There is starting to be more attention on C.M. Punk’s UFC debut fight scheduled for later this summer.

The main reason is UFC holding a “qualifying fight” for Punk’s potential debut opponent, Mickey Gall, this weekend. Two other reasons are the bizarre nature of Gall’s opponent and a new C.M. Punk interview that was more newsworthy for what was unwilling to discuss.

– The first part is that Gall faces Michael (Mike) Jackson in a preliminary fight at UFC Fight Night on Saturday night.

If Gall wins, he advances to face Punk in the summer.

If Gall loses to Jackson, well, that’s where things get bizarre.

– The second part of this situation is that Mike Jackson is not even a pro fighter. Jackson has some amateur and boxing fighting background, but he is a photographer, broadcaster, and college student who just finished his degree at the University of Houston.

So, he thought it was a joke when UFC contacted him to fight Mickey Gall with the idea being a chance to fight Punk. But, the way UFC is marketing the fight is that only Gall will get to face Punk if he wins. So, Jackson is more interested in using this fight to promote his regular line of work in MMA.

“I understand the outcome could be I get ‘Punk,’ and I’m well aware of that,” he told MMAjunkie. “That’s the ultimate goal, because that will take the ‘Mike the Truth’ brand to another level.”

But, if Jackson beats Gall and gets to fight Punk, he would more than welcome the chance to face Punk.

“You have CM Punk, who has no MMA experience, fighting. You got this kid Mickey Gall, who literally wins one fight — he’s fighting in some small town in Jersey that Dana White happened to be at and was like, ‘I want to fight C.M. Punk.’ And he gets signed by the UFC. And then you got me. All my experience is in boxing and kickboxing. Now I’m in the UFC. It’s like, ‘What the f— is going on here?’” he was quoted by MMAFighting.com.

– Enter C.M. Punk for the third part of this situation. Complex.com published an interview with Punk tapping into his anti-social, leave-me-alone attitude.

Punk simply wants to train, prepare for his debut fight, and have the fight, not talk to people asking the same questions about whether he can actually hang in the octagon or if this is some sort of publicity stunt.

And, Punk does not want to talk about his former line of work through WWE. “I don’t feel like fielding questions about it [WWE],” Punk told reporter Kevin Wong at a recent media event with the New Jersey Devils. “I’ve been there, I’ve done that, and I’ve accomplished everything I was going to.”

Punk offered a final shot at UFC critics, which will grow in number as the date draws closer to Punk’s debut fight. It’s the opposite of the pro wrestling world, where people still chant his name at WWE shows and won’t leave him alone in Chicago, as documented by the Complex.com report.

“I don’t give a s— what anybody thinks of me, whether I’m going to fight or not. I know what I’m going to do,” Punk said. “If I did anything in my life based on someone’s negative opinion on me, I would never f—— leave my house. My fans are people who don’t tweet negative s— at me.”

Things will get even more interesting if Gall wins his fight on Saturday, setting the stage for Punk’s UFC debut. The noise will grow even louder, forcing Punk to deal with it or be rattled before he even steps into the cage.

[ READ MORE: Live coverage of this weekend’s UFC fight card at our sister site, MMATorch.com ]

WWE issued a press release Tuesday officially announcing Snickers as the presenting sponsor and brand partner for WrestleMania 32.

In the press release, WWE stressed WrestleMania as a “pop culture extravaganza” that caps off WrestleMania Weekend.

Snickers will have an advertising presence at WM32, the four-day WrestleMania Axxess, live events on the Road to WrestleMania, and upcoming Raw and Smackdown episodes as part of the sponsorship agreement.

WWE and Snickers are also starting a marketing campaign called “Hungry for Mania” that will include a sweepstakes for WM32. WWE stars Roman Reigns, Paige, The Miz, and Dolph Ziggler will also be featured in “digital and social content” promoting the ad campaign.

“With their larger-than-life personalities, WWE Superstars and Divas are perfect for showcasing the various dramatic effects of hunger, so we’re thrilled to partner with WWE on WrestleMania 32,” said Allison Miazga-Bedrick, director of the Snickers brand. “Hopefully millions of fans will follow their lead and share who they become when they’re hungry to enter the ‘Hungry for Mania’ promotion.”

“We are excited to partner with a brand like Snickers for WWE’s biggest event of the year,” said John Brody, WWE’s EVP for Global Sales & Partnerships. “A pop-culture event enjoyed by fans around the world, WrestleMania will provide Snickers with a tremendous platform to bring their award-winning ‘You’re Not You When You’re Hungry’ campaign to life in an entertaining way only WWE Superstars and Divas can.”

Snickers is a brand of Mars, Inc., which has been a sponsor of WWE programming for decades.

The first video spot for the ad campaign features Paige acting like a “princess” when she’s “not herself” when she’s hungry.

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One of Jim Ross’s new announcing gigs has been put on hold.

The “Knockout Night at the D” boxing card scheduled for Saturday night has been canceled. The decision was made Friday after conversations between the promoter and Nevada State Athletic Commission on Thursday.

“Last night, I received multiple calls from the Nevada Athletic Commission regarding eligibility concerns. After our discussions, it became apparent the fight card could not move forward,” said D Las Vegas CEO Derek Stevens in a statement.

“Although I’m disappointed with the situation, I appreciate the phone calls and look forward to working with the Nevada Athletic Commission on future boxing events at the DLVEC.”

The fight card was scheduled to air Saturday night on CBS Sports Network, with Ross calling the action along with Al Bernstein.

The D in Las Vegas was planning to use Saturday’s event to launch a series of monthly fight cards in Las Vegas.

The next scheduled events are April 16, May 13, and June 10. Ironically, in a press release on February 23, the promoters noted the upcoming dates are “subject to normal Nevada Commission approval.”

Apparently the NSAC has cancelled our @theDlasvegas Knockout Night at the D. Bummer. Waiting to find out why. @DerekJStevens @CBSSportsNet

— Jim Ross (@JRsBBQ) March 11, 2016

Knockout Night at the D Saturday nite on @CBSSportsNet has been cancelled by Nevada State Athletic Commission. @theDlasvegas

— Jim Ross (@JRsBBQ) March 11, 2016

When Shane McMahon is not playing a “real-life superhero” fighting The Undertaker at WrestleMania, his day job is Vice Chairman for the “YOU On Demand” company that delivers Hollywood movies to China.

The company reported fourth quarter 2015 earnings results on Wednesday and held their quarterly conference call, which McMahon was part of.

There was an investor question about whether Shane’s return to WWE will affect his standing with YOD, the company that he founded.

“First off, YOU On Demand is my baby and the company couldn’t be in better hands in this with (chairman) Bruno (Wu) and the team that we’re assembling now,” McMahon said. “As Bruno mentioned, it’s three, maybe even four years ago we tried to do a deal together, it didn’t come to fruition, but sometimes things are just about timing and this is the right time. So the timing was correct what you’re now seeing, as the company, YOU On Demand is going to have a complete metamorphosis as Bruno went through very diligently and much laid out the plans of what’s happening. So we couldn’t be more excited about with the direction of the company.”

Shane added: “If you’re referring to my involvement with WWE, again that’s full support of the YOU On Demand Board and I have capacity to do both.”

Earlier in the conference call, McMahon reinforced his commitment to the YOD company in his opening remarks.

“I want to take this opportunity to reiterate my unrelenting passion for YOU On Demand, a company that I founded, and my intention to continue assisting this experience and capable team and pushing the boundaries and scope of the original anytime and anywhere video distribution vision, something that Bruno will speak about momentarily,” McMahon said.

[ Full Transcript at SeekingAlpha.com ]