Professional Fighter 'King Mo' Thinks Former Pro-Wrestler CM Punk Will 'Be Successful' in MMA
Professional fighter and former light heavyweight champion King Mo says he believes former World Wrestling Entertainment star CM Punk "will be successful" in his UFC career.
In an interview with Submission radio earlier this week Muhammed Lawal, aka "King Mo," said Punk has an advantage due to having a Jiu Jitsu background.
"I just watched him train, and he moves like a Jiu Jitsu guy. Everything about him screams Jiu Jitsu, you know what I'm saying. I think that he'll be OK," Mo said.
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"The fact that he's passionate about it, willing to learn, and he's a student, makes me think that he's going to be good."
Mo also said that Punk, whose real name is Phil Brooks, has a passion for training for his yet-to-be scheduled fight later this year with Ultimate Fighting Championship.
"I've never seen anyone that's so passionate about something and is willing to learn, be a failure," continued Mo.
"Even if they didn't have a good record in fighting, they became great coaches. So, I think regardless, he's going to be successful in one way or the other in MMA."
In January of last year, CM Punk left the WWE months before his contract expired due to issues surrounding both the company's creative direction and several accruing injuries.
In December it was announced that Punk was going to have a UFC bout with an unnamed opponent at some point in 2015.
Punk's pending UFC bout has garnered a diverse reaction, with some arguing that he's woefully unprepared for the world of competitive fighting while others are coming to his defense.
Matt Brown, an outspoken UFC welterweight fighter, said recently that he believes Punk made a bad decision given his lack of experience in unscripted professional fights.
"I don't have a problem with the UFC doing it. What I have a problem with is CM Punk being dumb enough to think he can do it," said Brown.
However, Bill Goldberg, former professional football player and professional wrestler with the now defunct World Championship Wrestling, offered words of encouragement to Punk.
"I mean, I think anybody can be successful if they take the proper route prior to stepping in that cage," said Goldberg last month.
"I'm not going to pass judgment on anyone until I know 100 percent of their background, until I watch what they're doing. I want to see what his stand up is like."
King Mo, a fighter with Strikeforce who has 14 victories and four losses, has had a history with professional wrestling.
For a time Mo was involved with Total Nonstop Action, a pro-wrestling company that periodically competes with WWE.
