Stokely Hathaway says plans for The Firm changed because CM Punk is ‘no longer’ in AEW

During the recent build to AEW Full Gear 2022, Jon Moxley and MJF both came to blows with The Firm, a relatively new faction led by Stokely Hathaway. The Firm was introduced around the time of September’s All Out pay-per-view, where they played a major role in helping MJF win the Casino Ladder match. That’s why it seemed bizarre when AEW abruptly broke up their partnership with MJF last month. The Firm’s inclusion ended up being a drag on the feud between Mox and MJF.

In a new interview on The Sessions with Renee Paquette, Hathaway admits that he isn’t very confident about the direction of his faction right now because this isn’t what they were supposed to be doing. The group was specifically created to be part of a feud between CM Punk and MJF, but that’s no longer possible after the backstage fight at All Out changed everything:

“Everything that was supposed to happen with The Firm did not happen...what happened immediately after [All Out was] a huge part of it.”

“Who we were supposed to directly feud with is no longer in the company. That was one thing that I was looking forward to ‘cause I was hand-chosen for that role. So I’m just gonna say it. I don’t know the specifics... for me, the fact that CM Punk said, ‘Hey, I want to work with this guy,’ that holds a lot of weight. It means a lot, regardless of what has happened, what will happen. And that didn’t happen anymore. It was literally rewriting everything on the fly. So everyone in the group is trying to do their best, but we are trying to figure out how to make this work because the original purpose isn’t the purpose anymore, so it’s like, what do you do?”

Punk was stripped of the world title and removed from television following the backstage fight with The Elite at All Out. Tony Khan refuses to say much about Punk’s status with AEW, and the latest we heard is that the two sides are negotiating a buy out of his contract.

Many fans have been hoping that it’s all a work, or that once Punk heals from his current injury maybe his relationship with AEW can be repaired. But Hathaway’s understanding is that Punk is no longer in AEW, so all of that wishful thinking could be for naught.

What do you make of Hathaway’s comments on plans changing due to CM Punk’s status, Cagesiders?