Add John “Doomsday” Howard to the list of UFC fighters who have challenged Phil “CM Punk” Brooks.
The UFC’s recent signing of the former WWE superstar has drawn a mixed bag of opinions from fighters, media and fans. Among those to mention fighting him are Cathal Pendred, and now Doomsday says he’s up to the task.
Howard spoke to the media ahead of his Boston fight with Lorenz Larkin, and he said he thinks the exposure for Punk and the UFC will be great but Punk’s skill level isn’t high enough for him.
That didn’t stop the Boston native from laying down a challenge to the UFC newcomer (video by The MMA Word):
I think signing with the UFC for the exposure is awesome. I think with his skill set, I don’t see who he could fight. We are the best of the best of MMA. OK. As a matter of fact, if he went to a lower-tier organization, I don’t see him surviving. But, who’s he going to fight?
Punk won’t be starting out in a smaller organization, so we won’t know how he’d fare against regional-level competition. He’ll get his first MMA bout inside the Octagon, and Howard would be more than happy to be his first opponent, saying:
I’ll put it out there right now: I’ll fight him. … I’ll come to middleweight to fight him. I would love to fight CM Punk and crack his nose—and give him some Doomsday love.
We don’t know who Punk’s first opponent in the UFC is going to be, but it’s a safe bet it won’t be Howard.
A fight between the two might not be out of the question if Brooks racks up several wins and gradually gets to the Howard’s level of competition, but it would be a disastrous matchup for him right out of the gate.
Nonetheless, Howard said he is ready should the UFC need someone to get in the cage with CM Punk:
CM Punk, I challenge you. If you can’t find a fighter, I’ll come up a weight class to fight you.
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