Rowdy Roddy Piper has praised CM Punk for making the move from the WWE to the UFC, insisting it takes a lot of heart to make such a seismic shift from your comfort zone.
Punk has yet to make his MMA debut, but given the stellar reputation he forged in professional wrestling, it’s an occasion that has stirred plenty of anticipation.
And while the WWE Hall of Famer admitted he’s unsure how the Chicago-born star will fare inside the Octagon, Piper thinks Punk has showcased immense courage to give it a try, per Brent Brookhouse and Chamatkar Sandhu of MMAjunkie.com:
You know what? I give him all the respect in the world. I love the guy and he’s got the courage to leave someplace where you have millions of dollars and to go on and try something else. That’s what a man’s made out of.
How he’ll do there? You know, we’ll all watch. He’s a smart kid and I think he’ll do great.
Punk is following in the footsteps of current WWE star Brock Lesnar, who diverted from professional wrestling in 2007 to embark on a career in MMA. During his time in the sport, he won the UFC heavyweight championship and came back to the WWE in 2011 with an MMA record of five wins and three losses from his eight bouts.
During his time in the ring in the WWE, Punk showcased plenty of fundamental attributes that suggest he could potentially thrive in the Octagon. His footwork was always refined, his patented heel kicks were swift and accurate, and his in-ring agility was eminently polished.
But the former WWE champion faces a major challenge if he’s to transfer those skills into an MMA environment and adapt to the striking and jiu-jitsu facets of the sport.
Nonetheless, speaking with Damon Martin of Fox Sports recently, Punk claimed it’s a path a lot of men in the WWE locker room talk about following, although few actually act on those apparent desires:
I definitely think part of that is what influenced this. There's a lot of guys in pro wrestling that just kind of have this MMA fantasy and they never act on it. I'm acting on it.
I don't want to be one of those guys who sits there and goes, “I could have done that or I should have done that.” I can, so I'm doing it.
While Punk is an MMA novice, the chances are he’ll tackle opponents early on in his MMA career who he can control via his revered wrestling ability. From his perspective, this will hopefully allow him to ease into the sport before tweaking his style appropriately to become better acquainted with the ferocious environment of the UFC.
Lesnar showed in his career in the sport that lessons can be learnt and taken on board. He was outwitted on his UFC debut against Frank Mir, but a year later, a considerably more savvy Lesnar battered the same opponent.
While Punk will be hoping for a better start than his former WWE colleague, there’s certainly much for him to learn from Lesnar’s own stint on the MMA landscape.
