At 36 years old and with limited mixed martial arts experience, former WWE champion CM Punk’s run as an active competitor in the UFC will be short-lived.
Punk announced Saturday during the UFC 181 pay-per-view that he will be joining the UFC and will make his Octagon debut in 2015:
Many hardcore UFC fans are concerned that Punk will be out of his element in the company, and one of the main reasons is a lack of formal training. Punk has worked with jiu-jitsu coach Rener Gracie over the past several years on a limited schedule, but even Gracie will admit he is still very new to the sport.
When asked about Punk’s transition to MMA, Gracie told Chuck Mindenhall of MMA Fighting:
CM Punk is a very unique individual in that he obsesses with things very easily and when he commits and he obsesses with something he goes for it 100 percent. Like we’ve seen over the years with his success in the WWE, when he applies himself he finds a way to make it work.
In MMA? I don’t know—I’ve only been working jiu-jitsu with him, and he’s still very new to jiu-jitsu.
There is no doubting the physical skill and toughness needed to be a professional wrestler, but fighting in the UFC requires an entirely different set of skills and knowledge.
Punk has the tenacity and natural ability to be a force when he steps into the Octagon, but at 36 years old, he is just beginning a journey that takes many top fighters several years to complete.
Despite Punk telling Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting that he wouldn’t mind fighting into his 40s, it’s easy to question the viability of this statement. While a fighter like Randy Couture was able to fight into his 40s, he had years of in-ring experience and was a seasoned veteran at that time.
Before Punk can ever get in the Octagon, he must go through several months of serious training leading up to a fight with another relative novice.
While UFC will love the draw of having Punk under contract, it takes a long time to develop a style and skill set in the sport, and the process could be difficult.
If he fights once in 2015 and twice each year until he is 40 yards old, he will have just seven fights under his belt and would just be breaking into title contention if his record remains unblemished.
Punk will make mistakes and learn the hard way what a fighter can and can’t do in the Octagon, and the setbacks he is likely to face along the way will be costly for a fighter with a very limited shelf life.
This isn’t Brock Lesnar. Lesnar was a national champion in wrestling and a former football player with innate skills. Punk has athletic abilities, but he has been a professional wrestler for most of his life. Getting into the Octagon is an entirely different ballgame.
Another major issue is the injuries Punk has suffered over the years. As he revealed in his interview with Colt Cabana on the Art of Wrestling, he has dealt with everything from knee injuries to broken ribs to multiple concussions during his wrestling career.
In a sport as violent as MMA, Punk is starting at a disadvantage due to his injury history as well.
With Punk’s history of concussions, Dana White and the UFC also have to be careful.
There is no discounting the ability of Punk to dedicate himself to something and become the best in the world at the feat. As we saw during his wrestling career, Punk was one of the top performers in the WWE and one of the best athletes in the ring.
On the other hand, he has never ventured into the Octagon.
With limited training, a history of injuries and the disadvantage of starting his career at 36 years old, it’s likely Punk’s in-ring career in the UFC won’t last very long.
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