Former AEW superstar alleges harassment by WWE star CM Punk, slams AEW for mishandling situation

CM Punk left All Elite Wrestling in 2023

Former AEW star Ryan Nemeth has accused ‘The Second City Saint’ CM Punk of abuse during their AEW run. Nemeth currently is signed with TNA, while Punk returned to the WWE after ten years at Survivor Series 2023.

Punk joined the AEW in August 2021, as he came out of retirement after six years. However, his stint at the promotion didn’t last long as he left the promotion in mid-2023 to return to the WWE.

Punk recently performed at the 2024 edition of Survivor Series as he joined Roman Reign, The Usos & Sami Zayn in the WarGames clash against Solo Sikoa’s Bloodline.

The Second City Saint kicked off this week’s episode of Monday Night Raw where he was involved in a verbal and physical altercation with Seth Rollins.

According to a recent Fightful Select report, Nemeth filed a complaint with AEW executives on September 12, detailing a series of incidents in which he claims to have been mistreated by Punk.

Nemeth also alleges that when he reported Punk’s alleged misconduct, AEW officials gave him the runaround or ignored him.

Ryan Nemeth also claimed that AEW’s legal team threatened legal action over the situation

In his complaint, Nemeth claims to have kept a log of emails, texts, phone call logs, and other records, referring to Punk as a former AEW talent who also held an undisclosed Executive/Producer/Manager title within the company.

The former AEW star states that he contacted AEW’s legal representative, Megha Parekh, on April 16, 2023, voicing concerns about being targeted by Punk. He alleges that Punk threatened him in an AEW locker room on June 21, 2023, following a dispute over tweets related to the Second City Saint.

Ryan asserts that figures such as Tony Schiavone, Parekh and the Young Bucks showed him empathy and assured him that his AEW position would not be impacted by the incident. Nemeth maintains that his tweet calling Punk “the softest man alive” was in character.

Following the incident, Nemeth claims he wasn’t booked by AEW for two months, and during this period, Jon Moxley allegedly reached out to offer his support, with Mox telling him that the situation “didn’t sit right with him”.

When Nemeth followed up with Parekh on July 17, 2023, expressing concerns about being quietly let go by AEW, Parekh reassured him that speaking up wouldn’t impact his job.

However, Nemeth’s first booking in two months, on August 12 in Greensboro, ended with him being told to go home, with Pat Buck citing travel confusion before revealing that Punk had demanded his removal from the venue. The former AEW star claims to have audio evidence of this interaction.

Following this, Nemeth contacted Parekh again for action and was flown to another show on August 16, where he was allegedly ordered to antagonize Punk in a promo. “ordered to verbally antagonize the ‘World Champion’ (Punk) in a promo in front of the live crowd, taped for AEW programming.”

Ryan claims that after speaking with AEW legal and HR, there was no appropriate response to the situation. After Parekh abruptly left her position in AEW’s legal department, Nemeth had to deal with Chris Peck and Margaret Stalvey.

Following the Punk/Jack Perry incident at All In in August 2023, Nemeth was asked to speak with outside counsel, where he voiced concerns about being blamed for Punk’s behavior. According to sources, the focus was on addressing Punk’s actions rather than resolving Nemeth’s issues.

The former AEW star was reassured that his contract wouldn’t be allowed to expire, but his final AEW appearance came on November 18, 2023, during the same week Punk returned to WWE at Survivor Series. Nemeth believes AEW and Tony Khan held him responsible for Punk’s firing and subsequent return to WWE.

Nemeth’s AEW deal expired in March 2024, and despite multiple creative pitches for his character from Sonjay Dutt, none were pursued. Ryan claims that Chris Peck later offered a settlement worth about three years of his salary, contingent on him signing a non-disclosure agreement.

Nemeth was appreciative of the offer but was told by his legal counsel that it was no longer available. Peck also allegedly threatened Nemeth with legal action in response to him sending his timeline of events.

It is also claimed that Peck warned Nemeth that if things escalated to arbitration, he would be portrayed as an adversary to Parekh, despite Nemeth claiming he had a positive and respectful working relationship with her.

The former AEW star states that he sought mental health support and is advocating for policy changes within AEW. While he believes the AEW locker room is full of good people who deserve a safe environment, he does not necessarily blame Punk for the issues, suggesting that others may have contributed.

Nemeth alleges that his concerns were ignored by Chris Peck and AEW, though Parekh, Matthew, Nicholas Jackson, and Jon Moxley were supportive throughout the situation.

The report added that Ryan has had discussions with the founder Tony Khan and other AEW officials this year. Khan reportedly considered the possibility of Nemeth returning to AEW, but Ryan himself had no interest in rejoining the promotion. All Elite Wrestling has not commented on the report.

For more updates, follow Khel Now on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram; download the Khel Now Android App or IOS App and join our community on Telegram.