Dana White Thinks CM Punk Should Retire

WWE champion CM Punk returned to the octagon for his second fight against Mike Jackson at last night’s (Sat., June 9, 2018) UFC 225 from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois, losing a one-sided laugher of a fight that was wholly panned by the MMA world.

There was little doubt that Punk showed heart and toughness in doing something few could, yet he failed to mount any form of offense outside of a short-lived takedown in the first, putting his fighting future in serious question.

But the question was soon answered when UFC President Dana White addressed it during an interview with Megan Olivi on the post-fight show on FOX Sports 1. White believes that even though Punk has shown a ton of toughness, it’s time for him to stop fighting in the octagon:

“Did he retire back here, backstage with you? Yeah, I think that’s probably a wrap for CM Punk. I think he should do it for himself. He’s 39 years old, the guy’s got a lot of guts, he came out here and tried it twice. He earned the respect of his team and a lot of other people. You know, he looked tough tonight.”

While he may have been impressed with Punk’s effort despite him not winning his two UFC fights, White wasn’t impressed by Jackson’s effort after he showboated in a bout he was dominating. In his mind, Jackson should have finished the fight rather than clowned Punk:

“Michael Jackson, I was not impressed with. You know, that guy was out there goofing around, throwing like bolo punches from the top. If you could have finished that fight, you should have finished that fight. I probably shoulda put that on the Fight Pass prelims in hindsight.”

The UFC closed on the topic by reiterating that it was time for CM Punk to hang up his gloves:

“But yeah, I think CM Punk should probably hang it up, he, uh, it’s time.”