CM Punk’s UFC debut postponed due to shoulder injury

Phil “CM Punk” Brooks’ highly anticipated octagon debut will be delayed after the former WWE Superstar suffered a shoulder injury in training.

Brooks chose to make the transition from pro wrestling to mixed martial arts in late 2014 when he signed with the UFC. With very little combat sports experience to his name at the time, training camps around the nation were offering Brooks a spot to learn the craft. The former WWE Champion now trains with the likes of Anthony Pettis and Ben Askren at Roufusport MMA Academy.

Duke Roufus recently sat down with ESPN and explained how Punk got injured. “He got caught in a scramble, so right now he’s taking a little time off,” Roufus said. “He was doing great before that. His progress has been good. He’s got a great attitude and he’s a hard worker. He got a place in Milwaukee where he lives all week when he’s here training, so he’s in it to win it.”

Roufus has no interest in bringing Punk back to the mats until he is over one hundred percent. “He’s about at 50 percent. But that being said, remember that my 100 percent is a very well-prepared person.”

Roufus went on to give a timetable for Brooks’ first fight in the octagon and a return to Roufusport MMA Academy. “The UFC will probably book him a fight three to four months in advance — a guy of his magnitude. We’re probably looking at a fight in the next six to ten months. The injury throws us back one month. We had a ballpark. We were looking at mid- to late-spring. Now, we’ll just have to see how he comes back from the injury.”

Who would you like to see Brooks face when he makes his way into the octagon? Share your thoughts in the comment section below!