Two former champions will try to put an end to recent skids when Frank Mir meets Alistair Overeem at UFC 167 in November as part of the promotion’s 20th anniversary show in Las Vegas.
The promotion announced the fight via The Las Vegas Review-Journal on Thursday.
Both Overeem and Mir will enter the fight in November behind the eight ball after recent setbacks in their respective careers.
Following a run in Strikeforce where he won the heavyweight title while also taking on the K-1 Grand Prix championship in kickboxing, Overeem joined the UFC with hopes of battling for the title on day one in the promotion.
He got off to a quick start by battering former heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar and dispatching of him via first-round TKO, but just about everything since that moment has been downhill for the giant Dutchman.
Overeem was scheduled to fight for the UFC heavyweight title a few months after the Lesnar fight, but a pre-fight drug screening done by the Nevada State Athletic Commission revealed he had elevated levels of testosterone in his system. The UFC promptly removed him from the bout and he was denied a fight license and effectively suspended by the commission for nine months.
Upon his return to action, Overeem was then knocked out by fellow former Strikeforce fighter Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva, before facing Travis Browne at UFC Fight Night 26 just a few weeks ago. Overeem came out strong, blasting Browne with heavy punches and knees, but he was unable to finish the fight and it came back to haunt him in a big way.
Browne launched a front kick straight into Overeem’s chin that knocked him to the ground, and a few punches later the fight was over.
Meanwhile, Mir comes into the fight at UFC 167 on a three-fight losing streak of his own. The first of those losses came to former UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos when it was Mir who replaced Overeem after the positive drug test. Mir then dropped a lackluster decision to Daniel Cormier before being flattened by former heavyweight champion Josh Barnett last weekend at UFC 164 in Milwaukee.
It may be do-or-die time for both fighters as another loss would not only send them spiraling further out of the top 10 in the division, but could also put either man dangerously close to the cut line as they approach multiple defeats in a row.
UFC 167 will be headlined by welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre against Johny Hendricks, while Chael Sonnen faces Rashad Evans in the co-main event on the card.
Damon Martin is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report
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