CM Punk News: UFC Reveals Former WWE Superstar's Possible Opponent
Former World Wrestling Entertainment superstar turned mixed martial arts fighter CM Punk finally gets an opponent for his UFC debut.
In a report by MMA Fighting.com's Shaun Al-Shatti, Punk will be fighting 23-year-old New Jersey welterweight fighter Mickey Gall. UFC president Dana White and former 170-pound champion Matt Serra scouted Gall during the most recent episode of the UFC's web show "Looking for a Fight."
There is a catch, though. Gall (1-0) will be fighting Mike Jackson. Both men will be fighting at the preliminary card of the February 6 scheduled event via UFC Fight Pass. Gall has to win against Jackson in order to face Punk.
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Having a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, Gall has trained with Miller Brothers MMA, American Top Team Allentown, and Gracie New Jersey Jiu-Jitsu Academy. In his opinion, Punk would not be able to handle being on the receiving end of actual hard punches.
"Honestly, man, I think that guy's used to going into a ring and whispering to his guy, 'Hey, let's do a clothesline," Gall said, according to the MMA Fighting report. "Hey, let's practice jumping off the ropes and this and that."
"I think when he gets in there and he has me coming at him looking to kill him, I don't think he'll be able to handle it," Gall continued.
Gall also noted how stepping into professional prizefighting is a "different world" from sports entertainment.
Punk (whose name is Phil Brooks in real life) was officially signed by the UFC in December 2014. The announcement was made during the pay-per-view broadcast of UFC 181, which was headlined by the rematch between welterweights Robbie Lawler and Johny Hendricks.
He was slated to make his debut in 2015, but it was forced to be put on hold after he suffered a knee injury during training.
Punk currently trains under Duke Roufus at Roufusport in Milwaukee, the place where former lightweight champion Anthony Pettis and ONE FC Welterweight Champion Ben Askren also train.
