Neither CM Punk nor Tim Tebow is afraid to try new things.
Punk, whose real name is Phil Brooks, will make his mixed martial arts debut Saturday night at UFC 203, while Tebow just signed a minor league contract with the New York Mets amid his attempt to transition from the NFL to a career in Major League Baseball.
Punk was asked Thursday during a press conference leading up to his much-anticipated fight against Mickey Gall whether he sees some parallels between the two situations. And while he was careful with his words, the former WWE champion acknowledged there are some similarities.
“Symmetry? Yeah, maybe,” Punk told reporters. “The people who don’t like me are going to point out that, ‘Oh, well Punk wasn’t a professional athlete,’ so it’s a whole different can of worms. But, yeah, I think there’s a lot of symmetry.
“You go from one — I’m debating on whether to call (WWE) a sport or not, everything I say gets click-baited, (screw) it. You go from one sport to another, there’s parallels.”
Punk left WWE in January 2014 and subsequently signed with UFC in December 2014. The 37-year-old was expected to make his UFC debut in 2015, but injuries have prevented him from fighting until Saturday’s scheduled bout.
Tebow, on the other hand, is trying his hand at baseball after his career as an NFL quarterback crashed and burned. The 29-year-old recently hosted a baseball tryout, which drew mixed reviews from MLB scouts and analysts.
Both transition attempts have been met with skepticism. Punk doesn’t seem to care what other people think, though. He, like Tebow, is pursuing a dream and is focused on proving his doubters wrong.
“It’s like Michael Jordan went from playing basketball to playing baseball,” Punk said. “‘Oh, baseball’s too hard, he’s not going to be able to do it,’ and I’m awkward and uncoordinated and I’m old and I’m fat and I’m lazy and I suck and I was a fake athlete and I’m not going to be able to do it.
“You know, if you believe all that stuff, then you’re not going to be able to do it. I’m sure Tim Tebow can hit a ball. I think that’s great (he signed with the Mets).”
Maybe after they’re done, Punk can give baseball and football a whirl while Tebow steps into a WWE ring and a UFC octagon. Now that’d be entertaining.
Thumbnail photo via screen grab
