It feels like just yesterday I spoke on the power of social media when it comes to this current climate in pro wrestling. And yet here we are, another day another social media exchange… but the parties involved (Tony Khan and Randy Orton) is what makes this story different from others.
While most of us have been giddy about the idea of CM Punk being back in the WWE, sort of, the former 434-day reign WWE Champion has been enjoying his newfound attention since being back in the realm of pro wrestling. So before his debut tonight on WWE Backstage, Punk decided to make an unprecedented move… tweet some very powerful people.
It IS weird trying to catch up on 5+ years of rasslin’, I’m doing what I can. There’s bright spots, mostly women from what I can tell. There’s BAD too. I’m gonna talk about it, and no one is safe. Join us. @ReneeYoungWWE @WWEonFOX @BookerT5x @RealPaigeWWE @VinceMcMahon @TonyKhan
— player/coach (@CMPunk) November 18, 2019
To the naked eye, it seems the Chicago-native isn’t messing around when it comes to being the best version of himself on the FOX produced show but to others, Punk is putting his co-hosts Renee Young, Paige and Booker T, FOX themselves, WWE honcho Vince McMahon and AEW President Tony Khan on notice: he’s not pulling any punches. And it looks like the latter wasn’t holding back either replying to Punk under the thread with Vince and FOX involved…
No one is safe? Sounds like a plane full of wrestlers in Saudi Arabia!
— Tony Khan (@TonyKhan) November 18, 2019
And fresh off his newly minted contract, WWE lifer Randy Orton struck back swiftly digging up an old report on Tony’s father when he was being investigated for corruption:
What’s that whole thing about glass houses and stones?https://t.co/z99BVuCMfP
— Randy Orton (@RandyOrton) November 19, 2019
From there, all bets were off:
I thought you only tagged me in your posts when you were grasping for leverage. That article’s over a year old + is about baseless claims made about my dad years ago. That’s the best you can do, nothing. Meanwhile in the time since that was written, you used the N word on twitch.
— Tony Khan (@TonyKhan) November 19, 2019
Jacksonville Dixie:
Why else would I tag you? If I wanted to talk business, I’d call your father.
?
— Randy Orton (@RandyOrton) November 19, 2019
While the 14-time World Champion bypassed Tony’s dig at his Twitch stream, it seems like Tony took a class from The Elite on how to reply to trolls on Twitter. This continues to be the best time to be alive for pro wrestling fans and these two men proved that with this exchange.
While WWE is notorious for ignoring situations like this, it will be interesting if AEW Dynamite will have a segment highlighting this exchange. Tonight’s WWE Backstage has just become a little more interesting…
Caul’s Call
What can I say about this exchange? We have the elite social media heel troll in Randy Orton and the loving babyface owner Tony Khan going at it during WWE Monday Night RAW. I want more. I want to see more exchanges like this on a regular basis. Imagine WCW vs. WWE on Twitter during the height of the Attitude Era? The possibilities would’ve been endless. For now, we will enjoy this and what is to come. But you know who the real winner is in all of this? CM Punk. The man has had 1 week and already causing havoc across the board. Well played Mr. Brooks, well played.
