Questions Raised Over CM Punk's UFC Debut

CM Punk is no doubt used to his UFC "career" being questioned by this point. A full one year has passed since the promotion signed him, yet despite plenty of talk from the promotion about Punk fighting in 2015, with multiple dates floated, his debut never took place - leading some fans to suggest that he would never fight in the octagon. An injury to Punk during training didn't help matters, and gave more fuel to the doubters, however the promotion has been steadfast that CM Punk will fight. Now, however, a current UFC champion and former mutliple-weight class title contender have begun to question Punk's appearance in the promotion. Or lack of appearance(s), more accurately. On the final UFC Tonight of 2015, light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, and former title challenger and Ultimate Fighter runner-up Kenny Florian addressed the Punk situation. And according to Cormier, by waiting so long after announcing his signing to have him fight, some of the intrigue surrounding Punk's transition to MMA has been lost;

As time is passing, it starts to lose some of the intrigue. I think the iron was hot when he first walked out on the WWE and that's when he would have made the biggest impression on the MMA community because WWE fans would have followed him to MMA.

Florian, meanwhile, has other concerns - about just how Punk is progressing as a fighter;

This is what really concerns me because they said he was going to fight in 2015. That he needs some time to train. Well, that hasn't happened. I know he has dealt with some other injuries and things like that. But the fact that they say that he's not ready concerns me. It shows that, listen, you don't just jump into this sport and say you're going to compete. It takes time and there's a process. There's a reason why they're telling him to take his time. I think his training isn't coming along as fast as they thought and it's unfortunate.

Both men make valid points, though Florian's is more based on speculation than anything. The UFC probably should have held back the CM Punk signing news in retrospect, but at the end of 2014, they were desperate for star power - a void since filled not by CM Punk but by Ronda Rousey, Conor McGregor, and newcomers Paige VanZant and Sage Northcutt. In any case, the shine has certainly worn off Punk's MMA debut, though that might actually be a blessing - at this point, expectations are seriously low, so he could have a shot at surprising people. Florian, meanwhile, seems to have spoken aloud something many have suggested online, but "K-Flo" may be the most notable name to suggest it: there's a chance, at the end of the day, that CM Punk just isn't that good at this point in his transition to MMA. Also interesting to note is that the UFC appears to have had no issue with the UFC Tonight hosts questioning Punk's debut. That said, at some point, CM Punk will fight, barring career ending injury. There's no way the UFC wants their investment to slip away, and no amount of media appearances and Q&A sessions at fan events will replace the draw of Punk in the cage. Maybe, however, you should temper your expectations.