Paul Heyman on the current circumstances of C Punk, mix martial arts and wrestling. Curated from MMA News:
CM Punk’s former on-air manager and longtime real-life friend, WWE performer Paul Heyman, recently spoke about Punk’s mindset heading into his UFC debut.
Heyman appeared on the “Stone Cold Podcast” with WWE Hall Of Famer “Stone Cold” Steve Austin on the WWE Network last week and talked about CM Punk leaving the squared circle to enter the Octagon.
“I don’t think money is the motivating factor in CM Punk’s life whatsoever. I think it’s the challenge to do this,” said Heyman. “This is something he’s been eyeballing since he was a kid, and I think he looks back and he probably regrets not getting into it five or six years earlier, but this was the time to pull the trigger on it.”
Heyman continued, “I think he firmly believes he is either going to step in that Octagon and shock everybody by beating somebody’s ass, or he’s going to get punched in the face and knocked out or tapped out and beat up, and I think that he’s very accepting of the fact that that’s a possibility. He’s man enough to walk in there and take his chances.”
As things stand now, there is no specific date or location for Punk’s first fight in the UFC, however both the UFC and Punk have insisted it will be at the end of 2015.
Joe Rogan conducted this CM Punk interview to give the ex-wrestler (?) the chance to explain his mixed martial arts training prior to entering into battle in the UFC:
Rogan: …But your wrestling days are over. You have decided
to enter the Octagon, and fight mixed martial arts professionally.
Punk: Well I’d say my professional wrestling days are over,
(but) I’m sure Im going to have to do plenty of wrestling in there. Ah, it’s
awesome to be here—it’s very awesome to be here.
Rogan:How long---I
know you’ve been training with Rener Gracie for quite a while. I know you’ve
been around the UFC for quite a while---how long have you been contemplating
this, and what ultimately motivated your decision?
Punk: This has been something that’s been on my mind for a
very, very long time. I have a background in kempo, I’ve done Brazilian jujitsu
off and on for a very, very long time. But the idea of being able to step into
the Octagon, and find out what’s inside myself, and test myself, is an
opportunity I am not able to deny myself. I don’t think I would have been able
to live with myself if I didn’t give this a shot.
Rogan:So is this
something that, watching guys like Brock Lesnar become very successful in the
UFC, seeing all the fights, watching it live, you just felt like, it’s now or
never. You only have a certain amount of time in this life.
Punk: Yeah, I mean it felt it was now or never about three
years ago. I resigned with the WWE, and gave it the old college try, and it is
now or never for me. I have a limited window, just like all fighters do, so I fully intend to get in there. I’m here for a fight, to either get my ass kicked, or
to kick somebody’s ass.
It's been two years and counting since he left pro wrestling following the 2014 Royal Rumble, but CM Punk merchandise remains popular both online and offline. The WWE still maintains a page devoted to Punk media on its official site, and Punk's own site features a host of merch celebrating his past and current endeavors, from posters to MMA clothes, to the CM Punk action figure, and other items.
This is curious considering CMPunk has done little speaking on wrestling lately, and may be said to be promoting hockey more, considering his recent flap with wrestling icon Hulk Hogan. Punk, a Chicago Black Hawks devotee, castigated Hogan (a Tampa bay Lightning fan) during the Stanley Cup Finals as being a "hack" and a "piece of garbage."
It's not clear if the at times heated exchamge between the two wasn't just a tease to push a future Punk-Hogan match, or other staged event, but it's clear mr. Straight Edge was not doing it to push CM Punk merchandise, which continues to do well without publicity stunts. Many fans account for the durability of the demand for Punk media by saying it shows his legacy to the industry is stronger than the WWE marketing machine. Fans predict a further pick up in merch sales once Punk's new career in MMA leads to achievements.
As it has been over a year of CM Punk being champion and has beaten many wrestlers including, John Cena, Kane, Alberto Del Rio, Denial Bryan and many others. He is daily getting on top of title reigning list. Will he be able to beat Kevin Nash with 358 days winning days??
What do you think?
Here is the list of top WWE tittle reigns.
here have been many potential feuds and matches over the course of
wrestling history that didn't come to fruition for whatever reason. Fans
often look back and wonder "what if," but that simply leads to
disappointment. One dream rivalry that should never reach that point,
though, is CM Punk vs. "Stone Cold" Steve Austin.It
is difficult to think of two gimmicks that are more perfect to oppose
each other than Punk and Austin's. Punk is a straight-edge heel who
believes that he is better than everyone else and craves being called
the best wrestler in the world. Austin is a beer-guzzling, no-nonsense
face who knows that he's the best but doesn't look for confirmation from
anyone else.
When will CM Punk vs. Steve Austin happen?
WrestleMania XXIX
27.7%
WrestleMania XXX
47.1%
A WrestleMania beyond WrestleMania XXX
2.2%
A different PPV
2.1%
Never
20.9%
Punk and Austin are tailor-made for each other, and it would
be an absolute shame if the fans were deprived of it. Talk of a
potential match between them started over a year ago when Austin became
much more visible as host of Tough Enough, and while there isn't any
true indication of when that match might be, I feel like it will be
sooner rather than later.
That Attitude Era connection has come up quite a bit recently with the impending release of the WWE
'13 video game. The biggest feature in the game is the inclusion of an
Attitude Era story mode as well as many playable characters from that
time in wrestling history. The main focus, however, is unquestionably
Austin as he even has his own collector's edition available. THQ
has released some interview segments in recent weeks regarding the game
and one of great interest was a debate of sorts between Punk and Austin
that was moderated by Jim Ross. The two of them talked about the
differences between the Attitude and PG eras and also about how each of
them would fare in the past and present.
The discussion became
contentious, and it got to the point where it was unclear whether they
were talking about the game or real life. Punk said that he would beat
Austin in any era, and Stone Cold offered the opposite opinion. It was
clearly a calculated move by the WWE and a precursor of things to come.
Many have targeted WrestleMania XXX as
the event where the dream match will come to fruition, and that is
definitely a possibility, but I'm optimistic that it will happen at WrestleMania
XXIX this coming April in East Rutherford, N.J. Whatever the case, it's
a matter of when—not if—this match, and the feud that goes with it, is
going to happen.
Austin would then challenge Punk at WrestleMania the next night on RAW and the entire feud could be built on disrespect. Punk will say that Royal Rumble was supposed to be his night but that Austin just had to steal the spotlight and relive his past glory. There is so much pointing to the match happening that it simply can't be ignored.
Punk is one of the biggest stars in WWE currently, but he can't reach legendary status until he has a WrestleMania match for the ages, and Austin would help provide that. Austin is the most controversial wrestler in WWE history and Punk holds that title for the present day, and I don't believe there is anything that can stop them from meeting in the ring at some point.
Step into the ring of the '13 edition of the WWE video game. WWE '13 transforms gameplay through the introduction of WWE Live, completely changing the way players embrace the videogame's audio and presentation elements. Predator Technology returns to further to further implement critical gameplay improvements while fan favorites in WWE Universe Mode and the franchise's renowned Creation Suite are poised to offer the utmost in player freedom. Furthermore, WWE '13 introduces a groundbreaking, single-player campaign based on the highly influential Attitude-Era. Complete with a robot ruster-the largest to date in the franchise--along with a host of additional features, WWE '13 is ready to live a revolution of its own.
Release Date: October 30, 2012 Genre: Wrestling Publisher: THQ Developer: Yuke's Media Creations
Features
Most importantly CM Punk is on the cover.
Experience the atmosphere, spectacle, and fervor of a WWE live event through attention-grabbing spectacular moments, including ring breaks and barricade crashes, along with a brand new audio and presentation system designed to produce the most authentic and vibrant community, sound effects and crowd participation levels ever expreienced in a WWE videogame.
Return to unparalleled and groundbreaking era in WWE history -- a time of pure raucousness , grandoise personalities and colossal revolution through a single-player campaign focused on eight purveyors of attitude during the famed television "Monday Night Wars" including WWE Hall of Famer "Stone Cold" Steve Au stin.
Control the virtual WWE experiencein the popular career-style mode, as individual decisions throughout gameplay will dynamically introduce matches, alliances, rivalries, and unpredictable moments along the path to becoming a WWE champion.
Driven by new animations, transitions and modified controls, Predator Technology returns to deliver intelligent, fluid and engaging WWE action, resulting in smoother gameplay experience than its predecessors.
Utalize the franchise's Creation Suite to develop and customize Superstars, entrances, arenas, finishing moves, storylines, highlight reels and more, as well as share and download creations with others from around the world.
Compete with a vast array of superstars, including CM Punk, "Stone Cold" Steve Austin, Sheamus, Undertaker, Mankind, Chris Jericho, Big Show and Mark Henry.
Extreme Rules was one hell of a pay-per-view, and the best match of the night might very well have been CM Punk vs. Chris Jericho in a Chicago Street Fight for the WWE Championship.
Punk proving a Straight Edge
It
was a fantastic brawl between two of the WWE’s top stars that was
entertaining for every single one of the 26 minutes that it took up.
When
the match ended and Punk emerged victorious, that gave Punk the 2-0
advantage in this series and sure looked like the blow-off bout to this
great rivalry.
Match Headlines:
Match started with Punk's domination, and than Jericho turns & he mocked & beated punk infront of his sister & mother. That makes punk angry, Punk drove jericho throughthe announce table as well. Splendid move.
In the ending, Walls of Jericho was applied but at the end it was all back to GTS.......
My thoughts:
I think it would make sense for this feud to continue if the WWE
Championship weren’t involved, but how does two straight pay-per-view
losses warrant yet another title shot for Jericho?
Unless Jericho
wins some sort of match to become the No. 1 contender for the WWE title
again, I don’t think that he should get another chance to become the
WWE Champion.
I mean, even if he eventually beats Punk to win the title, how big of an accomplishment will it be anyway?
It will have taken him four chances to do so.
I think we must proceed now with new story lines.
