Mirko Cro Cop Steps Up to Fight Frank Mir at UFC 119

Filed under: UFCMMA legend Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic will get a chance at earning his biggest win in the Octagon to date on September 25, as the UFC has confirmed that Cro Cop accepted a fight with Frank Mir in the main event at UFC 119.

Cro Cop agree…

Filed under:

MMA legend Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic will get a chance at earning his biggest win in the Octagon to date on September 25, as the UFC has confirmed that Cro Cop accepted a fight with Frank Mir in the main event at UFC 119.

Cro Cop agreed to take the fight — his eighth in the UFC — on short notice after Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira dropped out with hip and knee injuries. Cro Cop’s UFC career has been fairly disappointing, with a 4-3 record and all four wins coming against lower-level competition. But a victory over Mir would be a huge step forward for Cro Cop, who hasn’t beaten anyone as relevant as Mir in the heavyweight division since he defeated Josh Barnett to win the Pride Openweight Grand Prix in September of 2006.

UFC Confirms Mirko “Cro Cop” vs. Frank Mir for UFC 119

Yesterday we passed along news that Antonio “Minotauro” Nogueira would reportedly not fight Frank Mir as scheduled September 25th, due to a rib injury, and that Mirko “Cro Cop” had agreed to step in as Nog’s replacement. Injuries happen, so that’s not too surprising, but we probably weren’t the only ones who had their eyebrows […]

cro cop

Yesterday we passed along news that Antonio “Minotauro” Nogueira would reportedly not fight Frank Mir as scheduled September 25th, due to a rib injury, and that Mirko “Cro Cop” had agreed to step in as Nog’s replacement. Injuries happen, so that’s not too surprising, but we probably weren’t the only ones who had their eyebrows rise upon reading “Cro Cop” was taking the fight. Could it be that “Cro Cop” had reconsidered previous statements he made about getting “too old” for all this ultimate fighting stuff? (Or just as probable—that those comments were taken out of context or inaccurate?)

Well, apparently we kicked into ‘over thinking’ mode way too early on this one (which isn’t a habit here as any regular reader knows), as the UFC has confirmed today that “Cro Cop” will in fact face Mir at UFC 119 in Indianapolis. If you’re a big time Nog fan, and were hoping for some redemption in the rematch with Mir, sorry about your loss. There’s lots riding on “Cro Cop” vs. Mir as well though; should be sweet.

If you’re having trouble keeping track of the bazillion cards being promoted these days (not that we’re complaining), UFC will also feature Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Ryan Bader, Chris Lytle vs. Matt Serra II, Evan Dunham vs. Sean Sherk and Melvin Guillard vs. Jeremy Stephens on the main card. To bet on any of the upcoming cards head here.

Report: Mirko “Cro Cop” to Replace Injured “Minotauro” Nogueira vs. Frank Mir

If you’re a huge “Minotauro” Nogueira fan and have had September 25th marked down on your calendar, in anticipation of your boy getting another shot at Frank Mir, well, you may want to put the coffee down (or any other object that could be thrown courtesy a temper tantrum). According to a report from Fighters Only […]

cro cop

If you’re a huge “Minotauro” Nogueira fan and have had September 25th marked down on your calendar, in anticipation of your boy getting another shot at Frank Mir, well, you may want to put the coffee down (or any other object that could be thrown courtesy a temper tantrum). According to a report from Fighters Only Magazine Nogueira has been forced to withdraw from UFC 119 due to an injury. In a follow up report from MMA Junkie, a source has confirmed with the outlet, that a rib injury has in fact punted the legendary heavyweight from the card.

So, for big time Nog fans this news has to be very disappointing, as Nogueira has consistently said that a serious staph infection and a messed up knee, were key reasons as to why he got absolutely pasted by Mir at UFC 92. Looks like Nog learned his lesson in terms of trying to fight through an injury no?

Now, the sh-tty news regarding Nogueira’s injury aside, Fighters Only is reporting that Mirko “Cro Cop” will step in to fight Mir at UFC 119. Our first reaction was ‘cool—wait—what?’ Now Cro Cop has clearly fought some of the best in the sport, and if he has indeed agreed to fight Mir then that’s awesome, but it wasn’t long ago we were hearing reports that he was humming and hawing about retirement. Now he’s stepping up against one the world’s best on 6 week’s notice? Guess he’s still looking to make a run.

Big Nog Out of UFC 119 With Injury, Cro Cop to Fill in Against Frank Mir

(Look, we’re just as shocked as you are. Photo via LowKick.com)
According to Fighters Only, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira will be unable to face Frank Mir in their headlining rematch at UFC 119 (September 25th, Indianapolis), due to an injury that will re…

Mirko Cro Cop Pat Barry UFC 115
(Look, we’re just as shocked as you are. Photo via LowKick.com)

According to Fighters Only, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira will be unable to face Frank Mir in their headlining rematch at UFC 119 (September 25th, Indianapolis), due to an injury that will require surgery. Which sucks for him, but on the bright side, you didn’t really care about that fight anyway. Stepping in for Big Nog will be Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic, who has been surging back to relevance with back-to-back stoppage victories over Anthony Perosh and Pat Barry. It’s a huge opportunity for Cro Cop, who would finally become a legitimate heavyweight contender in the UFC with a win over the former champion. Mir hasn’t competed since his TKO loss to Shane Carwin at UFC 111, which followed his quick spanking of Cheick Kongo last December.

Though Nogueira had to undergo knee surgery in 2009, his latest injury is possibly hip-related. Big Nog has also battled staph infections in recent years, which delayed his meeting with Cain Velasquez, and supposedly affected his first performance against Frank Mir at UFC 92. After suffering the only two stoppage losses of his career in his last three fights, it seems that Nogueira has finally learned his lesson about fighting hurt. But after so many tough battles, injuries, and illnesses, will his body ever fully recover?

Report: Cro Cop in for Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Frank Mir at UFC 119

Filed under: UFC, NewsAntonio Rodrigo Nogueira has suffered a training injury that will likely require surgery and has pulled out of his UFC 119 main-event rematch with Frank Mir. Stepping in for the heavyweight will be Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic.

The …

Filed under: ,

Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira has suffered a training injury that will likely require surgery and has pulled out of his UFC 119 main-event rematch with Frank Mir. Stepping in for the heavyweight will be Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic.

The news comes from Fighters Only magazine, citing a source close to the Nogueira camp, and comes just six weeks before the UFC’s Indiana debut.

Nogueira (32-6-1, 3-2 UFC) reportedly suffered a hip injury that will require surgery. Mir (13-5, 11-5 UFC) beat Nogueira when they first met at UFC 92 in December 2008 by knockout.

Spike to Air UFC 119 Prelims Live From Indianapolis

Filed under: UFC, NewsSpike TV on Tuesday announced it will once again have a live broadcast of preliminary card fights leading into a UFC pay-per-view.

The cable network, as it has regularly done since UFC 103 in Dallas last September, will show two…

Filed under: ,

Spike TV on Tuesday announced it will once again have a live broadcast of preliminary card fights leading into a UFC pay-per-view.

The cable network, as it has regularly done since UFC 103 in Dallas last September, will show two preliminary card fights live. The UFC 119 heavyweight bout between Matt Mitrione and Joey Beltran and middleweights C.B. Dolloway and Joe Doerksen will serve as a lead-in to the pay-per-view broadcast.

As is typical, additional taped fights from the preliminary card could be shown depending on the length of the two live fights.