https://youtu.be/oq2x8SC9RGo
After what has felt like an eternity of promotion without anything to really promote, UFC was dealt the unfortunate blow of finally pulling the trigger in terms of beginning the process of determining the opponent and event for CM Punk’s Octagon debut only for the former WWE Superstar to suffer yet another injury-related setback. For Joe Rogan, it appears to be the straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back as it pertains to the whole “CM Punk experiment.”
The longtime UFC announcer gave his candid thoughts on the situation during the most recent episode of his “Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, focusing primarily on the fact that Punk is making his MMA fighting debut on the biggest and most respected stage in the industry with no real martial arts background to warrant such an opportunity.
Rogan offered the following unfiltered opinion regarding Punk skipping the normal process of earning a spot on the UFC roster, which traditionally includes a lifetime of dedicated martial arts training combined with the difficult task of ascending through the ranks by fighting on lower-level MMA events.
“I don’t know what’s going to happen with that guy,” said a brutally honest Joe Rogan, who in addition to being an accomplished comedian and actor, is a lifelong martial artist with a particularly respectable past in Tae Kwon Do. “I don’t understand this whole thing. I also think it’s ridiculous for him to fight in the UFC. I think he should fight in a small organization. Take a fight in a small organization, build yourself up. I have always said that’s what should have happened with Brock Lesnar.”
Punk was finally set to fight an officially announced opponent, as Mickey Gall worked his way into the spot by catching the eye of Dana White on the UFC President’s new “Dana White: Lookin’ For A Fight” reality show. The clever initiative taken by the MMA prospect resulted in him signing with the premiere MMA promotion in North America after only one professional MMA fight, which led to an even more impressive first fight inside the Octagon.
Gall defeated MMA journalist and journeyman fighter Mike Jackson in a preliminary fight set up by White with the guaranteed first shot against Punk on-the-line. Gall needed just 45 seconds to knock down and choke out Jackson, before taking part in a post-match stare down with Punk inside the cage.
Unfortunately for those who were actually eagerly anticipating the fight for the past year-plus — a group that continues to get smaller as time goes by — the Punk-Gall fight rumored for UFC 199 appears to be off for the time being, at least in terms of the June date of the final pay-per-view show ahead of the landmark UFC 200 event scheduled for July 9th.
You can check out the latest edition of the aforementioned “Joe Rogan Experience” podcast, which also features an in-studio interview with UFC Hall Of Famer Bas Rutten, via the YouTube player embedded above.