WWE/UFC News: Jinder Mahal to make a special appearance at next UFC PPV
Arjan Bhullar and Jinder Mahal.
What’s the story?
Current WWE Champion Jinder Mahal, who is due to face The King of Strong Style Shinsuke Nakamura for the title at Summerslam next weekend, will be making an appearance at UFC 215 to accompany Arjan Bhullar to the Octagon.
In case you didn’t know…
Arjan Bhullar is the first ever fighter of Indian origin to sign with UFC after it was announced in May of this year that he would be signing with the company.
Jinder Mahal is the first ever WWE champion of Indian origin after capturing the title from Randy Orton at Backlash back in May.
The heart of the matter
Arjan Bhullar took to his Instagram account yesterday to announce that the modern day Maharaja Jinder Mahal would be accompanying him to the Octagon at UFC 215.
The event is being held in Canada where Jinder was recently cheered on Smackdown Live which was held in Toronto having been born in Canada.
What’s next?
Arjan Bhullar will take on Luis Henrique in his UFC debut on September 9th and will hope to continue what is an exciting time for Indian fans of MMA and sports entertainment following Jinder Mahal's ascent to the top of WWE.
Jinder Mahal will have to defeat the tough challenge of Shinsuke Nakamura at Summerslam if he wants to accompany Bhullar to the Octagon as the WWE champion.
Author’s take
Jinder Mahal became WWE champion at about the same time Bhullar signed with UFC, a landmark moment for Indian athletes in the world of sports entertainment, so it's quite fitting that they should come together like this at UFC 2015.
It's a great opportunity for Jinder to get some exposure to a new audience and become a bigger star, the jury is still out on his WWE title run, but the more exposure he gets can only be good for both him and the WWE and I would expect him to accompany Bhullar to the Octagon still WWE Champion following Summerslam.