Frank Mir is a monster of a man. He stands at 6'3" and weighs 253 lbs. He is a mixture of superb boxing and stand-up skills and even has a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu background. Some people say that his prime has passed, but I believe with the right training and motivation, he could be back on top of the stacked Heavyweight Division in the UFC.
The talented Mir made his UFC debut at UFC 34 High Voltage against another new comer Roberto Travern. Mir won his debut at 1:05 of the very first round with an impressive armbar submission win. He split his next two fights, winning via submission against Pete Williams, and then losing to Ian "The Machine" Freeman via doctor's stoppage from a huge cut over Mir's eye. His first loss in the UFC seemed to be a controversial one. Then came Mir's biggest test, a fight against UFC legend David "Tank" Abbott at UFC 41: Onslaught. Frank Mir pulled off the upset and beat "Tank" via submission just 0:46 seconds in the first round. This win launched Mir into title contention. In order to fight for the title, which was now vacant and not being held by anyone, Mir had to fight Wes Sims, and in a controversial win, Mir won by disqualification, when Sims attempted to stomp down on Mir's face while he was on the ground. Dana White saw this fight as too controversial to give Mir the title shot, so a rematch was set up between Mir and Sims. Mir dominated the rematch winning via knockout in the second round.
This set up the much awaited fight between Tim Sylvia and Frank Mir. That night a champion would be crowned and that champion was Frank Mir. Mir defeated Sylvia just 0:50 seconds into the first round when Mir broke Sylvia's arm with an arm bar forcing Herb Dean to stop the fight.
Frank had made a quick ascent to the top when tragedy struck. In 2004, Frank Mir was in a motorcycle accident in which he was thrown 60 feet off of his motorcycle after striking a car. Mir broke his femur in 2 places and needed major surgery to repair it. During that time, an Interim Heavyweight Title was made and held by Andrei Arlovski. 14 months later, it was decided that Mir was not ready to fight, so Arlovski was promoted as the Undisputed Heavyweight Champion.
Some have said that Frank Mir was the best up and comer in the history of the UFC before his accident. He was an impressive submission artist (rare for a heavyweight) and an exciting fan favorite. The question is remains: Can Frank Mir once again reign supreme in the new and more challenging Heavyweight Division? The answer: He is certainly trying. After his less than impressive comeback (losing two of his last three fights by TKO), he is training at Randy Couture's new gym and getting back to his old, dominating self. Keep an eye on Frank Mir in the coming months as he may emerge as a top contender in the UFC Heavyweight Division.
1 Comment:
When I wrote my "I Feel Bad For Frank Trigg" post, I felt like I should've written one for Mir. He used to be the best, a very different fighter in a static division. Since his accident, he just hasn't had it...hope he gets back in it. He was supposed to fight at UFC Fight Night 9 (last week), but had to pull out due to a shoulder injury. You've gotta think that he'll never be the same.
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