In the latest episode of his transition from World Wrestling Entertainment to the Ultimate Fighting Championship, CM Punk has hit out at the "boring" questions regarding his decision to switch sports.
In an interview with Kevin Wong of Complex magazine, Punk, real name Phillip Brooks, took umbrage with the question of whether he was "anxious or intimidated" moving from professional wrestling to mixed martial arts. Below is an extract of the conversation that followed:
Punk: "I get this question a lot, and it’s like you guys think I’m an idiot. Like I didn’t know MMA wasn’t pre-determined or something like that. Have you ever tweeted at me, ‘Hey, do you know what you’re getting into?'”
Wong: “I never have.”
Punk: “Okay. It sounds like you might have.”
Wong: “I don’t mean to put you on the defensive…”
Punk: “I’m not on the defensive. Your question is insulting. You’re asking me if I know the difference between the WWE and the UFC?”
Punk is an unknown quantity in the UFC, having spent his entire athletic career under numerous wrestling promotions before making the rise to WWE's training camps in 2005 and eventually retiring in 2014.
Since then, the 36-year-old has appeared eager to push the belief that he's capable of much more in mixed martial arts. When Wong posed the question of how he'd answer "fans who question his motives for going into MMA," Punk's response turned sour and ridden with expletives:
Punk: "You say my fans say that? You’re mistaken. My fans do not say that. I wouldn’t say anything to them [my critics]. I don’t justify stupidity with an answer. I don’t give a s--t what anybody thinks of me, whether I’m going to fight or not. I know what I’m going to do.
If I did anything in my life based on someone’s negative opinion on me, I would never f-----g leave my house. My fans are people who don’t tweet negative s--t at me."
It was way back in December 2014 that Punk announced he had signed a "multi-fight" contract with the UFC, the leading brand in mixed martial arts, despite having never fought professionally to this date.
The reaction to his decision to make the move across in combat sports has largely drawn a negative reaction from fans, but Bleacher Report's Jonathan Snowden praised Punk for his bravery:
Complex's Wong was reportedly told by Punk's representatives after their interview the fighter wished to never talk to the reporter again, evidence of just how angered he was by their confrontation.
UFC President Dana White has already announced Punk will fight fellow UFC newcomer Mickey Gall in his MMA debut later this year—providing the latter defeats Mike Jackson at UFC Fight Night 82 this Saturday.
Gall announced himself to White during filming for the UFC figurehead's series, Dana White: Looking For a Fight, after spotting the president outside the Octagon, as shown by UFC Europe:
He's since been afforded his chance to enter the promotion from the bottom rung, whereas potential opponent Punk may be seen as coming from the opposite direction.
Speaking on the Grant and Danny Show this week, White also confirmed it will be up to Punk whether he fights again should he suffer defeat in his mixed martial arts bow (h/t Fox Sports' Damon Martin):
That's going to be up to him. So CM Punk was a wrestler in the WWE, he was a big fan of the UFC and he ended up leaving the WWE and he said 'Dana, my dream is to fight in the UFC, I want to fight in the UFC, will you let me fight?' so we're giving him a fight. We're bringing in a kid who has obviously a little more experience than he does, if he wins this fight this Saturday he'll be 2-0 and Punk is 0-0. We'll see how it goes for him.
He will decide what he wants to do after that.
It's been a long year since Punk first revealed he'd be coming to the UFC, and interviews have provided our only glimpse at the fighter who, by this summer, will have had more than 18 months to prepare for his debut.
The Chicago native has made it clear he knows what's being asked of him in MMA; now, all he needs to do is enter the Octagon and back up those words.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com
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