Dana White Jabs At CM Punk In Relation To Gable Steveson’s Pending UFC Debut

Dana White had a little quip at CM Punk’s expense while discussing Gable Steveson’s upcoming UFC debut. As reported last week, Steveson has signed with the UFC and will make his debut at UFC 329 in July. Steveson is a former member of the WWE roster and has just three pro MMA fights under his belt. White was asked during the 411’s UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Malott post-event press event about finding someone to face Steveson, and White took a minor swipe Punk’s short-lived UFC run in response.

“CM Punk fought here,” White said with a little chuckle. “We’ll find somebody.”

He went on to say when asked if Steveson will face a top 15-ranked opponent, “I don’t know. No, definitely — I don’t know if we go after a top 15 guy. I say this to you guys all the time, the UFC jitters are real walking out. I don’t care how you’ve competed, or where or what you’ve done. When you come here, it’s a different level. And you know, like I said earlier tonight, our matchmakers are the best in the business. We’ll figure him out and get him the right fight, you know? And when I say that, I mean, at what we think his level is and what we think he’s capable of.”

CM Punk had a very brief run in the UFC, going 0-1-1 during his run back in 2016. He lost to Mickey Gall at UFC 203 and then had his loss to Mike Jackson at UFC 225 overturned after Jackson tested positive for pot.