UFC President Dana White had previously revealed the victor of Gall vs. Jackson would be named CM Punk’s, real name Phil Brooks, debut opponent. As Ben Fowlkes of MMAJunkie.com spelled out on Twitter, things couldn’t have been scripted better, as Gall wowed fans with his quick win and gave Punk and his head coach, Duke Roufus, basically no tape to work with.
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Punk: I’m not on the defensive. Gall will now move on to face CM Punk in Punk’s debut fight later this year.
Punk would comment to The Daily Mail afterward about Gall’s win, ‘It was very impressive, that’s how I want to win a fight. Make sure to check it out!
“You can kind of lose yourself in the seriousness of it and beat yourself up before you fight, so it’s good to know he’s having fun …” Punk was then asked if he’s anxious or intimidated to go from pro wrestling to MMA.
“I was thinking about going to back to graduate school for (expletive) and giggles”, Jackson said. “The bottom line is that I’m in a cage with a person”, Gall said. After finishing off his first opponent with a rear-naked choke in his MMA debut, Gall knew White was sitting in the stands and requested to welcome Brooks to MMA.
“Honestly, man, I think that guy’s used to going into a ring and whispering to his guy, ‘Hey, let’s do a clothesline”, Gall spoke about Punk.
“I thought definitely less than 50 percent”, Gall said of the chances of his callout working.
The “CM Punk” ripple effect is shaking up this Sunday’s event as well, with two completely unqualified fighters taking up space on a Las Vegas UFC event just so we can determine an eventual dance partner for the forthcoming fighter.
Despite the friendly encounter, though, Gall has a bold prediction for their fight, which is likely to take place at UFC 199 or UFC 200. “It was the only plausible fight for me at the time”, Gall said. “Like I did not know MMA was not pre-determined or something”. “I’m just excited, and I’m happy”. Every time I’ve been in there, I’ve been fighting.
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The preliminary card fight will stream live on the UFC’s online platform, Fight Pass, beginning at 4 p.m. The main card, headlined by a welterweight contender bout between Hendricks and Stephen Thompson, will air live on Fox Sports 1 at 7 p.m.
