Bryan Danielson headed up disciplinary committee that terminated CM Punk (Patreon)

CM Punk was terminated by AEW following a situation at AEW All Out by a quickly developed discipline committee, and we’ve learned more, largely because of a tweet that may have referenced it.

Recently, Fightful revealed that a long rumored member of the committee, Megha Parekh, had actually stepped back from a lot of her duties as Chief Legal Officer by that time and actually had nothing to do with the committee. We’ve since learned that AEW General Counsel Chris Peck, who assumed many of her responsibilities, was a part of the three-person committee, along with an outside attorney.

However, there was also one long-respected member of the AEW talent roster that was involved, in Bryan Danielson. When asking sources on the AEW roster about his inclusion, one called him an “appropriate moral compass who exemplifies objectivity" and said that he effectively headed up and was the face of the disciplinary committee. Danielson was said to have spoken to the roster when addressing them about Punk’s termination, and noted that the decision was a particularly hard one. He cited the positives that CM Punk brought and his longstanding friendship with Punk, but said that it was the decision that had to be made. 

On November 27, Danielson tweeted “My dad always told me, “The right thing is often the hardest thing to do. It won’t always make the most money. It won’t always be the most popular. But it’s still the right thing." We’re told that’s what Danielson said when speaking to talent at the meeting months before. 

We weren’t given any indication regarding the decision making process that occurred by the disciplinary committee. Those that we spoke to said they believed CM Punk was aware by now that Danielson was a pair of said committee, as many of his friends were included in the meeting where Danielson addressed them. 

This is a continued duty for Danielson, as he's also responsible for handing out fines when necessary.

CM Punk returned to WWE this past weekend.