Frank Mir has been in the UFC for nearly ten years now and is the longest contracted heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship today.Mir has became a mainstay in both the UFC and the top ten heavyweight world rankings over the last decade. He h…
Frank Mir has been in the UFC for nearly ten years now and is the longest contracted heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship today.
Mir has became a mainstay in both the UFC and the top ten heavyweight world rankings over the last decade. He has had his ups and downs but when the smoke has cleared Frank has always been there.
Saturday night, May 28, 2011, Mir defeated fellow Las Vegas native Roy “Big Country” Nelson by unanimous decision for his second straight win inside the Octagon. The win moved Frank back up the ladder and it is now assured that his next opponent will be a very tough challenger indeed.
This slideshow will highlight the five biggest career moments in the UFC for former two time heavyweight champion Frank Mir.
(Meanwhile in Roy’s stomach, a dozen undigested cheeseburgers cried for mercy. Photo courtesy of UFC.com)
Look, I was all for sweeping UFC 130 under the rug and never mentioning it again, but since ReX has shamed me into doing this, it’s time to look back at Saturday’s big winners (and big, big losers) and see if we can devise some future matchups for these guys that will actually produce interesting fights. Make it happen, tiny atheist.
Quinton Jackson:Dana White seems dead-set on giving Rampage a title shot if his hand is healthy enough to accept it. Ugh, terrible. Why the UFC isn’t interested in promoting the hottest rivalry in the sport is anybody’s guess. (And don’t give me that bullshit about “timing”; it’s more likely related to White’s personal feelings about Rashad Evans.) In a perfect world, Rampage sits out for a few months and faces the winner of Shogun vs. Forrest at UFC 134 in Rio. With losses to both on his record, I don’t think motivation would be an issue.
Matt Hamill: Sure, on paper Hamill was coming into the fight against Rampage with a five-fight win streak — but considering that the most impressive victory in that streak (by far!) was his knockout of Mark Munoz, you have to wonder where the Hammer really sits in the light-heavyweight pecking order. My first thought was that Hamill should face the resurgent Vladimir Matyushenko next — but Vlad already has a date in August. So give him the winner of Kyle Kingsbury vs. Fabio Maldonado at this Saturday’s TUF 13 Finale. Either Hamill rebounds, or a rising prospect gets a big-name notch on their belt. Seems win-win to me.
(Meanwhile in Roy’s stomach, a dozen undigested cheeseburgers cried for mercy. Photo courtesy of UFC.com)
Look, I was all for sweeping UFC 130 under the rug and never mentioning it again, but since ReX has shamed me into doing this, it’s time to look back at Saturday’s big winners (and big, big losers) and see if we can devise some future matchups for these guys that will actually produce interesting fights. Make it happen, tiny atheist.
Quinton Jackson:Dana White seems dead-set on giving Rampage a title shot if his hand is healthy enough to accept it. Ugh, terrible. Why the UFC isn’t interested in promoting the hottest rivalry in the sport is anybody’s guess. (And don’t give me that bullshit about “timing”; it’s more likely related to White’s personal feelings about Rashad Evans.) In a perfect world, Rampage sits out for a few months and faces the winner of Shogun vs. Forrest at UFC 134 in Rio. With losses to both on his record, I don’t think motivation would be an issue.
Matt Hamill: Sure, on paper Hamill was coming into the fight against Rampage with a five-fight win streak — but considering that the most impressive victory in that streak (by far!) was his knockout of Mark Munoz, you have to wonder where the Hammer really sits in the light-heavyweight pecking order. My first thought was that Hamill should face the resurgent Vladimir Matyushenko next — but Vlad already has a date in August. So give him the winner of Kyle Kingsbury vs. Fabio Maldonado at this Saturday’s TUF 13 Finale. Either Hamill rebounds, or a rising prospect gets a big-name notch on their belt. Seems win-win to me.
Frank Mir: Unfortunately, back-to-back wins over Mirko Cro Cop and Roy Nelson have done nothing to raise this guy’s stock. I think a fight against Brendan Schaub still makes sense, as long as Schaub finds a way to get past Big Nog in August and Mir is willing to sit out for a while. At that point, fighting the TUF 10 finalist might be considered a step up for Mir.
Roy Nelson: Throw him up against Cro Cop on the Spike Prelims portion of a pay-per-view event. The loser leaves the Octagon forever. And for Christ’s sake, Roy, talk to Mike Dolce.
Travis Browne: After a 2-0-1 UFC stint against solid competition, I’d like to see Browne get a modest step up against another dangerous bastard — namely Mike Russow, who is also undefeated in three Octagon appearances. Russow is coming off a doctor’s stoppage TKO of Jon Madsen, which followed his legendary comeback knockout of Todd Duffee. It’s a matchup that would produce a legitimate contender in the heavyweight division.
Rick Story: With six wins in a row, he’s now qualified to call out any 170-pounder in the UFC outside of Georges St. Pierre — and for some reason, he’s chosen Jon Fitch. Dude, what? Nobody looks good fighting Jon Fitch, except GSP himself. Instead, Story should be calling out Josh Koscheck, who’s just as highly-regarded as Fitch, but more likely to produce a memorable fight. In a way, Story is like the second-coming of Koscheck — a seasoned wrestler with power in his hands — so a meeting between the two makes a lot of sense.
Brian Stann: The UFC’s 185-pound division is heavy at the middle right now, so one more impressive win could break Stann out of the logjam and set him on a title track. But all the other contenders in the middleweight division seem to be booked right now. The best option? Have the All-American fight the winner of Demian Maia vs. Mark Munoz, who meet at UFC 131 on June 11th.
Demetrious Johnson: If you’ve compiled a four-fight win streak with your last two victories coming against Miguel Torres and Kid Yamamoto, then yes, you are one of the top dogs in the bantamweight division. But I’d like to see how well Mighty Mouse does against a fighter who can stop his takedowns — and there are a number of 135-ers in the UFC who fit that description. July’s UFC 132 event holds two possibilities: Urijah Faber if he loses to Dominick Cruz in the main event, or former champ Brian Bowles if defeats Takeya Mizugaki. Either opponent would be a trial-by-fire for Johnson, but he’s earned it.
(BG)
Got any other suggestions for UFC 130′s fighters? Let us know in the comments section…
It was a show of main-event changes as Quinton “Rampage” Jackson faced Matt “The Hammer” Hamill in the main event of UFC 130, shown live in the early hours of this past Sunday morning on ESPN here in Britain.No review of the pre…
It was a show of main-event changes as Quinton “Rampage” Jackson faced Matt “The Hammer” Hamill in the main event of UFC 130, shown live in the early hours of this past Sunday morning on ESPN here in Britain.
No review of the preliminaries this month as ESPN had technical problems (again), so it’s on to the main show, beginning with middleweight action as Brian Stann faced Jorge Santiago.
The All-American is really starting to come into his own. After a somewhat cagey start from both men, Stann connected with a left that sent Santiago down. Stann followed him down for the ground and pound but couldn’t quite get the job done.
Stann continued his great work in the second, and a big right to the temple sent Santiago down again. A brief period of ground and pound followed before the referee stepped in to give Stann the impressive TKO win.
It was down to welterweight for the next fight as Thiago Alves faced Rick Story.
This was a very good encounter. Story put on a great display of grappling for the first two rounds, neutralizing Alves’ superior striking ability. Alves got in some good strikes, but Story was able to respond in kind.
We saw more striking from Alves in the third, as well as some exciting exchanges, with Alves rocking his man a number of times, the fight ending with both men swinging for the fences.
So with the fight going the distance it went down to the judges, with Story getting the unanimous decision.
The big boys of the heavyweight division were up next as Stefan Struve faced Travis Browne.
This battle of the big men began with both fighters connecting with a series of kicks. A clinch against the cage was followed by a brief foray to the ground before they returned to the striking game.
Seconds later and it was all over. Browne connected with a Superman punch that sent Struve crashing, the referee quickly stepping in to give Browne the great knockout win.
The heavyweight action continued as Frank Mir went up against Roy Nelson.
This battle of hometown boys proved to be a highly entertaining affair. We also got a lesson about conditioning.
Mir dominated the majority of the fight, putting on a performance that was far superior than his effort against Mirko Cro Cop.
Big Country had his moments, but as time went on Nelson’s lack of physical conditioning showed, and as he sat on his stool between the second and third rounds he had the look of a beaten and exhausted man, with Mir once again dominating with his grappling and his ground and pound.
No surprise with the judges’ decision as all three gave the fight to Mir. A great performance from the former champion, and an example of how Nelson really needs to go back to the drawing board.
The main event saw Quinton Jackson taking on Matt Hamill in the light heavyweight division.
Rampage seemed to have Hamill worked out from the start. Whenever Hamill went for a takedown Jackson was able to defend easily. It was the same whenever Hamill went for a clinch.
As for the striking, Rampage had that department covered as well, out-striking his opponent and connecting with some hard knees and shots to the body.
So with another fight going the distance it went to the judges again, with all three giving the fight to Rampage. It may not have been pretty but it was effective.
The show rounded out with filler material in the form of the lightweight encounter between Gleison Tibau and Rafaello Oliveira.
This all Brazilian affair was a nice way to end the show. Things looked pretty even in the first as both men got off some crisp strikes and showed some good work during the brief trip to the ground.
It was pretty much the same in the second until Tibau connected with a big left that sent Oliveira down. Moments later Tibau took his man’s back and clinched in a rear naked choke for the submission win.
In conclusion—they’ve done it again.
Even though this was devoid of a title fight after both Gray Maynard and Frankie Edgar pulled out injured, it was still a very good show, and although a couple of the performances were a little disappointing, that didn’t detract from my overall enjoyment.
So all-in-all, UFC 130 gets the thumbs up from me.
Let’s hope ESPN doesn’t screw up any more shows though!
When a much-anticipated main event like Edgar vs. Maynard 3 falls by the wayside, it’s tough for an event to ever really live up to the expectations.Still, UFC 130 featured big knockouts, rising contenders, and generally some very interesting perform…
When a much-anticipated main event like Edgar vs. Maynard 3 falls by the wayside, it’s tough for an event to ever really live up to the expectations.
Still, UFC 130 featured big knockouts, rising contenders, and generally some very interesting performances.
Quinton Jackon didn’t exactly set the cage on fire, but making up for his efforts were Brian Stann, Travis Browne, Gleison Tibau and others.
Aside from the performances themselves, UFC 130 will also provide a fairly large shakeup in the divisional rankings with top 10 ranked fighters like Jorge Santiago, Miguel Torres, and Thiago Alves all coming up short.
Here are the top thoughts and repercussions following UFC 130.
UFC 130 didn’t necessarily blow fans away, but it was a decent night of fights with a couple of wrinkles in the natural order of the welterweight and bantamweight divisions.
Rick Story picked up a huge upset win over highly ranked welterweight Thiago A…
UFC 130 didn’t necessarily blow fans away, but it was a decent night of fights with a couple of wrinkles in the natural order of the welterweight and bantamweight divisions.
Rick Story picked up a huge upset win over highly ranked welterweight Thiago Alves.
Despite being in phenomenal shape, Alves wasn’t able to withstand the consistent pressure from Story’s takedowns.
For a long time, the UFC welterweight division has been topped by Georges St-Pierre, Jon Fitch, Thiago Alves, and Josh Koscheck. It may be time to include Story’s name along with the upper-echelon welterweights.
In the bantamweight division, Demetrious Johnson took the biggest victory of his career with a unanimous decision win over former champion Miguel Torres. If people didn’t pay attention after his victory over Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto, they are certainly paying attention now.
Johnson boasts some of the most explosive takedowns in the sport, and he should be taken seriously as a legitimate threat to Dominick Cruz’s bantamweight title.
In the main and co-main events, Quinton “Rampage” Jackson and Frank Mir were both victorious in lopsided affairs. While Jackson stuffed all of Matt Hamill’s takedowns and bested the exchanges for a unanimous decision, Mir earned a decision win over Roy Nelson in a lackluster heavyweight tilt.
What’s next for the winners?
Here are some interesting fights to make after UFC 130.
Dana White had harsh words for Frank Mir following UFC 130, saying that he was not happy with Mir’s performance for the second consecutive fight.While Mir’s fight with Roy Nelson might not have been the most exciting fight in Mir’s career, White was si…
Dana White had harsh words for Frank Mir following UFC 130, saying that he was not happy with Mir’s performance for the second consecutive fight.
While Mir’s fight with Roy Nelson might not have been the most exciting fight in Mir’s career, White was simply too hard on Mir.
The fight itself was actually pretty exciting in the early going.
Mir and Nelson were engaging in wild exchanges with Nelson trying to land right hands, and Mir trying to land clinch knees to the head. Mir landed a bunch of heavy shots that would have ended the night if it wasn’t for Nelson’s tough chin.
The fight was also a pretty grueling and competitive one when it became a wrestling match.
Clinch fighting often doesn’t look like much, but it’s extremely tiring, especially when you’re pushing around a 260-pound man for 15 minutes.
Still, in the immediate aftermath, Dana White called the fight “borderline embarrassing.”
I disagree.
Realistic Expectations for Frank Mir
Frank Mir fought just about as well as you can expect Frank Mir to fight.
Mir has powerful strikes, but he’s not fast enough or technical enough to be able to stand and trade in the pocket.
As such, his striking attempts are going to come from range or in the clinch, and in fits and starts.
Mir is also not a great wrestler, so when he attempts to take somebody down, he’s going to have to spend a lot of energy doing so, and it’s not always going to be pretty.
At the present time it should be pretty easy to see that Mir isn’t going to be able to beat guys like Brock Lesnar and Cain Velasquez. Despite Mir’s recent dedication to strength and conditioning, he’s simply not on the same level as those guys athletically.
That doesn’t mean Frank Mir is irrelevant.
Mir is still a top-10 heavyweight. He just isn’t a top-three guy. In order to appreciate what Mir can do, (which is a lot) we need to accept that fact and move on.
There are still tons of interesting fights for Mir that could be entertaining or relevant.
Mir is a great challenge for up and coming contenders like Brendan Schaub or perhaps even a Travis Browne. He’d also be a worthwhile opponent for any other top-10 opponent.
Once people accept the fact that Mir doesn’t need to be able to win the belt to be relevant, people might finally start to enjoy his fights instead of saying, “he’d still get destroyed by Lesnar,” every time he fights.
