According to a report from PWInsider.com, lawyers for former WWE superstars CM Punk (Phil Brooks) and Colt Cabana (Scott Colton) have filed responses and defenses to the lawsuit filed against them by WWE doctor Chris Amann who filed a defamation suit against the two in regards to Punk’s appearance on Cabana’s “Art of Wrestling” podcast in November 2014 where Punk claimed that Amann had diagnosed an MRSA infection on his lower back as a fatty deposit and regularly acted in a way that put WWE’s business over his health.

The report notes that in the response filed, Punk says that he believes the lawsuit was filed in collaboration with the WWE as revenge against him for the unfavorable things he said about the company in the podcast and says that he is informed and believes that Amann collaborated, coordinated and conspired with the WWE in bad faith to prepare, bring and pursue this lawsuit in retaliation against himself and Cabana for the embarrassment that the podcast caused the WWE through and as a result of his candid and truthful discussion of various experiences as a WWE wrestler and that he is informed and believes that the WWE helped Amann with the release of the alleged results of a supposed investigation into his medical information the day after the lawsuit was filed, which purported to support certain allegation in the plaintiff’s complaint and that Amann conspired with the company to prepare and disseminate the investigation. Punk also said in the response that Amann’s claims are barred and precluded as he has engaged in misconduct and acted in bad faith with respect to Punk personally and reiterated his claims that Amann put the interests of WWE over the health of his patients (WWE talent) and that Amann has acted in ways that compromised and tarnished his reputation, professionalism and/or integrity.

Punk acknowledged discussing various medical issues that he experienced during his WWE tenure on the podcast, but denies that he slandered Amann, stating that the podcast speaks for itself and denied all of Amann’s claims contrary to his own and said that much of what he said on the podcast are non-actionable because of the first amendment, as they are statements of opinion and not fact, such as calling Amann lazy and a worthless piece of s*** and acknowledged that it was a possibility that the podcast could be discussed by other people, but denied that the extent, by which the podcast would be reported, was reasonable foreseeable. Punk noted that some of the statements in the podcast lack a readily understood meaning, are broad in scope and can be attributed multiple meanings by different listeners, pointing out his statement that he was prescribed a Z-Pack for a concussion and broken ribs, stating that a more reasonable and accurate interpretation would be that Punk suffered a concussion and broken ribs, but was not treated for them in any manner and said that any references that didn’t specifically name Amann were not about him. Punk also argued that Amann has voluntarily made himself a public figure as a result of his appearances on WWE TV and podcasts, having a public Twitter handle with thousands of followers on which he promotes himself working with the US Olympic Committee and US Women’s Soccer team and more and said that Amann has not suffered any damages as a result of the podcast as he still works with WWE, who has defended him and has not suffered economic injury.

The report notes that in the filing, Cabana’s response largery echoes what Punk said, with the additional arguments that Cabana’s alleged defamatory statements were largely confined to repeating CM Punk’s statements or interpretation of colorful language and that Cabana challenges several of Punk’s remarks and disagrees with some statements and as such, are reactions and not defamatory on their own and said that he had reasonable cause to believe the statements and that Punk had shown him the MRSA lump and had shared with him certain information related to medical issues and that Punk’s statements are consistent with his own observations and experiences as a professional wrestler, as well as various experiences that other wrestlers had described or communicated to him over the years. Cabana also added that he is protected under neutral reporting privilege, pointing out that Punk is a responsible and prominent individual within the world of professional wrestling and fighting and said that the podcast was newsworthy, pointing out that statements made related to public controversies regarding the health and safety of wrestlers and other athletes, including topics related to the medical treatment and impact of concussions and other health-related problems, noting that the issues are matters of interest to the public and have been widely discussed and debated by the media at large.

WWE issued a statement in response to CM Punk’s claim that they worked with Chris Amann in the lawsuit against Punk stating, “Phil Brooks’ latest claim that WWE directed Dr. Amann to file a lawsuit against Brooks is categorically false. Dr. Amann made the decision to file suit in order to protect his professional reputation. WWE conducted its own investigation into this matter and found no evidence of wrongdoing by Dr. Amann and thus continues to support Dr. Amann and the staff that runs our world-class medical program.”

The next hearing is set for October 9th. Punk and Cabana have both demanded a trial by jury.