn’t claim to be his friend, but I would like to see him, whether it’s with the NWA, or any other promotion, that he recaptures his smile. He deserves that. The business should rally around guys like Punk because the business benefits from stars.”
