Prior to his Octagon return against fellow 0-1 fighter Mike “The Truth” Jackson in his hometown of Chicago at UFC 225 this Saturday night on pay-per-view, Phil “CM Punk” Brooks spent some time with members of the MMA media for a pre-fight media scrum on Wednesday evening.
During the scrum, Punk spoke about former UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey talking to him prior to her WWE in-ring debut at WrestleMania 34 back on April 8th. According to the former WWE Superstar, he gave Ronda very simple advice — have fun.
“The only thing I told her was to just have fun,” said Punk during Wednesday’s scrum. “I don’t know what it’s like back there in this current environment. I know she’d probably get treated differently, just as I know I probably get treated differently here. The only thing I ever told her is, ‘I know you’ve got a lot of people telling you, do this, don’t do this’ — whatever you do, when you go out there for WrestleMania, make sure you have fun. Period.”
When asked whether or not he watched Rousey’s in-ring debut, which was widely considered a major success, Punk claimed that he didn’t because he simply doesn’t watch wrestling anymore.
“No, I did not,” Punk admitted. “I saw a couple of clips here and there. And still, when I say it’s hard for me to watch wrestling, it’s not like an anxiety thing, it’s not like an, ‘ugh, I can’t do it.’ I literally, I can’t get through eight seconds without being like, ‘OK, umm, can I change the channel? I’m bored, I gotta watch something else.’ It’s like going to a baseball game at CitiField. I like Wrigley Field, it’s old school. Going to a baseball game at CitiField, it’s like a guy gets ball four and they blow off fireworks and there’s LED screens on everything.”
“The Best in the World” would elaborate, explaining why he has a lack of interest in the pro wrestling industry since leaving WWE to pursue his MMA aspirations in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
“Subconsciously, there’s like a disconnect,” Punk said. “I see clips. I know Kenny Omega is the hot guy. He’s probably one of the better guys in the world right now, but it’s the same thing. I’ll watch clips of matches, I don’t see myself watching a full match. I just can’t do it… I think it’s definitely too glossy, but it’s been like that for a long time. My jam was house shows before they started calling them live events, where it was a curtain and a ring and a light above the ring. That was my jam. That was my world, that was where I liked to thrive.”
Need More CM Punk Content?
If you’re in search for more pre-UFC 225 content regarding CM Punk, you’re in the right place! Although the UFC has not released a lot of pre-fight content on the former WWE Superstar, we have you covered from all angles.
Check out some of the appropriate links below for your fill of pre-UFC 225 CM Punk content.
- CM Punk Finally Responds To Mike Jackson’s Trash-Talk
- Duke Roufus: CM Punk Has Improved “Incredibly” Since UFC Debut
- CM Punk Does Not Deserve A Spot On UFC 225 PPV Card
- CM Punk Says He “Can’t Lose” With Hometown Advantage At UFC 225
- CM Punk On How Trial Against WWE Affected UFC 225 Preparations
- Complete Pre-UFC 225 Media Scrum With CM Punk
What are your thoughts on CM Punk’s change in opinion regarding the pro wrestling business? Sound off in the Comments section below.