THE WAIT FOR Phil ‘CM Punk’ Brooks’ UFC debut is going to go on for a little bit longer.

The former WWE champion is due to have surgery on a herniated disc in his back today in Chicago, MMAFighting.com reports.

The injury stems from his time as a professional wrestler and the 37-year-old’s recovery is expected to take four-to-six weeks, so he’s still hopeful of finally competing in the UFC in 2016.

Last weekend, Brooks discovered that his first opponent will be 24-year-old Mickey Gall (2-0), who submitted Mike Jackson to set up a bout that was rumoured to be scheduled to take place at UFC 199 on 18 June.

Brooks, who has been training under Duke Roufus in Milwaukee alongside the likes of Anthony Pettis and Ben Aksren, signed with the UFC in December 2014, despite never having competed in MMA before.

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