WWE superstars CM Punk and Triple H have two drastically different views on the UFC and the entire sport of mixed martial arts.
It was only last week that Triple H was quoted as saying that he believed that the UFC needed to evolve, but that the WWE did not. But CM Punk had an answer for the man who defeated him on Sunday night’s WWE Night of Champions in their no-disqualification match-up.
“Triple H just doesn’t get mixed martial arts. He doesn’t watch it either,” Punk told MMAFighting’s Ariel Helwani. I think he’s missing the picture that UFC is evolving. There’s only one other sport entity in the world that has production rights to their own material on network and that’s the NFL. UFC has just bartered a huge deal [with FOX]. That’s evolution.”
In addition to Punk’s belief that the UFC is evolving already, he was also in disagreement with Triple H on the point that WWE does not need to evolve themselves.
“I think that’s absolutely insane,” Punk proclaimed. “Any human being, any business, any sport needs to constantly evolve. I’m not a big football guy, but look at the NFL, they’re constantly evolving. Whether it’s good or it’s bad, they’re evolving. And if you don’t evolve, you die.”
The WWE has taken quite a bit of criticism from fans and analysts in recent years because of their lack of evolution. It has become so bad, in fact, that many believe that the large drop-off in viewers that the WWE has sustained over the past 10 years can largely be credited to fans leaving the pro wrestling organization to begin watching the UFC.
“UFC is entertainment. WWE is entertainment,” Punk said. “And regards to people spending their money on it. It’s definitely a competition. I think the way things are in our economy, there’s a billion pay-per-views between UFC, [other MMA pay-per-views] and the WWE, we’re competing for each other’s dollars, absolutely.”
While Punk disagrees with Triple H who doesn’t believe that the UFC is a competitor, he also believes that every other form of entertainment is a competitor.
“I wouldn’t say [MMA has] ‘hurt’ us, I think that might be a little harsh of a term, but to deny that UFC is our competition is a little ridiculous,” Punk told MMAFighting’s Ariel Helwani. “Cirque du Soleil is our competition. Mad Men and Breaking Bad is our competition. I think everything that people spend their time on and their money on is our competition and to blatantly say that mixed martial arts has no bearing on what’s good or bad in our business, is silly. It’s closed-minded. You’re putting a band-aid on a gunshot wound.”
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