Don't count Mickey Gall among the fighters outraged at CM Punk's UFC 203 fight purse.
Gall, the man who beat the debuting Punk by first-round submission, takes no issue that CM Punk made $500,000 in his first foray into mixed martial arts, Gall told Ariel Helwani on Monday's episode of The MMA Hour. Gall himself only made $30,000 -- $15,000 to show and another $15,000 for his win.
"It's cool," Gall said. "He's a superstar. There's a reason why he's there. Without him, I'm not in that spot, either. It's cool. It's all good. I'm not mad at that, no way."
Gall defeated Punk in just 2:14. He took down the former WWE star right at the start of the round, pummeled with punches and eventually sunk in a rear-naked choke, leading to the tap. Punk had a cauliflower ear from getting dominated on the ground.
"It's a badge of honor for him," Gall said. "I have a cauliflower ear, too, and I'm proud of that. I've been banging around for awhile and that's why I got that. He earned that cauliflower ear. He should be proud of that.
Punk, 37, left WWE after a dispute with management in 2014 after a solid run as one of the top draws in the company. He then retired from pro wrestling and signed with the UFC in December 2014 to much controversy. A month later, began training at the famed Roufusport gym in Milwaukee alongside the likes of former UFC champion Anthony Pettis.
Gall, 24, was only signed by the UFC after his first professional fight last year, because UFC president Dana White was in attendance as part of his "Lookin' for a Fight" reality show. Gall called out Punk following his victory, catching White's ear. The UFC put Gall in a fight with fellow MMA novice Mike Jackson in February, with the winner earning a shot at Punk. Gall finished that one by first-round rear-naked choke as well.
Gall (3-0) doesn't think the CM Punk experiment needs to end here. He credits Punk for what he has done in pro wrestling and acknowledges that his own presence in the UFC is because of the man whose real name is Phil Brooks. The New Jersey native would not object to another UFC bout for CM Punk.
"I think a lot of people were interested," Gall said. "It brought a lot of WWE fans to watch, a lot of guys who wouldn't have been watching who like the violent stuff, who like this type of action, it brought them over. I had a lot of people contact me to say, ‘I watched this fight for Punk and I'm an MMA fan now.' I think it worked. I think it was a smart move and I think it worked."