Since the UFC signed former WWE champion, CM Punk, back in December, many have wondered about his credentials as a fighter, let alone as an elite athlete of the sport.
Some people didn't think he has what it takes to follow the footsteps of a Brock Lesnar or even a Bobby Lashley, others questioned the UFC's decision straight out.
For them, Punk will be like a mere peasant being locked in a coliseum to slay a massive dragon.
While many still cast doubt on the methodology behind this apparent madness of Phillip Brooks, CM Punk's real name, one of the many persons who truly believes in him is Paul Heyman.
Heyman has been friends with Punk for a fairly long time now. They've worked together inside the ring, and hung out outside of it.
It's probably safe to say that the famous wrestling manager has a good grasp of what's going on inside the head of CM Punk.
"He's a really driven individual and he's uncompromising," Heyman shared about Punk on the SI Media podcast. "So he's uncompromising in his own beliefs and he's uncompromising in his own values and he's uncompromising in pursuing his own desires."
He continued: "I've said this before, it gets quoted back to me all the time, experience is the greatest inhibitor of creativity that you'll ever meet in your life."
Paul Heyman has always been known to deliver jaw-dropping promos inside the squared circle. He's articulated sublime one-liners as a way of selling upcoming pay-per-events and/or rivalries.
But this time, though it may seem he's still in character, Heyman breaks kayfabe and shares his belief in CM Punk.
"If you show me someone who's afraid of failure, I'll show you someone who is not a groundbreaking, innovative, pioneer of a certain industry," he said. "How many different ways could you have explained to Bill Gates why not to go in the direction he went in his life?"
Heyman followed: "They just released a movie on Steve Jobs. This guy broke every rule in the book, every convention and he was unrestrained in his pursuit of what everyone thought was crazy; same with Vincent Kennedy McMahon."
Regardless of what everyone thinks, Heyman knows that these doubts are the absolute way to push Punk toward the challenge of actually fighting inside the world-famous UFC octagon.
"Phillip Brooks does not have that background," Heyman referred to Brock Lesnar's NCAA Division I wrestling credentials. "It makes it all the more improbable, which is exactly why he's so driven to do it."
He concluded: "Because he looks in the mirror and he sees not only a rebel and an uncompromising spokesman for the beliefs that are near and dear to him, but he sees someone that will defy conventional wisdom and pull off miracles if that's what it takes because he has one shot in life and he wants to do something quite special with it."
Contrary to what others see, Punk seems to have already won his first fight, as he has bravely grabbed the opportunity and valiantly trekked the path that intimidates any simpleton.
This journey to the UFC is not just about CM Punk winning his first ever MMA match, nor is it about proving his worth; it's about testing the human limitations while staring a dragon straight down the eyes.