Sports Illustrated interviewed CM Punk to discuss his transition from WWE to UFC.

Below are some notable highlights:

Does it feel like you were competing in WWE?

It's definitely a competition. Backstage is so shark-infested and political. It’s almost comical. A lot of people are more interested in the backstage goings-on than what they see on television. A lot of ways it’s more fascinating. It’s a competition for sure.

If he had control over the booking of his character in WWE

Yeah, eventually. But I was one of the few. And even in that, I could make a recommendation but at the end of the day, it’s Vince’s company and his say.

Pro wrestling is fake:

Exactly. In pro wrestling, it’s fake. People always get offended by that word. ‘No, we like to say it’s pre-determined.’ For whatever reason, people get angry at fake; pre-determined eases the blow? It’s fake. At the end of the day it doesn’t really mean anything. So after a while, it was, ‘Let’s just really fight and see what happens.’ Now I get to.

Thoughts on Brock Lesnar:

I love him. I think he’s awesome This is what we have in common: I’ll tell you how I am. Now don't be surprised when I’m like that. No apologies. No bulls—

Wrestlers making the transition to MMA:

I am, too. I’ve always been surrounded by guys who talked about it. Half of them talk about it; none of them do it. They have their little comfortable safety net doing WWE stuff, I guess. I would much rather give it a shot than just talk about it.

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