WWE News: MMA Star Discusses Goldberg Vs. Brock Lesnar, CM Punk, And Conor McGregor WWE Run

In the latest WWE news, current mixed martial arts star Chael Sonnen was former WWE commentator Jim Ross’s guest on his recent podcast episode. Sonnen, who formerly appeared in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) organization, touched on a number of WWE- and MMA-related topics on the podcast. Sonnen’s topics included the recent Goldberg vs. Brock Lesnar match’s finish, CM Punk’s work in UFC, and the possibility of a Conor McGregor role with WWE in the future.

According to Ringside News, Sonnen was on The Ross Report podcast just recently and immediately discussed the big Survivor Series match involving Goldberg’s return to the ring against Brock Lesnar. Sonnen indicated that this was a great thing for professional wrestling, due to the hype for the match making it seem like a one-last-time appearance by Bill Goldberg. He said it really helped add to the surprising result when Goldberg quickly defeated Brock, as everyone was expecting Lesnar to win this match against the guy who beat him 12 years ago.

Over a week ago, Ross gave comments on Goldberg vs. Lesnar via his podcast. He noted that he had no problem with the finish. Ross said while some fans felt cheated by the result, the match before it lasted nearly 50 minutes and could’ve been considered the main event. He also indicated that sometimes having the favorite lose very quickly “lessens the blow” and adds a “fluke element.”

In addition to discussing Lesnar’s latest PPV match with WWE, Sonnen touched upon the notion of Brock possibly returning to UFC for another fight. Ringside News summed up what the Bellator fighter had to say.

“Sonnen says Brock Lesnar can definitely have another fight in UFC after his suspension ends, but personally, Sonnen doesn’t think Lesnar will be interested in returning to UFC again. He says Lesnar does not need the money or the success because he already has lots of both, and he will be a UFC Hall of Famer one day.”

Attention was also given to two current UFC fighters, one of whom was with WWE and left to join UFC, and the other who continues to get mentioned in rumors to move from UFC to WWE one day. Sonnen talked about fighters CM Punk and Conor McGregor.

Sonnen said he has “tremendous respect for former WWE star CM Punk” in terms of his story and attempt to try MMA. He also described Punk as “upfront and humble” and mentioned that he thinks that Punk will have at least one more fight in him and that UFC head honcho Dana White is likely to agree to it. There was no mention made about Punk wanting to return to WWE, which seems in line with what Punk himself and most reports are saying.

As far as Conor McGregor goes, Sonnen didn’t give too much time to discussing the current MMA star, but said he feels Conor is “eager to lay the groundwork for a possible role in WWE.” It was also mentioned that the recent Madison Square Garden pay-per-view fight involving McGregor brought the Irish fighting star a total of $10 million, with $5.5 million paid by UFC, and then the rest via bonuses or PPV buys. One would have to think he’d enjoy a pretty nice payday from WWE should they manage to sign him to a deal.

When it comes to his own possibility of appearing in WWE, Sonnen was less enthusiastic about his chances. While he said he could probably get a few people into the seats through his talking, Sonnen discussed the fact that he’s not as young anymore as being a reason he probably won’t be participating in the pro wrestling organization anytime soon.

WWE fans will be more fired up over a match involving Ronda Rousey or Conor McGregor, as Sonnen hasn’t exactly been a UFC star that many wrestling fans may have heard of. Both McGregor and Rousey have had a lot more publicity involving the WWE, whether it came through a WrestleMania guest appearance or brash trash-talking towards the superstars. That said, if CM Punk can make an attempt at UFC, there’s no reason an experienced fighter like Sonnen couldn’t give WWE a shot. With the right training, he could certainly work his way into the action.

The more interesting comments came from Sonnen with regard to McGregor, though. Is it possible that the Irish fighter already has his sights set on the WWE in the near term, or is he still focused on the bigger picture with UFC, while eyeing a pro wrestling run farther down the road?

[Featured Image by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images]