Pros and Cons of UFC/CM Punk Deal

The pros and cons of UFC signing CM Punk

(Also at 411mania.com)

Unless your name is Patrick Star, you probably heard the news that CM Punk has signed with the UFC. The fighter, media, and fan reaction has been very mixed with some celebrating this signing and others groaning. I’m going to try, and probably fail, at taking an objective look at this signing; listing the pros and cons of CM Punk signing with the UFC.

PRO: UFC Creates A Buzz

CM Punk “broke the internet” when he appeared on Colt Cabana’s podcast the other week. While everything seemed to be in working order on Saturday night, there’s no denying the fact that everyone was talking about Punk signing with the UFC following Saturday’s event. In some ways it was unfair to Anthony Pettis and Robbie Lawler, the two men who walked out of the event with UFC gold around their waist, but in other ways it helped them because it drew attention to the event that they headlined. 

UFC has struggled on PPV this year. Unless UFC 181 exceeds expectations by about 200,000 buys only one event this year will break the 500,000 mark. Injuries, loss of stars, lack of division depth and development, and lack of star development have all contributed to low UFC buyrates in 2014. 2015 should be much better staring with the grudge match between Jon Jones vs. Daniel Cormier followed by the return of Anderson Silva and ending with Chris Weidman taking on Vitor Belfort with Ronda Rousey also on the card. 

Punk likely won’t fight until mid to late 2015, but right now he’s getting people talking about the product and upcoming events. UFC has two shows this weekend, one is supposedly the biggest fight card in FOX history, prior to Punk signing there wasn’t much hype surrounding the shows. Even though people still aren’t going crazy over the biggest fight card in free TV history, at least now people are talking about the company and in turn giving them publicity for this weekend. 

CON: UFC Must Be Desperate

In 2007, Dana White blasted Kurt Angle for thinking he could just leave professional wrestling and become a UFC fighter. At the time Angle was 37-years old and, as you all know, won an Olympic Gold Medal in wrestling. 

Since then Dana has made questionable signings. Brock Lesnar was a question mark, but he was an NCAA champion and had one prior fight outside of the UFC and is a freak athlete. James Toney was a question mark, but UFC promoted him as such and he at least had pro boxing experience. Kimbo Slice was a question mark but he had prior MMA experience in other organizations and went through The Ultimate Fighter. There have been four fighters who made their official UFC debut with a 0-0 record. Toney was one. Amir Sadollah, Matt Riddle, and Matt Mitrione are the other three. All three went through TUF first. 

Punk has never competed in a combat sport and won’t have to compete on TUF. He will enter the octagon with no prior athletic competition experience outside of pro wrestling. This is by far the most questionable signing the UFC has ever made. But they made this signing because they need some type of boost right now. Lesnar returning isn’t guaranteed, Georges St. Pierre doesn’t seem to be in any hurry to get back, Anderson Silva only has two or three more fights left in him, Cain Velasquez can’t stay healthy and who knows where his drawing power is right now, and Jon Jones is slowly running out of contenders. 

If the company was where they were at in 2007, Punk would’ve been laughed off like Angle was, but they’ve plateaued since then with no signs of an upswing.

PRO: Increased Buyrates or Viewers

Punk’s debut will draw. I’m assuming his first fight will be on PPV and not on FOX, although that wouldn’t be a terrible idea. I don’t know how much his debut fight will draw because, despite his high merchandise sales, I don’t think Punk was an enormous draw in pro wrestling.  

Punk headlined Summerslam in 2011 against John Cena. That show did 296,000 buys. The previous year, which was headlined by Team WWE vs. Team Nexus drew 350,000 buys and the following year headlined by Brock Lesnar vs. Triple H did 358,000 buys. Although Triple H cut his momentum at Summerslam 2011 and the weeks following the event, he was still the hottest wrestler in the company heading into the event. 

However, B-show buyrates were slightly up when Punk headlined during his WWE Championship reign. So he had some drawing power, but I don’t think he’s the draw that he and others believe he is. 

That said, his first fight will undoubtedly lead to an increase in buys or viewers. How much will depend on the headline fight. If Punk is paired with Jon Jones vs. Alexander Gustaffson 2 (pending both fighters win their upcoming fights) then that event could broach 800,000 buys. If he’s paired with Demetrious Johnson defending his flyweight title then you’re looking 300,000 buys on a good day. If the UFC decides to put Punk on FOX, my guess is that they’ll come near the peak numbers that they did for Cain Velasquez vs. Junior dos Santos. 

Punk bringing in those buys and viewers helps the rest of the card and they’ll be seen by more eyeballs, hopefully leading to more exposure and more money for the guys who have put in their time. 

CON: What’s The Cost?

It’s not about money for Punk, except that it’s obviously about money. Dana said that he’ll treat Punk like any 0-0, 1-0, 1-1 fighter. We all know that won’t be the case. First off, a fighter with that kind of record isn’t in the UFC unless they were on TUF. And any debuting fighter who didn’t previously establish themselves as a champion in another major organization is only making $8,000 to show and $8,000 if they win. I can guarantee you that Punk isn’t making 8/8 when he finally steps into the octagon. 

If and when Punk’s salary is revealed, we could see a lot of upset fighters. Imagine if you’re Michael Bisping. He’s a decent draw who has 22 UFC fights under his belt. He’s never won a title, but he’s headlined plenty of events and coached on The Ultimate Fighter twice. Imagine if CM Punk makes more than him. What kind of message does that send to everyone under contract? Most fighters are going to complain about Punk’s payout no matter who they are. I can already guarantee you that a guy like Tim Kennedy will be highly upset if Punk makes more than him. Kennedy isn’t a draw, but as a longtime fighter, he’ll believe that he’ll have a valid complaint. And he won’t be the only one. 

Not only is there likely to be fighter backlash, something that has already started, but there are health risks as well. Punk left wrestling in January because he was burned out mentally and psychically. Mentally he seems to be in a better place. But psychically there’s no way he’s healed up after the years and years of abuse he’s put on his body through pro wrestling. 

Punk is 36-years old. He’s had an estimated 12-13 concussions during just his WWE run. He’s had knee and elbow surgeries. He’s had cracked ribs and a broken skull. Who knows what kind of shape his back is in given all the bumps he’s taken during his wrestling career. He has a background in kenpo karate and he’s been doing jiu-jitsu for years now, but I wouldn’t count on that translating much to his UFC debut. Let’s not forget that he’ll also have to go through a professional MMA training camp for the first time in his life. That is going to take a toll on his body and be a whole new experience for him. On top of that, it sounds like Punk will be cutting weight, which is another thing that he isn’t exactly used to and could easily drain him prior to the fight. 

PRO: Punk Is Happy

It was pretty clear during his podcast with Colt Cabana that Punk was unhappy in WWE and that’s why he left and was then fired. He stated on that podcast that he’s much happier now that he’s not wrestling and he’s pursuing other ventures. UFC is one of those ventures. 

I don’t know what kind of expectations he has for himself, but I hope they are realistic. Punk will more likely be Herschel Walker instead of Brock Lesnar. Of course Dana ripped Strikeforce for signing Walker, but that goes back to UFC’s desperation. Punk is unlikely to be The Best In The World in MMA. Honestly, I think most people will be shocked if he wins more than one fight. I expect UFC to protect him, but even an average MMA fighter has the advantage over Punk. But he’s happy. He’s a big fan of the sport and now he gets to compete on the biggest stage and test himself without always wondering “what if?” 

Along with being in the UFC, he’s also writing comics and is married to AJ Lee. He seems to be in a good place right now and that should make fans of his happy. 

CON: Punk Is A Hypocrite 

Punk doesn’t want to be known for being a WWE wrestler. He wants WWE to be considered a pit stop in his life. I hope he realizes that without WWE, he wouldn’t have this opportunity. If he was still in ROH or even in TNA, this wouldn’t be a big deal. He would probably have to go through TUF or at least fight on the regional circuit before UFC even considered talking to him. He should be thankful that WWE gave him the platform to increase his visibility. Even if they mistreated him most of the time and following his walk out, he should still be thankful that they highlighted him for years. 

He also talked about being an independent contractor and not being able to get outside sponsors. He knows that the same rules apply in UFC, right? There is no UFC union and plenty of fighters have been outspoken about UFC mistreating them once they’ve left, just like Punk has done with WWE. Also, while Punk can still get outside sponsors, thanks to this new Reebok deal, he won’t be able to support those sponsors by wearing their logo when it matters most: the week leading up to the fight and during the fight itself. 

Finally, Punk was more than upset when he had to lose to part time wrestlers like The Rock, Brock Lesnar, The Undertaker, and Triple H. He complained about those guys coming in, taking main event slots on the big shows, and then leaving the next night. What exactly is Punk doing? He’s coming into the UFC, taking a main card spot from someone who actually has professional experience, and putting them on the prelims. All of a sudden CM Punk is good enough for the UFC, but Ben Askren isn’t?

Don’t get me wrong, it’s Dana White’s decision to hire Punk and not Askren and to put Punk on the main card and not a more deserving fighter, but Punk doesn’t have any room to complain about how WWE treated him compared to part-time wrestlers when he’s now a part-time fighter doing the same thing.