Video: Daniel Cormier and Kenny Florian discuss delays in CM Punk's UFC debut

The UFC announced that they signed former WWE superstar Phil “CM Punk” Brooks to fight in the octagon during UFC 181 on Dec. 6, 2014. More than a year later, Brooks still has not set foot in the cage for a professional bout.

Brooks is now 37 years old and, despite initial talk that he would fight in 2015, an injury setback in October had trainer Duke Roufus talking about a spring 2016 debut. Still, there has been very little talk of a fight coming together.

Current light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier and former title challenger Kenny Florian spoke about Brooks’ debut and current situation during a recent FOX Sports 1 segment.

“As time is passing, it starts to lose some of the intrigue,” Cormier said. “I think the iron was hot when he first walked out on the WWE and that’s when he would have made the biggest impression on the MMA community because WWE fans would have followed him to MMA.”

Florian’s concerns run deeper than the promotional side, suggesting that the delays are indicative of larger concerns with Brooks’ readiness to come anywhere near a UFC-caliber opponent.

In fact, UFC President Dana White recently said that he was using his streaming reality show “Looking for a Fight” to find Brooks’ first opponent, rather than a current roster member.

“This is what really concerns me because they said he was going to fight in 2015,” Florian said. “That he needs some time to train. Well, that hasn’t happened. I know he has dealt with some other injuries and things like that. But the fact that they say that he’s not ready concerns me. It shows that, listen, you don’t just jump into this sport and say you’re going to compete. It takes time and there’s a process. There’s a reason why they’re telling him to take his time. I think his training isn’t coming along as fast as they thought and it’s unfortunate.”

For more on the UFC’s upcoming schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.