CLEVELAND – Mickey Gall doesn’t anticipate Phil “CM Punk” Brooks’ UFC career will be one-and-done after he spoiled the former WWE superstar’s MMA debut at UFC 203.
Despite having no background in combat sports, Punk (0-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) was granted an opportunity to have his first MMA fight under the UFC banner. Gall (3-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) lined up as his opponent, and two years after Punk’s signing was announced the welterweight contest finally went down on Saturday’s UFC 203 pay-per-view main card at Cleveland’s Quicken Loans Arena.
Gall was positioned as a large favorite, and he backed it up with a dominant first-round submission courtesy of a rear-naked choke. Punk didn’t land a single significant strike in the 134-second contest, but also didn’t take the exit of tapping out until he was left with no other option.
After the fight many called for the UFC to cut ties with Punk, with UFC President Dana White even admitting he’s not sure if his next fight should be in the organization. Gall disagrees, and even if solely for the notoriety of Punk’s celebrity outside of MMA, said it’s worth keeping him around.
“I think there’s still money to be made on him, he’s still big superstar – I think he will have another UFC fight,” Gall said at the UFC 203 post-fight news conference. “People are like, ‘Ah, he doesn’t belong here.’ Privilege doesn’t rub people in a good way, but I think he’s kind of earned that privilege by being, obviously, a talented guy in something else. I think he’ll probably have another fight. I think he should focus in, train for a little bit, but he should get a chance at retribution.”
Prior to the fight Gall was among Punk’s harshest critics. He was overwhelmingly confident in his chances in the bout, and for good reason. Although Punk has almost exclusively spent his time training since he signed with the UFC, Gall has been honing his skills for more than eight years.
That alone put Gall at a huge advantage, and he said he knew it.
“I knew my kill stuff was going to be more than his kill stuff,” Gall said. “I know two year guys. I’ve beat up 10 year guys and been doing it since I was a teenager. I knew what to expect. I knew I would be able to dominate. I wanted to be able to work my standup. I was really focused on my standup. I wanted to show that off, but he came in hot so I just changed levels and put him on his back.”
One thing Gall also made very clear in the build up to UFC 203 was the fact he didn’t want to be known at the “CM Punk guy.” He said his goals and aspirations for his career in the sport are far greater than winning a single fight against a completely unestablished opponent.
There was plenty of upside for Gall to pursue the fight with Punk, and he certainly made the most of it. But now there’s new goals, he said, and he intends on going down a path that leads towards those goals and far away from Punk.
“I was fighting an amateur,” Gall said. “I 100 percent need to prove myself still, that’s why I’m excited to get going still. Now the real work, the real fights. Every fight’s a fight. I do feel a sense of accomplishment, sure. I do love seeing the crowd and stuff. But it’s not like I’m feeling like I beat a great fighter. I beat a fighter, not a great fighter.
“I’m ready for the UFC killers now. I want war with the best guys in the world.”
View full post on News | MMAjunkie