Many fans believe Daniel Cormier is a UFC-level talent right now. We will have the chance to gauge his ranking amongst the top heavyweights in the world, as Cormier is now set to face former UFC champion Frank Mir.
Although Mir will surely be the underdog once the betting lines open, he revealed to MMAFighting.com that he had no qualms about facing the former Olympian.
“I was asked and I was like, ‘Sure,’” said Mir.
Mir found himself in quite a conundrum after dropping a title bout against Junior dos Santos. Many of the top guys in the division were already booked, and a fight against a lower-ranked opponent wouldn’t do much for his career.
Cormier found himself in a pickle as well following his dominant showing against Josh Barnett. Cormier has yet to taste defeat, and he has looked better each time he steps into the cage en route to winning the Strikeforce Heavyweight Grand Prix.
If he were in the UFC, Cormier would be on the cusp of a title shot, but he instead finds himself stuck in the Strikeforce bubble.
So while it may seem odd that a UFC fighter would choose to walk over to Strikeforce for a fight, it’s actually a fight that makes a lot of sense. The normally brash Mir was even complimentary of Cormier’s skills.
“The Barnett win actually impressed me extremely,” Mir said. He continued, “I was kind of curious to see how he would do against submissions, and there was a couple times, one that I can remember right now when there was a pretty legitimate attempt on his leg, and he didn’t panic and had the defense to get out of it.”
The jiu-jitsu part of this fight is the one area where Mir has a clear advantage over Cormier. Mir is one of the best BJJ practitioners in the division, if not all of MMA, and is the only man to submit Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira. However, Mir believes it’s not his only advantage.
“I think that if we fight each other, I’d have the advantage in striking and submissions,” Mir said.
The former UFC champion acknowledged the wrestling advantage possessed by Cormier, but he is obviously confident in his jiu-jitsu game as a countermeasure. Another advantage for the former champion will be his size.
Mir stands at 6’3” and usually comes in around the heavyweight limit. He also sports a 79-inch reach. Cormier will be the much smaller fighter standing at only 5’11”, nearly 20 pounds lighter, and will also have to deal with eight inches of a reach disadvantage.
With that said, we may see a new Mir when he steps into the cage against Cormier. Mir weighed in at 261 pounds for his fight for dos Santos, and he believes it may have affected his game.
“I didn’t really move as well,” he said. “Against one of the guys who probably moves the best in the division, that was a recipe for disaster.”
Mir decided to bulk up in weight after getting manhandled by Brock Lesnar at UFC 100, and he has physically looked like a much different fighter since then. He is still learning to use his new-found strength and size; something he will definitely need to figure out before stepping into the cage against Cormier.
The bout does not currently have a set date, but it is expected to take place later this fall.
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