CM Punk’s debut set for September 10th at UFC 203

Former WWE Champion CM Punk announced Wednesday that he would be debuting in UFC on September 10th against Mickey Gall at UFC 203.

Punk made the announcement on UFC Unfiltered, a new podcast with Matt Serra and Jim Norton that debuted earlier this week. The show also featured Dwyane Johnson.

The 37-year-old Punk (Phil Brooks) said he had just gotten clearance to train after back surgery and would debut in Cleveland, a show headlined by Stipe Miocic vs. Alistair Overeem for the UFC heavyweight title. Fabricio Werdum vs. Ben Rothwell is also on that show.

Assuming the fight goes off as planned, his debut would happen nearly two years since he first signed with UFC, a timetable far longer than expected. Reasons included delays due to head trainer Duke Roufus not wanting him to fight too early, as well as shoulder and back injuries, both of which date back to his days as a pro wrestler.

Gall is 2-0 in his young MMA career, and won his February UFC debut convincingly against Mike Jackson.