UFC President Dana White will discuss a potential second bout in the promotion with Punk at UFC 218 this Saturday in Detroit That is according to MMAFighting.com’s Marc Raimondi, who posted the information to Twitter on Tuesday: Dana White said C…
UFC President Dana White will discuss a potential second bout in the promotion with Punk at UFC 218 this Saturday in Detroit That is according to MMAFighting.com’s Marc Raimondi, who posted the information to Twitter on Tuesday: Dana White said CM Punk will be at UFC 218 in Detroit and the two will chat. White […]
UFC president Dana White said he plans to meet with CM Punk in Detroit but failed to elaborate on the subject of their upcoming conversation.
“CM Punk is coming to Detroit and wants to talk to me,” White said, per Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Revie…
UFC president Dana White said he plans to meet with CM Punk in Detroit but failed to elaborate on the subject of their upcoming conversation.
“CM Punk is coming to Detroit and wants to talk to me,” White said, per Adam Hill of the Las Vegas Review-Journal. “I love the guy. We’ll see what he’s doing.”
The Motor City is set to host UFC 218 at Little Caesars Arena on Saturday.
White’s comments could mean a number of things.
He and Punk may discuss planning Punk’s second fight in UFC, or at the very least leave open the possibility of the former WWE star stepping inside the Octagon again. Of course, the complete opposite scenario could transpire, with Punk and White coming to an agreement on ending Punk’s brief UFC tenure.
After all, Punk hasn’t fought professionally for over a year, and he didn’t look particularly good in his first-round defeat to Mickey Gall at UFC 203 in September 2016.
Punk’s trainer, Duke Roufus, indicated the 39-year-old was gearing up for a return to UFC when he posted a photo on Instagram that included the caption, “Working on his next Fight.”
Punk certainly has plenty of name recognition, which could be of benefit to UFC with big questions hovering around two of the company’s biggest stars. Jon Jones is facing a lengthy suspension and Ronda Rousey’s MMA career is up in the air.
Adding Punk to a pay-per-view card would immediately draw in some of the more casual fans of the sport.
Still, Punk isn’t getting any younger and the longer he’s removed from having wrestled in WWE, the law of diminishing returns is likely to become a bigger issue.
At the very least, White and Punk could provide a more definitive answer as to his future with UFC with the conversation this weekend.
CM Punk’s UFC debut, which took place at UFC 203 in September 2016, certainly didn’t go well. Many criticized the UFC for signing the former WWE superstar due to the fact that he had never actually competed in an MMA fight, and the critics may have had a point, as Punk was ground-and-pounded and submitted […]
CM Punk’s UFC debut, which took place at UFC 203 in September 2016, certainly didn’t go well.
Many criticized the UFC for signing the former WWE superstar due to the fact that he had never actually competed in an MMA fight, and the critics may have had a point, as Punk was ground-and-pounded and submitted in just a few minutes by Mickey Gall.
Punk’s coach, Duke Roufus, however, feels as if that fight against Gall was a ‘blessing in disguise’:
“….I just think the first time you’re in the Octagon there’s something special you’ve got to deal with getting in there. We’ve really rebounded,” Roufus said on a recent edition of the UFC Unfiltered podcast. “When you lose a fight it’s a blessing in disguise because now the ‘0’ is gone. You don’t have to worry about being invincible. A lot of questions get answered.
“For Punk, this sounds really weird, but now he knows what a beating feels like,” Roufus continued. “A real beating. And I think it will help a lot of fighters to the point of [haunting] them, like ‘No, I don’t ever want to feel this way again.’ It’s not the physical. These guys are tough. It’s the mental anguish. You don’t want to feel that depressed, embarrassing feeling of getting beat up in front of God and everyone. It’s no fun.”
Not only does Roufus feel as if Punk has learned from his first fight, but he also indicated that Punk could be returning to the Octagon sometime soon:
“Dana and the matchmakers had their weekly matchmaking meeting [Wednesday], and you’re gonna hear some news soon I think,” Roufus said.
CM Punk is gearing up for his second professional mixed martial arts (MMA) debut. Back in Sept. 2016, Punk made his debut under the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) banner against Mickey Gall. Punk lost the bout in the first round via submission. While many assumed it would be one and done for Punk, the former […]
CM Punk is gearing up for his second professional mixed martial arts (MMA) debut. Back in Sept. 2016, Punk made his debut under the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) banner against Mickey Gall. Punk lost the bout in the first round via submission. While many assumed it would be one and done for Punk, the former […]
Here’s something you probably hadn’t contemplated: People are hot to see CM Punk return to the UFC, and they seem keen to have that return come against Ronda Rousey’s oft-ridiculed coach, Edmond Tarverdyan.
Pretty good to roll into your weekend with th…
Here’s something you probably hadn’t contemplated: People are hot to see CM Punk return to the UFC, and they seem keen to have that return come against Ronda Rousey’s oft-ridiculed coach, Edmond Tarverdyan.
Pretty good to roll into your weekend with that concept, huh?
To be clear, the fight isn’t close to being made. There is no logical reason to make it. It is objectively absurd on every measurable level.
Pipe-dream fights happen with some regularity. Logic is increasingly on the back burner in a world where WME-IMG wants money fights above all else. The objectively absurd is often the mundane in this sport.
That’s why this bout makes all the sense in the world.
Tarverdyan was back in the news this week, boldly claiming on The MMA Hour (via Bloody Elbow) he’d like to see Rousey come back for a fight against longtime nemesis Cris Cyborg. If that suggestion wasn’t enough to warrant the type of tongue-clucking his nuggets of wisdom usually do, he followed it up by essentially telling the entire sport to “shut up” because he “know[s his] s–t.”
And the tongues clucked.
Say what you will about Tarverdyan—for better or worse, he is absolutely magnetic. He is brash, he is confident and he carries himself with an amount of bravado that many—Rousey’s own mother, included—might suggest to be unwarranted.
He’s also 2-0 as a lightweight who’s been inactive for five years and will turn 36 in December.
So naturally, in a world where former WWE star CM Punk is still on the UFC roster and appears hellbent on coming back to the cage to try his hand, Tarverdyan should be the guy to meet him.
Punk will turn 39 next month and has just notched another year of inactivity. He’s 0-1 since signing with the UFC in 2014, with his lone loss coming in a highly memorable beatdown at the hands of the entirely legitimate Mickey Gall last September.
The clock is ticking for both guys, and there are motivations and merits on both sides of the ledger.
For Tarverdyan, he’s long been ridiculed as having ridden Rousey’s coattails to recognition. Many would suggest he can’t distinguish between a right hook and a fishing hook. What better way to prove people wrong than to step in the cage himself and put on a good show against one of the more famous faces on the roster?
Further to that, Tarverdyan has had some financial troubles recently. While you’d never want to force a person into something as dangerous as an MMA fight purely for financial reasons, Tarverdyan might see a quick UFC payday as his best chance to get back on the level.
Realistically, if Punk got $500,000 to show up in the Gall fight, Tarverdyan should be able to get close to that for a night’s work given his own name recognition. It probably wouldn’t hurt to have Rousey, Travis Browne or other UFC fighters he’s coached to be kicking around either, as they could potentially call in a favor to help get him paid.
For Punk, he’d be getting the biggest name opponent imaginable for a man in his position. While the fight that seemingly makes sense is fellow 0-1 slugger Mike Jackson, Punk would be met with the type of obnoxious swagger that would surely bring out the best in him as a self-promoter.
Also, given Punk’s lack of experience and Tarverdyan’s long layoff, there is a legitimate chance Punk could surprise and land a win. Few truly know what Tarverdyan’s skill level is in combat, and though there is an idea of what Punk is at this point, there’s no telling how much he may have improved since his last fight.
He could have closed the gap between him and someone of Tarverdyan’s level, provided one ever existed, and plenty of people would pay to see how that would play out. Factor in that Tarverdyan would be coming up in weight to make the fight something of a size-versus-speed battle (albeit an almost comically inexperienced one), and it becomes that much more interesting.
Again, let’s be clear: This fight is not close to being made. There is no logical reason to make it. It is objectively absurd on every measurable level.
But this is MMA.
This is a sport where a pro wrestler shows up on a whim to headline the biggest event in UFC history.
This is a sport where people accidentally defecating in the middle of the action is met with a collective shrug and some smarmy tweets.
This is a sport where the biggest stars throw cans of energy drink at one another for minutes on end and are largely lauded for their salesmanship.
So you’re going to say CM Punk vs. Edmond Tarverdyan couldn’t happen? That it doesn’t make sense? That it’s too absurd?
Duke Roufus, who trains and coaches WWE superstar-turned-mixed martial artist CM Punk, says the pro wrestler is awaiting a fight agreement. Punk infamously signed with the UFC back in 2014, but injuries kept his octagon debut delayed until 2016, when he lost to welterweight prospect Mickey Gall at UFC 203 by first-round submission. While no […]
Duke Roufus, who trains and coaches WWE superstar-turned-mixed martial artist CM Punk, says the pro wrestler is awaiting a fight agreement.
Punk infamously signed with the UFC back in 2014, but injuries kept his octagon debut delayed until 2016, when he lost to welterweight prospect Mickey Gall at UFC 203 by first-round submission.
While no opponent has been named as of Tuesday, the 0-1 Punk, whose real name is Phil Brooks, will probably be matched up with another inexperienced fighter without the potential of his last opponent.
Roufus posted a picture on Instagram on Tuesday of Punk and fellow RoufusSport fighter John Makdessi and hinted at a UFC return for both men.
Makdessi hasn’t fought since a spectacular first-round knockout loss to Lando Venatta at UFC 206.
Onetime UFC fighter and MMA photographer Mike Jackson, who also lost to Mickey Gall in his debut, took to Twitter shortly after the news of Punk’s possible return to call the former WWE star out:
Do you expect to see CM Punk back in the cage? If he does, who would be a respectable opponent you’d like to see him fight for his second professional MMA bout?
UFC president