Demetrious Johnson admits seeing CM Punk’s UFC earnings left a bad taste in his mouth: “A big spit in the face of all the champions”

Demetrious Johnson has admitted that he didn’t like seeing how much CM Punk got paid during his UFC career.

As many fans know, professional wrestling star CM Punk gave mixed martial arts a try many years ago. He competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, losing in both of his outings.

While some were quick to respect him for stepping in the cage, others criticized him receiving such high profile opportunities. In particular, a lot of his haters didn’t like how much he was being paid.

RELATED: WWE star CM Punk reflects on failed UFC career: “I would be kicking myself to this day if I said no”

Now, Demetrious Johnson has given his thoughts on that particular subject.

DJ reacts to Punk’s payday

“A big spit in the face of all the champions,” Johnson said of Punk’s pay. “At the end of the day, it’s more of a popularity contest that gets you the money in mixed martial arts than actual skill.

“A gentleman who is 0-1 in mixed martial arts, making $500,000 [per fight],” he continued. “Obviously, he made that money because of his wrestling history. I’m not gonna lie to you guys, this put a chip on my shoulder, and a bad taste in my mouth because I was doing mixed martial arts my whole entire life and the most I ever made in the UFC was like $380,000 plus $40,000. It’s all public record.”

“These guys belong in the amateur league,” Johnson said while rewatching Punk vs. Mike Jackson. “They haven’t honed their skills enough yet in mixed martial arts to be on a platform like this. Every once in a while, you have these fights where you give people an opportunity to do something, and this is what you get. This belongs in an amateur-level fight [league].

“But I bet CM Punk beats him in WWE wrestling,” he concluded.

Quotes via MMA Mania

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