Jim Ross, the longtime former WWE announcer, recently spoke on CM Punk signing with the UFC.
He said that MMA fans who are critical of the UFC signing Punk, a former WWE star who quit the organization earlier this year, should stop “[squealing] like a pig” and understand promotion a bit better.
“CM Punk has already won in the UFC in multiple ways, and he has yet to break a sweat. This is another testament to the brilliant promotional strategist that is UFC President Dana White. It’s a good thing that those who are squealing like a pig stuck under a gate aren’t running the show or handling the marketing of an MMA entity,” he wrote for Fox Sports. “For White, signing Punk is a no-lose situation. Punk brings with him immense name identity globally via WWE, and his main event visibility there for the past several years.”
Ross added that White scored a huge victory in getting Punk on board.
“Curiosity will fuel fans to buy it, many for the first time. Big win No. 3. If Punk never wins a UFC fight -- and I’m not predicting that -- the signing of Punk by White is that of a brilliant promoter who can create a journey that both the fans of Punk -- and those who aren’t -- can travel and one in which they can both emotionally invest,” he said.
Ross also speculated that Punk--whose real name is Phillip Brooks--will be able to use the “CM Punk” moniker while fighting due to “prior usage before he debuted in the WWE.”
When Punk made the announcement on Saturday night during UFC 181, he described the move to MMA as “my new career, 100 percent.”
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