With Wrestlemania 40 in the rearview mirror, WWE superstar CM Punk made interesting remarks about his former sport, MMA. The former WWE champion stated that “MMA wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for professional wrestling.”
On the ESPN UFC 300 preview show, he said that fighters like Ken Shamrock would’ve gotten into MMA sooner if it had existed earlier. CM Punk also said that fighters like Bo Nickal would be professional wrestlers without MMA’s existence.
The funny thing about this statement is WWE and UFC now fall under the TKO Holdings umbrella. With both organizations operating on the same “team,” there seems to be some truth. But how much truth lies in Punk’s statement?
Where CM Punk Is Right
If there’s one thing Dana White is incredibly great at, it’s creating storylines. Through heavily marketing promising rivalries (see McGregor vs. Khabib and Liddell vs. Ortiz), the UFC knows how to build up its stories before the big fight.
Over the years, WWE has done the exact same thing. From Hulk Hogan vs. Randy Savage to The Rock vs. Stone Cold Steve Austin, the wrestling promotion knew how to build up its rivalries. It made for great theater, with fans picking which side they were on.
Both arts are also dependent on boisterous personalities. Such superstars are charismatic and charming, building a legion of fans through their words alone. It doesn’t matter if it’s Conor McGregor or The Rock. Both thrive off cocky personalities to give their respective arts life. Therefore it proves CM Punk’s point valid.
Aside from the obvious similarities (combat sports and winners and losers), MMA and professional wrestling are built on incredible stories. Whether it’s the MMA fighter coming from a different country or the professional wrestler working through the indie scene, the parallels are obvious.
Where He Has It Wrong
The most obvious contradiction to CM Punk’s statement is professional wrestling being, well, scripted. With promos being cut and professional wrestlers taking bumps, one doesn’t see such things in MMA.
In MMA, a fighter is trained to pummel their opponent into oblivion. That means no bumps are allowed and nothing is predetermined. If that were the case, you’d have Khabib go on an Undertaker-like streak before losing to McGregor. In essence, MMA simply evolved as another sport.
There are other differences such as MMA fighters not having finishers and attire choices. However, CM Punk was right about MMA existing thanks to professional wrestling. The two arts share more similarities than one might think, making the statement true.
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