Good ol’ JR: Punk will have a good showing, won’t win

Tim Good Ol’ JR Ross was the voice of the WWE for nearly 20 years, and then he reinvented himself. Ross left the WWE where he had served as commentator, company executive, and occasional wrestler. He quit smoking, changed his diet, and got a personal trainer. And he developed a wildly successful line of BBQ sauces.

Ross always interested in MMA, has had an account on The UnderGround since in the 90s, and did an AMA in 2014.

He recently appeared on MMAjunkie Radio and discussed the UFC’s signing of CM Punk, who fights Mickey Gall on Saturday night.

Please note, in his reply below, Ross references Muay Thai when he is perhaps referring to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Punk is known to have rolled for some time with the Rener and Ryron Gracie in Torrance, CA. He has not shown evidence of being a Muay Thai practitioner prior to his signing with the UFC.

I don’t want to say it was a publicity stunt, because that would be inaccurate, but I thought it had a lot of publicity stunt elements to it, said Ross, as transcribed by MMAjunkie. You sign a guy, based on his being a major fan of the genre of MMA and being an amateur practitioner of Muay Thai, being a student of the game, no doubt about that. But, also being 37 years old and never having a fight. So why would they sign him to a three-fight deal, as I recall? Because he brings a great marketing opportunity with him because he has name identity. He’s attitudinal and a unique entity.

I think the signing was to create a buzz and if you get something out of him, it’s a bonus. What they’re going to get out of him this week is additional pay-per-view buys they may not have received if Punk was not on the card because we’re talking about him. A lot of people are talking about him. I’ve done a ton of media in the last 10 days, as much as I have for any UFC event, because CM Punk is on the card. For the fighters and those that say Punk took a spot from one of the regular fighters away, I say I don’t think you’re going to get the guys on the card getting a piece of the pay-per-view to agree with that. They’re going to be happy he’s bringing more eyeballs to the TV.

I don’t think he wins. I hope it does. Four-ounce gloves are a difference maker for a lot of people. I think he’ll have a decent showing, I really do. But I know why he’s signed and he’s going to help the fight be more financially successful. Maybe not artistically successful, but financially. As we know, the bottom line is the money.

CM Punk fights Mickey Gall on the main card of UFC 203: Miocic vs Overeem is on September 10, 2016 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. And Ross is right. A lot of pro wrestling fans will put their ass in a seat and spend $60 to see how CM Punk does in the Octagon. A cut of that money goes straight to the top fighters, and that is a great thing.