At UFC 225 on June 9 in Chicago, CM Punk will be making his second appearance inside the Octagon in his hometown when he takes on Mike "The Truth" Jackson.

Punk, real name Phil Brooks, is never void of criticism, and one of the issues fans have with upcoming fight is the positioning on the main card. His response to those critics is where we begin our look at some of the biggest UFC headlines making the rounds for Tuesday, May 15. 

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CM Punk would take a slot on UFC Fight Pass

Punk is getting set to take on Jackson in just a few weeks in Chicago, and from the looks of it thus far, that showdown will be the first to take place on the main card. With Punk proving he might not be ready for the big stage of UFC -- considering his quick submission loss to Mickey Gall back at UFC 203 in his debut and Jackson coming in with an 0-1 record in the promotion -- it's logical to believe a showcase spot on the card is unwarranted. 

But to a point, UFC is in the business of show business, and Punk's second fight taking place in the city he calls home was enough for officials to award he and Jackson the slot. In responding to the criticism on Twitter, though, Punk revealed that he understands where those fans are coming from. If it were his decision, he says he would take a bout on the preliminary card shown on the UFC Fight Pass streaming service if necessary. 

With the wealth of talent the UFC has under contract, yes, it's understandable to be upset over Punk's positioning on a big main card while not having proven himself to be a viable threat in mixed martial arts. Again, though, Punk's name and his venture into the MMA world still holds weight over three years after he made the official announcement, so it's a logical move to the promotion to make to sell tickets. 

UFC 225 takes place on June 9 at the United Center with Robert Whittaker putting his middleweight championship on the line in the main event against challenger Yoel Romero. 

More UFC news, rumors

  • The weight issues for Mackenzie Dern at UFC 224 in Brazil were a little more serious than we originally perceived them to be. Dern, who quickly submitted Amanda Cooper in the first round, revealed to Ariel Helwani on "The MMA Hour" on Monday that she showed up to Brazil at 139.5 pounds five days before the event -- obviously nowhere close to the strawweight limit of 115 pounds. Dern detailed how she was spending hours in the sauna in an attempt to drop the weight, and at one point, even started tripping out due to the damage the attempted cut was putting on her body. She was nearly pulled from the event over the issues, but ultimately the fight was agreed on after Dern officially weighed in at seven pounds over the limit which caused her to forfeit 30 percent of her purse. 
  • Raquel Pennington's head coach defended himself following the backlash he's received for sending his fighter back in for the final round of the UFC 224 main event after she asked to have the bout halted. Jason Kutz told MMA Junkie that, in his mind, it was more of a mental strategy in trying to get the battered and bruised Pennington believing she could pull off the miraculous win in the last round against bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes. As we know, that strategy failed, with Nunes earning the TKO win to retain her title after the controversy took place. 
  • UFC legend and former light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell officially announced his intentions to return to fighting, and in the process, got everyone stirred up by stating he eventually wants a matchup with Jon "Bones" Jones. Well, never one to shy away from being called out, Jones took to Twitter to fire off some entertaining responses.