“The top draws will always have that power, and it’s a unique situation because of the feeling that they’re trying to get this big, giant television deal.

“And the Saturday shows are very, very important, and they clearly believe that he needs to be on the Saturday show or there is a great chance that the show will do lower numbers and, in the long run, those lower numbers will mean less money when they do the new [TV] contract renewal at the expense of the locker room and everything else. So that’s the basic situation.”

Meanwhile, Meltzer suggested that something else happened between Punk and Ryan Nemeth — who was also reportedly removed from Saturday’s “Collision” taping at the request of Punk – outside of their alleged backstage confrontation in June. Additionally, Meltzer said that Punk has the “power” — although it’s not written — to kick people out of events and that AEW CEO Tony Khan gave him that ability.

If you use any quotes from this article, please credit “Wrestling Observer Radio” with an h/t to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.