JBL Is Proud of What CM Punk Did in MMA & UFC

– During an appearance on this week’s WWE’s The Bump, WWE Hall of Famer JBL spoke about CM Punk and telling him he was proud of what Punk did pursuing a career in MMA, noting what Punk did was very ballsy. Below are some highlights (via Fightful):

JBL on telling CM Punk that he was proud of his journey in MMA: “CM Punk, I got to wrestle him a lot when he came in. I liked him then, and I like him now, and I’m glad he’s back. I’m proud of his journey. I thought his journey was awesome. I saw him for the first time last year in Vegas, and I pulled him aside. I said, I’m really proud of what you did in MMA. That took a lot of guts to stop doing something that you’re best in the world at, and go do something completely different, and put all that effort that he did into that.”

On why what Punk did in MMA was ballsey: “I mean, that was ballsy. I was really proud of him for doing that. I thought it was wonderful, what he did. Then to come back and the crowd’s going crazy, I hate that he got hurt right when he comes back, but I’ve always liked CM Punk, and I think he’s deserving of everything that he’s done. He’s worked his butt off for a lot of things.”

Punk did end up fighting twice in the UFC, going 0-2. He would eventually return to pro wrestling in 2021, signing with AEW. After his AEW contract was terminated last year, he signed to return to WWE in November at Survivor Series: WarGames.