Ranking CM Punk and Other Pro Wrestlers Who Have Attempted MMA Careers

When long-time pro wrestling superstar CM Punk steps into the UFC cage for the second time on Saturday, he'll be capitalizing on a few longstanding traditions.

First, there are no tryouts in the UFC. If you (a) make business sense and (b) don't mind catching a beating, throw on the gloves and proceed directly toward that octagonal cage-looking thing. Punk didn't invent and won't destroy this phenomenon at UFC 225 when he faces photographer and opportunist Mike Jackson.

Celebrities outside of pro wrestling have given MMA a whirl, but the squared circle is the incubator of choice for crossover stars. In the article, we rank the 10 most successful stars to do it. Even better, there is video footage for each one.

MMA's decidedly nonlinear history has deep roots in pro wrestling, particularly the Japanese traditions, in which athletes regularly jumped between real and scripted competition throughout their careers.

One key ground rule for this list: With apologies to Josh Barnett, Ken Shamrock, Shinsuke Nakamura, Ikuhisa Minowa, Alberto Del Rio and others, we're not counting transitions from MMA to wrestling. Ditto for those who started competing at each at around the same time. This list only goes one way. Think of it like this: these are pro wrestlers who built their name in wrestling and then parlayed that name into a shot in MMA.

Make sense? I don't want the superfans to call me names and publish my address. Specific criteria are MMA record, pro wrestling success, celebrity status (because this is show business, after all), overall performance, longevity and level of competition. Ring the bell.

Honorable Mentions

These are the pro wrestlers, listed in no particular order, who switched over to MMA careers but didn't quite make the big cut, listed with MMA records.

Come for the list, stay for the video of Bam Bam Bigelow fighting Kimo Leopoldo. It is my gift to you and it is free of charge.

• Scott Bigelow "Bam Bam Bigelow" (0-1)
• Sean Haire "Sean O'Haire" (4-2)
• Sylvester Terkay "The Predator" (3-1)
• Tadao Yasuda (2-4)
• Steve Williams "Dr. Death" (0-1)
• Schuyler Andrews "Scorpio Sky" (2-1)
• David Tyler Cash "Kid Kash" (0-1)
• Rodney Begnaud "Rodney Mack" (1-1)
• Takashi Sugiura (1-3)
• Nick Mitchell "Mitch from Spirit Squad" (0-1)
• Aaron Aguilera "Uno" "Jesus" (0-1)
• Minoru Suzuki (30-19) Note: he only wrestled twice before embarking on a nine-year MMA career, so we're considering him an MMA fighter first
• Antonio Inoki (no actual MMA career but just a tiny bit influential in this space)

10. Tony Halme, aka Ludvig Borga

Years in pro wrestling: 1990-1997
MMA debut: 1995
MMA record: 0-4

From a performance standpoint, Tony Halme is at the bottom of the barrel. Nevertheless, his personal story might be the most intriguing in this field.

His MMA record gives him the worst winning percentage—you know, zero—among converts with that number of pro fights. 

Despite his futility, Halme's fairly high pro wrestling profile made him MMA-viable for a hot second. He helped usher the RINGS promotion from work to shoot and in 1997 filled out the field of the UFC 13 tournament. He tapped to Randy Couture in 56 seconds (see footage).

Halme has a checkered legacy. He was the first Finnish fighter to compete in the UFC and served in Finland's parliament. Regrettably, Halme died in 2010 at age 47, continuing a sad and well-known pattern of untimely pro wrestling deaths. 

His demons were apparently well-known, if not well-liked, among his wrestling contemporaries. Iconic WWE commentator Jim Ross, not exactly known as a font of antagonism, reportedly noted on his blog after Halme's death that Halme "had issues and was not a great guy to be around" (h/t Brad Davis of SEScoops).

I won't pretend to have special insights or opinions on Halme's personal life. All I know is someone's going to have to string together something pretty special to wrench this spot away from him.

9. Phillip Brooks, aka CM Punk

Years in pro wrestling: 1999-2014
MMA debut: 2016
MMA record: 0-1

Jackson, Punk's aforementioned opponent Saturday, fought in his own MMA debut just 16 months ago. Mickey Gall submitted him in 45 seconds.

That was for the right to face Punk. Gall went on to submit Punk in 134 seconds. 

Jackson isn't pretending to be anything other than a serious semi-hobbyist who caught a lucky break. That sets him apart from Punk, who appears unwilling or unable to admit he's in a fantasy camp. Even the moistest of MMA noobs could see how clunky and outgunned he was against Gall.

Unlike many others, I don't hate Punk, nor do I doubt his desire to win. All the best to him. But if he looks as bad Saturday as he did against Gall—and against much lower competition at that—it's hard to know how much longer he can trade on his name alone. 

8. Dave Bautista, aka 'Batista'

Years in pro wrestling: 2000-2010, 2013-2014
MMA debut: 2012
MMA record: 1-0

His lone MMA fight was a victory. That's really the only thing separating Dave Bautista from Punk.

Everyone loves Drax the Destroyer, a fact that buries Bautista's MMA and championship-level WWE careers in an avalanche of flash bulbs and cash. Maybe he wishes the latter was more remembered. Not the case with the former.

Despite escaping his first and only bout with a W, the effort was sloppy and sloggy. His ground-and-pound TKO came over Vince Lucero, a doughy heavyweight who retired two fights later with a final record of 22-25-1.

Bautista has earned the success he's garnered in life, having clawed his way up from the harrowing streets of Washington, D.C., but his dalliance with MMA is not the brightest plume in his cap.

7. Mike Polchlopek aka 'Bart Gunn'

Years in pro wrestling: 1991-2004
MMA debut: 2006
MMA record: 1-1

If you didn't love The Smoking Gunns, I'm sorry but one of us has to leave the treehouse.

I don't know how well they're regarded among serious wrestling fans, but when the mulleted Bart Gunn and brother Billy (no actual relation) rode into town and snatched up the then-WWF tag team title, I was all aboard the chuck wagon.

The Smoking Gunns were a fixture on the tag team scene throughout the mid-90s, tangling with some of the company's top tandems.

But it wasn't enough for Mike Polchlopek, the man behind the Bart Gunn magic. He took a foray into MMA. It didn't last long, but it didn't go too badly, either.

In his debut, he defeated Wesley "Cabbage" Correira, the UFC veteran with some notable victories and a famously durable noggin.

His second and final fight came in the venerated Pride promotion. He dropped a decision to Ikuhisa Minowa, the Japanese legend who has done plenty of pro wrestling over his own career (he took it up after many years in MMA).

You could do a lot better than a 1-1 MMA record against stiff competition, not to mention one heck of a head of hair.

6. Paulo Cesar da Silva, aka Giant Silva

Years in pro wrestling: 1998-2009
MMA debut: 2003
MMA record: 2-6

If you start a discussion on the most cringeworthy submission moves in MMA history, it's only a matter of time before Giant Silva's kimura comes up.

It's easy to brush him off as mere novelty, but the data show Silva made a serious run at this. Seventy-one of his 104 pro wrestling matches occurred before his MMA debut. Then they tapered off, presumably so he could focus on fighting.

Silva wasn't exactly a runaway success as an MMA fighter. His 7'2", nearly 400-pound frame was as much a liability as an asset. He wasn't a very good fighter, simple as that.

His two wins came against two notoriously awful competitors in Henry "Sentoryu" Miller and Akebono Taro. Each one was finished with a kimura so effortlessly fearsome it burned itself in MMA fans' memories. 

5. Kazuyuki Fujita, aka 'Ol' Ironhead'

Years in pro wrestling: 1996-2012
MMA debut: 2000
MMA record: 16-14

Kazuyuki Fujita holds a special place in many a combat sports fan's heart.

We mentioned before the heavy-headedness of "Cabbage" Correira. Fujita might be even better, having taken the full brunt of Pride-era legends like Mirko Cro Cop (twice), Wanderlei Silva, Gilbert Yvel, Mark Coleman and a host of others.

He didn't always win—in fact, he frequently didn't. And it frequently wasn't pretty watching the paunchy heavyweight lurch around the cage eating haymakers and flailing for his life.

Ironhead was a beloved character, though, and any longtime MMA fan will fondly remember his name. They might even forget Fujita's pro wrestling career predated his fight career by several years.

4. Bobby Lashley

Years in pro wrestling: 2004-Present
MMA debut: 2008
MMA record: 15-2

Bobby Lashley is as charismatic as any person on this list. Well, except one, but we'll get to him.

As his record indicates, Lashley enjoyed a successful run in MMA, even if many of his victories were grinding affairs that didn't carry the flash promised by his marble-cut physique. 

That's the same physique that helped him hit the pro wresting big time, but WWE gold has been elusive thus far. He returned to the company earlier this year, so maybe he'll have new chances.

As for MMA, that would appear to be on hold. Lashley went five-for-five crushing cans in Bellator. A move back to pro wrestling scuttled any momentum that might have existed, especially with indications WWE brass aren't going to allow any MMA dalliances on their watch.

3. Masakatsu Funaki

Years in pro wrestling: 1986-1991, 2011-2014
MMA debut: 1993
MMA record: 39-13-2

It's impossible to overstate Masakatsu Funaki's inflluence on both lines of work.

Funaki was a two-time King of Pancrase—the organization he co-founded, which is akin to saying you co-founded MMA. Casual fans may not know him because he never appeared in WWE or the UFC, and his prime ended well before the surge in stateside MMA popularity.

Look at his list of opponents sometime. It's a who's who of MMA's pioneer days.

His impact is such that MMA and wrestling fans need not know his name to feel his influence. Whether you know it or not, you are standing in a world he helped create.

2. Brock Lesnar

Years in pro wrestling: 2000-2007, 2012-Present
MMA debut: 2007
MMA record: 5-3 (1)

Say what you will about Brock Lesnar, but it's hard to think of a more decorated athlete in the history of combat sports. All he needs is the WBA heavyweight belt and a Glory title and he's all set.

After his national wrestling championship at the University of Minnesota, Lesnar proceeded to WWE and quickly became a titan of the sport. Lengthy title reigns and storylines with the most elite superstars made him pro wrestling royalty.

None of it scratched the competitive itch, so Lesnar moved to the UFC. Execs greeted him there by losing their minds with excitement because a license to print money had just signed up to work with them.

Lesnar had a fast track to the title but defeated some of the division's better fighters on the way. A win over a 44-year-old Randy Couture won him the strap, which he defended twice before losing it to Cain Velasquez.

Things petered out from there, with an MMA retirement and an eventual return to WWE. Lesnar returned to the octagon for a 2016 encore at UFC 200. He defeated Mark Hunt in that match, but the result was overturned when Lesnar failed a drug test.

Questions and promises of a Lesnar return continue to circulate, but if he did return it would likely be another one-off. In the meantime, he has a pretty sweet gig in his second run with the WWE, where he is the Universal champion—the highest belt you can have.

1. Kazushi Sakuraba, aka 'The Gracie Hunter'

Years in pro wrestling: 1993-2016
MMA debut: 1996
MMA record: 26-17-1 (2)

Remember the other charismatic fighter on this list? Here is.

And forget this list while you're at it. There are plenty of others that would be honored to end with Kazushi Sakuraba.

His unorthodox but effective catch wrestling style was appealing to watch and made for realistic pro wrestling action. The absence of flash made it flashy, in a way. The fans ate it with a spoon. 

It was all scripted, but the skill set was very real and based on years of serious study. MMA was inevitable.

People might assume he started in Pride, but after losing to Kimo Leopoldo of all people in his debut, his next two bouts happened under the UFC banner. He subsequently went to Pride and went on the run that earned him his nickname, besting four Gracies over a seven-fight stretch, including that iconic kimura submission of Renzo Gracie.

He's 48 years old now. His days of serious competition were over years ago. But his list of accomplishments in MMA and pro wrestling shine as brightly as ever. It would take too long to review them here.

If you want a little education, or if you ever need a pick-me-up, do yourself a favor and give them a look sometime. The career highlights here are a good place to start.

All MMA records courtesy of Sherdog. Pro wrestling record information courtesy of the Internet Wrestling Database.