Former WWE Superstar CM Punk spoke with Dan Gelston of Associated Press this week to promote his MMA training and his eventual UFC debut, which is now expected to take place at UFC 199 in June.
“This is new to me. It’s not the same old boring (stuff) that I’ve been doing for God knows how long. People are talking about it. Some people are upset, some people love it, some people think it’s inspirational. I’m pretty sure everybody has an opinion on it.”
Punk made it no secret that he was burned out and fed up towards the end of his WWE run. Despite his own commitment to becoming an MMA fighter, he’s been met with doubters and critics who don’t think he’s in it for the long haul. Punk is embracing it all and plans to fight several times for the UFC, no matter how his debut goes.
“I didn’t move up to Milwaukee, I’m not training my ass off and getting hurt, going back into the gym just so I can one-and-done it,” Punk said. “This is what I do now.”
UFC President Dana White revealed this week that Punk will most likely be fighting at UFC 199 in June, not the company’s big UFC 200 show the following month. The reasoning for having Punk debut at 199 is that it would be much easier to determine Punk’s drawing power on a ‘secondary’ event. If Punk fights at UFC 200, there’s no way to know how much of an impact Punk’s debut had on the bottom line.
“There’s part of me that cares because UFC 200 is going to be a big deal,” Punk said. “I’ve spoken to Dana about it, trying to figure out what’s best for both parties. It’s just a smarter business decision.”
Former WWE Superstar CM Punk spoke with Dan Gelston of Associated Press this week to promote his MMA training and his eventual UFC debut, which is now expected to take place at UFC 199 in June.
“This is new to me. It’s not the same old boring (stuff) that I’ve been doing for God knows how long. People are talking about it. Some people are upset, some people love it, some people think it’s inspirational. I’m pretty sure everybody has an opinion on it.”
Punk made it no secret that he was burned out and fed up towards the end of his WWE run. Despite his own commitment to becoming an MMA fighter, he’s been met with doubters and critics who don’t think he’s in it for the long haul. Punk is embracing it all and plans to fight several times for the UFC, no matter how his debut goes.
“I didn’t move up to Milwaukee, I’m not training my ass off and getting hurt, going back into the gym just so I can one-and-done it,” Punk said. “This is what I do now.”
UFC President Dana White revealed this week that Punk will most likely be fighting at UFC 199 in June, not the company’s big UFC 200 show the following month. The reasoning for having Punk debut at 199 is that it would be much easier to determine Punk’s drawing power on a ‘secondary’ event. If Punk fights at UFC 200, there’s no way to know how much of an impact Punk’s debut had on the bottom line.
“There’s part of me that cares because UFC 200 is going to be a big deal,” Punk said. “I’ve spoken to Dana about it, trying to figure out what’s best for both parties. It’s just a smarter business decision.”
As noted earlier, UFC President Dana White announced that Mickey Gall, the fighter who asked White, who was in the crowd at the time as the scene was filmed for his new “Dana White: Lookin’ For A Fight” reality show, to let him be CM Punk’s debut oppon…
As noted earlier, UFC President Dana White announced that Mickey Gall, the fighter who asked White, who was in the crowd at the time as the scene was filmed for his new “Dana White: Lookin’ For A Fight” reality show, to let him be CM Punk’s debut opponent in the UFC, will in fact be fighting for that exact opportunity at the UFC 196 pay-per-view in February.
Gall will be fighting Michael Jackson, another fighter who will be making his debut in the UFC, in a preliminary bout on the UFC Fight Pass portion of the UFC 196 event. UFC 196 takes place on Saturday, February 6th in Las Vegas, Nevada, with Punk scheduled to be cageside to watch in hopes that Gall pulls off the victory, as it would give his highly-anticipated UFC debut has a nice organic build-up.
If Gall manages to get past Jackson on 2/6, the fight would go from step one — Gall calling Punk out on White’s new show — all the way to the final step before they enter their respective fight camps — Punk reacting to Gall winning from the front row, similar to the infamous shot of Conor McGregor reversing the roles in a similar situation and reacting to Jose Aldo being in the crowd after his win over Dennis Siver.
As things stand right now, Punk is scheduled to make his official fighting debut in the UFC at their landmark UFC 200 event on Saturday, July 9th in Las Vegas, Nevada.
CM Punk’s opponent for his UFC debut might be announced soon. That opponent could be Mickey Gall if he passes UFC President Dana White’s test. Gall, a 1-0 fighter from New Brunswick, N.J., caught UFC President Dana White’s attention after his fight that will be airing on White’s reality series, “Dana White: Looking for a
CM Punk’s opponent for his UFC debut might be announced soon. That opponent could be Mickey Gall if he passes UFC President Dana White’s test.
Gall, a 1-0 fighter from New Brunswick, N.J., caught UFC President Dana White’s attention after his fight that will be airing on White’s reality series, “Dana White: Looking for a Fight,” because he called out Punk. White is now “interested” in the newcomer. Gall quickly submitted his opponent in his professional debut and made the most of the attention.
White appeared on TSN’s “Off the Record” and revealed that the UFC is giving Gall a chance of a lifetime. He’ll be fighting at UFC 196 against Michael Jackson on the prelims, and if he wins that fight, then Gall will fight Punk in his UFC debut.
“I might as well break it here, right?” White said while appearing on TSN’s “Off the Record.” “Mickey Gall – I’m bringing in Mickey Gall in and he’s going to fight a guy named Michael Jackson. They’re going to fight on the prelims on Feb. 6 on fight pass. If he wins that fight, Mickey Gall will fight CM Punk. CM Punk will be there to watch.”
“He’s holding a lottery ticket with really good odds of winning the lottery right now,” White said. “Like you said, he’s got to get through this fight, and it’s going to be a life changer for this kid.”
UFC 196 takes place on Saturday, February 6th, 2016 from Las Vegas, Nevada at the MGM Grand Garden Arena with the main card airing on pay-per-view and the prelims airing on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass. The main event for the event is a heavyweight title fight between Fabricio Werdum and Cain Velasquez.
Will Gall beat Jackson then go on to beat Punk? Or does Punk have a chance in this fight? Let us know.
On his appearance on TSN’s “Off The Record with Michael Landsberg” on Wednesday, UFC President Dana White revealed exactly when, and more than likely who, CM Punk’s first opponent will be inside the Octagon.
White ann…
https://youtu.be/AGm-U8rYNb8
On his appearance on TSN’s “Off The Record with Michael Landsberg” on Wednesday, UFC President Dana White revealed exactly when, and more than likely who, CM Punk’s first opponent will be inside the Octagon.
White announced that after winning his pro MMA debut and calling out Punk after the fight in a scene that aired on the UFC President’s new reality show, Mickey Gall has signed with the UFC and will debut in a preliminary bout at the UFC 196 pay-per-view in February. If Gall wins the fight, he will officially become the opponent for Punk’s UFC fighting debut, which is as things stand now is still scheduled to happen at some point this year.
You can watch Dana White’s appearance on TSN’s OTR, which includes the Punk announcement, above. To find out who Mickey Gall will be fighting at UFC 196, what CM Punk will be doing the night of the Gall-Jackson fight and when and on which show Punk will fight the winner, read our following update here: Update On UFC Deciding On Their Plans For CM Punk’s Octagon Debut This Year.
For the full story on who Mickey Gall is, the man who called out Punk on White’s new reality show, including the video of Gall making the official challenge, click here for a full breakdown.
Had we the wherewithal to include a “Greatest Hype *De*-flation” category in this year’s Potato Awards, it would’ve been hard not to bestow the (dis)honor to WWE superstar-cum-MMA fighter Phil Brooks aka CM Punk.
After being signed by the UFC just over a year ago, Brooks has all but dropped off the face of the earth thanks to an ill-timed shoulder injury which delayed his promotional debut indefinitely. Seriously, we haven’t heard a word from the guy, which, as smart as that probably is from his perspective, has all but killed the interest level in a fighter who had relatively little to offer MMA fans to begin with (other than, you know, those massive viewership numbers we care so much about).
Recently, however, it was revealed that Brooks’ debut opponent would be discovered via Dana White’s web series, Looking For a Fight, which premieres on Youtube next week. It was easily one of the more shameful promotional moves done by the UFC in recent memory — right up there with bringing in Conor McGregor to save The Ultimate Fighter — but one that seems to have ultimately worked, as a potential opponent for Punk’s debut has now made himself known.
Had we the wherewithal to include a “Greatest Hype *De*-flation” category in this year’s Potato Awards, it would’ve been hard not to bestow the (dis)honor to WWE superstar-cum-MMA fighter Phil Brooks aka CM Punk.
After being signed by the UFC just over a year ago, Brooks has all but dropped off the face of the earth thanks to an ill-timed shoulder injury which delayed his promotional debut indefinitely. Seriously, we haven’t heard a word from the guy, which, as smart as that probably is from his perspective, has all but killed the interest level in a fighter who had relatively little to offer MMA fans to begin with (other than, you know, those massive viewership numbers we care so much about).
Recently, however, it was revealed that Brooks’ debut opponent would be discovered via Dana White’s web series, Looking For a Fight, which premieres on Youtube next week. It was easily one of the more shameful promotional moves done by the UFC in recent memory — right up there with bringing in Conor McGregor to save The Ultimate Fighter – but one that seems to have ultimately worked, as a potential opponent for Punk’s debut has now made himself known.
His name is Mickey Gall, and his professional record currently resides at an unblemished 1-0. After finding out that White would be attending his bout against Ron Templeton at Dead Serious 17 back in November as part of his online series, Gall immediately decided that Punk was his best way of getting a shot in the UFC. (via MMAFighting)
“I found out [that White and company would be in attendance] a little bit less than a month before the fight. Frankie Perez, who owns that series, called me, and I was like, ‘Dude, listen.’ I already had an opponent fall through, so I was like, ‘Oh, s–t. What is it? What?’ He goes, ‘Listen, big news. Dana White’s going to be there.’ And my heart kind of, I got excited but also nervous as heck right away. I was like, ‘Alright, man, cool.’ He said, ‘This is a big opportunity, blah, blah, blah.’
“Then he gets on the phone with me, and I’m like, ‘Oh. I’m going to call out CM Punk for sure.’ It was so obvious to me. That’s the only guy in the UFC for me right now, you know? They needed to find a light record. He couldn’t fight some 9-1 guy. So I go in there, I got a win. He’s 0-0. I’m 1-0. That’s a light record. The commission will approve that. I can fight that dude and make the most of that opportunity.”
It’s hard not to agree with the kid’s line of logic here. Aside from being right in the skill range that White has stated he was looking for, Gall also happens to train with some legitimate gyms around the country – Miller Brothers MMA (founded by UFC vets Jim Miller and Dan Miller), Gracie New Jersey Jiu-Jitsu Academy, and American Top Team Allentown among them.
As for how he sees the fight going? Well — and you’re going to find this hard to believe — but Gall seems to be under the impression that Punk won’t like getting hit in the face very much and will inevitably wilt under the pressure of him hitting him in the face repeatedly.
“To be honest, I just think if I hit that dude in his face hard, I don’t think he’s going to react well with that,” said Gall. “I like to punch people in the face real hard. Sometimes I use my jiu-jitsu because that’s just where it happens to go, but I think I hit that dude, and he’s not going to like it. I really see myself banging with him a little bit.”
Expectedly, White has yet to commit to the idea of Gall as Punk’s debut opponent, but has admitted to being “interested” in the fight. One thing’s for sure, though: If this youngster wants to seal the deal on the biggest paycheck of his career, he’s gonna have to step his trash-talking game up beyond “I see myself banging with him.”
