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Bobby Lashley spoke on Inside MMA of his advice to CM Punk on his UFC debut, urging the former WWE champion to take things in his own stride.
Lashley, a former amateur wrestler with numerous accolades to his name already, went on to ascertain his liking for the longest reigning WWE champion of the post-modern WWE era.
"If I had to give him some advice, I'd tell him don't let anybody put you into something that you're not ready for. He's going into it 0-0. He's going into the UFC, so I have no idea what they're going to do with him at that point because a lot of people who made it to the UFC have had to really fight and claw to get into that organization. With him being 0-0 they're going to have bring somebody else in that's 0-0 into the UFC.”
It is true that the UFC has a history of letting in only veteran MMA fighters who have competed in different tournaments and established themselves successfully in those tournaments.
“Somebody is going to get the door opened up to come in there, which poses a little bit of a question.”
This is not so surprising in CM Punk's case as he has already got a strong foundation and an illustrious list of accomplishments – notably in the WWE, Pro Wrestling Illustrated, Ohio Valley Wrestling and the Ring of Honor (ROH). Who the UFC will bring in to match with Punk, remains to be seen.
Lashley, a former TNA world heavyweight champion, is himself an MMA contender in multiple tournaments. Having served in both capacities, what he says maybe something Punk would want to take into consideration. He went on to heap praises on the former wrestler:
“...he overcame a whole bunch of odds to become almost one of the best wrestlers in history. That's one thing that I can say about Punk is that Punk likes to overcome odds and that's one. He likes to be that underdog. He's a hard worker and he's a hard fighter.”
It would be something to draw confidence from too, for the newbie fighter as Lashley goes on to instil his belief in Punk's ability, characterising him to be the underdog and making Punk come across as a foe to be taken seriously. The refreshing words of encouragement from Lashley were also a reminder of the detrimental nature of the sport:
“I wish all the best for him. For anybody that wants to get into this crazy sport that we're in, I wish them the best for it.”
For CM Punk or anyone else anywhere looking to get into MMA, this would be a great thing to remember, in the most generic sense. He also finishes by repeating the importance of managing expectations that can be exemplified by the famous saying “Don't bite off more than you can chew”.
“Just train your a** off and go out there and just don't get yourself put into something that you're not ready for. But I think he'll be ready for the match that they do set him up with, whoever that may be."
While there are rumours that suggest that CM Punk will make his UFC debut before the end of 2015, there is no official confirmation as yet.
