Frank Mir hits the comeback trail at UFC 119, when he’ll lock horns with the ever-popular Mirko ‘Cro Cop’. It will be the former champion’s first fight since being demolished in less than a round by Shane Carwin in March.
Mir had been scheduled to face Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, but Cro Cop stepped in when the Brazilian pulled out with a knee complaint.
Though contemporary Mir is far more dedicated than his pre-2007 self, who like BJ Penn, coasted on raw talent, recent comments suggest the opponent change might have sapped his enthusiasm.
In 2008, Mir became the first fighter to stop the legendary ‘Minotauro’ Nogueira. It was undoubtedly a career pinnacle, but the victory was later tarnished when Nogueira told of being hospitalised with Staph infection for five days in the lead up. A knee injury, according to Nogueira, had also severely hampered his training.
“Fans don’t want to hear warriors complaining that they almost died of Staph infection or anything else,” Mir responded, miffed at what he considered excuse-making. “It’s sad and pathetic.”
Despite the rearguard, Mir knows that an asterisk has been affixed to his most prestigious triumph. Thus, motivation was in-built to a Nogueira rematch.
Not so the Brazilian’s replacement. Cro-cop remains a colossal name, popularity-wise, but he is much diminished from his pomp – a poster child for the crop of stars who joined the UFC from the ashes of rival Japanese promotion Pride in 2007, and largely underwhelmed.
Though he’s gone 6-3 in that time, Cro-cop hasn’t beaten a top 10 heavyweight since his 2006 scrap against Josh Barnett. Back then, with unrivalled KO power, he was arguably the most feared heavyweight in the world.
It’s a while since Cro-cop featured on anyone’s Top 10. Sherdog has Mir currently ranked seventh, and doesn’t even mention Cro-cop in their top 15. It’s not clear whether a win would steer Mir back towards title contention.
Cro-cop, even the 2010 vintage, is always one leg-kick away from sending an opponent to the hospital.
Cro-cop has also irked Mir by telling the press that, fighting on five weeks notice, he will definitely not be 100 per cent. In response, Mir said, “I’ve gone to Disneyland, taken time off, and continued to not train as hard as I should. That way, I won’t be 100 per cent either.”
Mir fans will hope the BJJ blackbelt was in joking mood, but considering a time existed when he did lack motivation, such talk raises eyebrows.
It also remains to be seen what tolls – mentally and physically – the beatings Mir absorbed in recent losses to Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin have taken. For such a cerebral fighter, his inability to neutralise brute strength with skill, plainly haunts Mir.
After his loss to Lesnar, he took time to pack on 25-30 pounds of additional muscle in what he felt was a solution to the problem. It didn’t work, and Carwin steamrolled Mir just as easily as Lesnar before him.
In the aftermath, Mir completely U-Turned on his ‘extra muscle’ philosophy, and even talked of moving down to light-heavyweight. With such schizophrenic rationales clashing in Mir’s mind, it’s apt to wonder if he’s feeling a little bewildered about how to compete with the division’s juggernauts.
On paper, at this stage in their respective careers, Mir should beat Cro-cop. He is among the greatest ever submission artists in the heavyweight division, and in his last two wins he has dropped both ‘Minotauro’ Nogueira and Cheik Kongo with a vastly improved striking arsenal.
But Cro-cop, even the 2010 vintage, is always one leg-kick away from sending an opponent to the hospital. A jaded or self-doubting Mir could well provide Cro-cop such fodder.
Alan Murphy
