A little while back, it was announced that CM Punk would in fact be part of EA's UFC 2, the hotly anticipated MMA game to be released later in 2016. That wasn't surprising, despite the fact that he has yet to have his first UFC fight. After all, as a fighter under contract to the UFC, they have every right to put him in there, regardless of his experience - and lets face it, his name will draw eyeballs just by being in the game. Love him or hate him, Punk brings exposure everywhere he goes. No way was EA going to lose out on that. Now, the first image of Punk in the game has been released - as has, by way of an advanced report on the game - his in game rating. And it's that rating that may ruffle some feathers. First, here's the first shot of Punk in the game by way of MMA Junkie/USA Today's Chamatkar Sandhu: https://twitter.com/SandhuMMA/status/686676012701110272 So that, well, looks like CM Punk looking mean. Fair enough. As for the rating: fighters in UFC 2 are rated out of 100, similar to the original UFC game. The ranking is based on striking, grappling, and submissions (these are then broken down further within each category, but you get the idea). In the original EA Sports UFC, then-champion Chris Weidman, the man who took the middleweight crown from the legendary Anderson Silva, was ranked at 94/100. Ronda Rousey scored a 97/100, as did Jon Jones. So where does CM Punk, who has never had a pro fight (or amateur for that matter) land? At 85/100. And that's what has sparked some outcry. To put it in perspective, in the last EA Sports UFC game, an 85 score went to Francis Carmont and Martin Kampmann, both of whom were considered potential title contenders at one point. In fact, Jake Shields won a shot at UFC gold against GSP by beating Kampmann. It's also a higher score than now retired fan-favourite heavyweight Pat Berry was given - he was 84/100. Mark Hunt, who fought Fabricio Werdum for the interim heavyweight championship in 2014, was given 86/100, just a point better than Punk. Now, Berry and Kampmann are both retired (though Kampmann may actually be in the game, as he only announced his retirement this past week). Carmont is fighting in Bellator, while Hunt is coming off a win over Bigfoot Silva - and who knows, maybe his ranking has gone up. However, it seems odd that Punk is anywhere near name fighters. And he has already gone on the defensive against those questioning the ranking: https://twitter.com/CMPunk/status/686684082210738176 The problem is, this has nothing to do with the video game - and everything to do with the perception that Punk is getting special treatment thus far in his UFC/MMA career. He may be the only fighter signed by the UFC in the modern era with zero professional fights. And being ranked at the same level as fighters with years of experience seems fairly disrespectful, in a sport based on a long history of respect, which is exactly one of the core values of most martial arts disciplines. Now, Punk didn't give himself the ranking, but a better approach might have been either to stay silent, or simply admit that from any angle, the high ranking is puzzling. Anything other than being humble makes it seem like he agrees with the ranking, which is puzzling coming from a fighter who entered his MMA career knowing full well that he had a lot of work to do. EA Sports UFC 2 will be released in stores March 17, 2016.
Primarily covering the sport of MMA from Ontario, Canada, Jay Anderson has been writing for various publications covering sports, technology, and pop culture since 2001. Jay holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree in English from the University of Guelph, and a Certificate in Leadership Skills from Humber College.
