Green Power Ranger Talks Wanting To Fight CM Punk, Almost Having The Fight, Wanting To Work For WWE
"Green Power Ranger" Jason David Frank recently joined the Primo Nutmeg podcast to discuss the possibility of fighting former WWE Champion and current UFC fighter CM Punk. Below are some highlights:
If fans would like to see him fight CM Punk:
"They would love it. If Punk fights again, everybody at the base, everybody that owns UFC wants me to fight him. If he fights again, that's definitely something I would like to do. I got a chance to visit some of the WWE guys backstage at their shows, it's much like the UFC. I'm not talking about the fighting, but the energy everyone puts into the show. One way or another I'd like to get involved with WWE or UFC just to please the fans.
"For me I've been fighting my whole entire life, I could do it tomorrow if I want. It'd just have to make sense why we're doing it. What I mean by makes sense is not financially, because I'd fight CM Punk for a dollar. I would do a Power Ranger movie for nothing, I'm not financially hurt. What I'm say is if it makes sense for my fan base. Do my fans say, 'Yes that's what I'd like to see. Yes, I'd like to see him in Bloodshot. No I don't like that thing he did.' I always like going back to the fans, thinking 'Is this something they want?' That's what I mean about making sense, it's not about money at all.
"CM Punk, for him it makes sense on a financial level but I'm super different from most of these people out there. I don't care about the money, that's why I've said from day one that I'd fight him for a dollar just to make the contract equal. I think that installed so much confidence in me that that scared him. Like 'Why does this guy want to fight me for a dollar? I'm going to get my butt kicked.' That's kind of what happened to be honest."
If there was a particular reason he wants to fight CM Punk:
"Not at all. I thought the fan-base was great. Never thought he'd fight in the UFC. I got a deal a long time ago with me and him, on an NBC show my manager was pushing every – Legacy [Fighting Championship] wanted to fight Punk on Legacy. Nick actually is the match-maker now on UFC. Everybody wanted to see this fight and I picked him because I like the guy. Man he has a huge fan-base and he wants to fight. I didn't want to pick a guy who doesn't want to fight so I said, 'hey he's perfect.' He's 30, I don't care, I'm 43. If he sits there and calls me an old men, well hey, you're getting old too buddy so.
"I never thought he'd be in the UFC because they strive for perfection. There are so many people that try to get into the UFC. Out of like 600 UFC fighters, CM Punk is listed at 170 of the top paid fighters with only one fight. Then you got 3,4,5,600 people that are struggling that are really good fighters that could use or earn the money. So I was just thinking the fan-base would love it, then I talked to them about it and he's like, 'Yeah' and then started saying he's a purple belt in jiu-jitsu and I started believing him and all this stuff started to come out. I don't know if he was just saying that to impress me at the time, or if he never thought this could possibly ever happen with us. It was very possible. I like the guy, I like CM Punk, I'd just like to show the world who is the best in the world and that's why he and me should fight, to see who's the best in the world."
Who he'd like to work with in the WWE:
"I love everybody in there, I work on so many shows with these guys. I've done so many Comic Cons and I've gotta tell you they treated me so great at the Royal Rumble. I've talked to all of em and I think that world is a little different. I don't think it's a challenge thing, I think you're part of the WWE and see where that thing goes from there. But Sheamus took his time out talking to me, The Bella Twins, everybody over there. I saw Creed [Xavier Woods] and a bunch of other people that were over there were really nice to me and they're big fans as well.
"In the UFC I think everyone strives to be in the UFC. To get there with no fights, no fight experience, and [it]made a lot of people upset and I think that's why he got so much hatred from it. If he pulled a great fight off and be worth the money, it'd be great, but it was all hype. And I gotta say I did a lot of that hype for him. It was [supposed to be] me and him, I was calling FOX Sports, Joe Silva the match-maker said it could possibly happen, my manager – Dana White told some of my friends – So I pushed really hard thinking I was gonna get it and I didn't."
Source: Primo Nutmeg Podcast