Frank Mir: I would feel slighted if someone else were picked to fight dos Santos
Posted on April 13, 2012, 02:28 PM by Mike Drahota
Frank Mir recently expressed his obvious disdain at possibly being overlooked as the number one contender for Junior dos Santos' UFC Heavyweight title at UFC 146. Since the massively publicized fallout from Alistair Overeem's failed drug test, many rumors have been swirling about who will step in to challenge dos Santos for the belt. While Overeem is still waiting the official decision of the NSAC concerning this matter, things do not look optimistic for the May 26 fight to go on as originally planned. While many feel that Mir is the obvious choice as the next in line to fight for the title, no official announcement has been made as of yet. So, Mir continues to train for his original opponent, Cain Velasquez, and had the following to say on the subject:
"As of right now, I'm still training for Cain. Obviously, I'm like everybody else. I see that, in the background, there's a possibility Overeem's not going to be able to make the fight on the 26th, and if that's the case, I wanna make sure I'm in a position where I can jump in." - credit: Spike TV's "MMA Uncensored Live," via mmamania.com
Mir is quite readily available for his next title shot should it be offered, but many fans have been clamoring to get Mark Hunt into the spot. Hunt has made a positive run as of late in the UFC, but Mir believes that he is most qualified and would be angry were he overlooked:
"I feel that I have the most credentials, going into it. I think I have the longest winning streak of the heavyweights that were already posted on that card to fight. As far as what the rankings are, I feel I have the most credentials going in, and I'm motivated to do so. It was funny, a couple of months ago, when I was training for this, I had been training for a five-round fight to begin with. Reason being that Cain Velasquez is a cardio freak, and if something were to happen with the title shot, I wouldn't want it to be something where I had to turn it down because I wasn't prepared for it. I mean, obviously I'd feel a little slighted (if someone else were picked to fight dos Santos). But, both those guys (Hunt and Velasquez) are great fighters. I would never be mad at them for taking advantage of the situation. Would I be angry? Of course. I would not be a happy individual.”
Mir will be waiting anxiously on April 24 when Alistair Overeem's fate is deciding by the NSAC at his licensing hearing. He has made his case for the title shot with both his performances and words, now all he can do is hope for the best. Does Mark Hunt truly deserve to step in to a Heavyweight title shot? Does Cain Velasquez deserve a rematch after being brutally knocked out by JDS in only 64 seconds? Who will replace Alistair Overeem if he cannot fight on May 26 in Las Vegas?
Further Reading: Dana White: UFC 146 title fight will happen no matter what
Photo: Francis Specker
Comments
Mir's assessment is pretty much right. He clearly is the best choice within the UFC but I'd still love to see Hunt get the shot - the UFC can do something wacky once and a while and stylistically I'd say Hunt has just as good or better chance than MIr (Mir would destroy Hunt if the two fought though)
I admit that Hunt and JDS would be an exciting fight for sure, but hes just not in the mix for the title. There are some guys that should be put well before Hunt; like Mir or Werdum.
Ya Werdum would also be a good match you can play up the rematch and that's how JDS broke out and then we get to see how much Werdum's striking really has improved. He'd probably be the second most logical choice but you gotta love Hunt still.
.That's what I was thinking as well. JDS's popularity went through the roof after this fight. They could work this into an awsome revenge match. After the last time they met, I think Werdum would be extra careful against JDS time around in the standup. Junior knocked him into next week the last time they fought.
I vote for Dan Henderson to get the shot at the HW crown !
I really wanna see him sleep for the first time lol
I understand that he would bring a slugfest to JDS, but WTH is Mark Hunt even being considered by the fans? Since when does winning a decision against Rothwell and KO'ing Kongo get you a title shot? At least Mir beat a couple of contenders to get into title contention. And even though I'm not a fan of immediate title rematches unless it's a close fight, even Cain deserves a shot before Hunt.
Why we're at it, why don't we throw Cabbage Carrera in the mix? He'll bring a chin and a puncher's chance into that fight just like Hunt will. IMO, it tarnishes the legitimacy of the heavyweight title contention process if Hunt is allowed to leapfrog to the top of the heap.
I personally feel like something will come out of the enforceability of the NSAC testing or the B-sample for Overeem. I feel like we would have seen this handled differently if Overeem was indeed a definitive no-chance for the title match. A more worthy contender would be announced and the rest of the fight card would be shuffled to allow fighters time to adjust.
But that's just my opinion....and I'm pretty retarded.
Makes perfect sense to me. And I read it twice. I like Hunt but I don't think it fair for him to leap into a title fight before the legit contenders that have been climbing the ladder for so long now. Guys that have been there putting in the work while Hunt was on vacation for a year or two.
Mir has no chance agains JDS. He will drop in 1-2 min. But Mark Hunt has a chance agains anyone who trade punches. So its something like;
JDS vs Mir ->
Mir is bigger and stronger than JDS and has been working on his wrestling for years to try to take on the likes of Velasquez, Carwin, and Lesnar, all of whom are better wrestlers than JDS. I think if Mir closes to clinch range with JDS, he'll nullify most advantages JDS has on him, and a takedown is a possibility, especially since Mir would probably be willing to pull guard to take it to the ground. Considering Mir made Big Nog look like a white belt while he was almost unconscious himself... I don't think that scenario would bode well for dos Santos.
Mir has consistently suprised people at just what he can pull off both on the ground and on his feet, you can't say he has bad stand up or a weak chin for getting beat by Lesnar and Carwin like some people are saying, those two guys possess the power to knock out any man alive. He has also always been since the early days, and still is today, one of the best HW submission artists in the game. People used to say Noguiera was better untill he quickly dispelled that myth when he nearly ripped nogs arm off. He is also an intelligent fighter and often knows exactly what he needs to do or where he needs to take the fight in order to win. to beat To say Mir has 'no chance' against any HW is crazy imo, he's been around a long time now and has always kept improving. Most people learnt from watching his first fight with Lesnar.........never count Frank Mir out of any fight........
You can't ever count him out that is for sure. He's beaten more than his share of guys that were supposed to demolish him. And his standup is always a welcome surprise to any fight he is in.
Mir...lol.."Do you guys know the hell I've been through to get back here?" hehe
I have to agree with Frank though. Frank should know dollars are more important than his respect to some.
I don't know Ent. I'd probably pay to see Mir fight JDS as opposed to Hunt. Just on principle alone. Whatever that means in this day and age.
JDS vs Mir it will be the best opportunity for Junior to revenge big Nog.That it will be blody....
He has a right to be pissed s he is using his record to do the talking instead of his "army of doom". To be fair though Mir didn't look incredible impressive in his last fight, except form the finish itself, while Mark Hunt looked amazing.
Sometimes a good performance means a lot more than anything else but yes Mir does deserve it the most.
Yes Hunt has a better chance than you, atleast he does not have a glass chin like you.
You obviously don't know jack shit to be saying stupid things like that. Mir does NOT have a glass chin, i think Lesnar and Carwin possess the kind of power to make ANY fighter look like they have a "glass chin" as i presume they are the fights you have made this judgement on. Might i suggest that next time, before making yourself look like a complete idiot, at least do a bit of research. Anybody here that knows their shit will tell you the same, Frank Mir is a stud and has stayed at the top level of the HW division for a long long time now, you don't achieve that with a "glass jaw".......idiot.
I don't think Mir has a glass jaw either. I mean the man can take one hell of a beating and doesn't tap. The ref is the one that stops the fight when Frank is getting pounded. The dude has a huge heart, and doesn't seem to know the meaning of the word quit.
Mir is next in line if they don't want to give Cain a rematch. Or, Overeem on TRT vs JDS and Hunt at the same time. Muah ha ha ha!
No one is more deserving than Mir rigth now...guy is a legend...let him have it!
He's is past his prime!
Cain got ktfo in seconds...a remach does not make sense...hunt needs at least two more top 10 wins...Mir is on a row with victories over top tier competition....i would love to se Mir x JDS and Cain x Fedor....that would be the shit!! Love the Reem also but he is done in my book.
Fedor isn't going to fight Cain. Even if he comes to UFC, his recent slide and lack of top competition have moved him down the list. He might be able to take on Big Country, but not anybody any higher up in ranking.
On a final note....Mir will get KOed for sure....Nog almost did it then come on! But that should not matter,,,he is the clear number one contender after Reem is done.
I agree with you on that. JDS is sooooo much more of a monster than Nog. Mir has little to offer JDS in the department of standup or the clinch. He. is a dangerous submission artist; but I don't see JDS falling prey to any of Mir's subs.
someone want to tell this guy his next fight is for a shot at the belt. its not like hes at the bottom of the ladder. He got rag dolled by an only wins cause hes so big lesnar who was embarrased by better competition. He hasn't yet shown me he is already "by far the #1 contender" so win your next fight Mir and your shot is there. Whats wrong with that?
Mir is correct with everything he said. Man Reem really effed up... If his second test comes back within the legal limits I'll be shocked and spouting conspiracy theories.
I think i'll be least excited to see JDS vs Mir. Although I used to like Mir some time back but I dont see him winning against the top contenders. Quite honestly, Cain vs JDS 2 is the only fight that i'll look forward to if Reem does not happen.....
MIR/CAIN is the right call if mir beats cain then he is the number 1 contender.
Mir looked horrible apart from a great sub against Nog. If Nog could pick him apart so easy standing then JDS should finish him though Mir is always capable of slapping a great sub from a single mistake which is probably his greatest asset in MMA but it is a sad day still for the HW division in the UFC when there are not a plethora of viable alternatives following Overeem's sad but unsurprising and probably inevitable drug test failure.
Hunt is nowhere near a title shot but then who really is?
Mir is always dangerous, on the feet as much as on the ground these days and i think he is definately a better alternative than Mark Hunt. Anyone who thinks that guy is deserving of a title shot is deluded. I like Hunt and he has heavy hands for sure but that's about all he has to offer really, his ground game is pretty much 'junior' level, and though he isn't exactly 'easy' to take down he's like a fish out of water on the ground. His submission defence also leaves a lot to be desired. I don't think for one second Dana would consider Hunt as a better replacement than Mir, i just think that he doesn't want to have to pull Mir out of his match up with Velasquez if he can help it, i think that is Danas main reason for not selecting Mir straight off the bat......
Does everyone just seem to think that Nog's punching power didn't change after he had three surgeries, including a double hip replacement? Look at Brendan Schaub's face when he fought Nog. He got tagged once and had a look on his face like, "Oh Jesus, this man has bricks in his gloves!" Obviously he hits way harder now, and his 1-2 combo hit Mir right in the chin. That does not a glass jaw make.
Mir wanted to see what changed with Nog since he fought him before, and he seemed just as surprised as everyone else. He probably didn't expect Nog to come forward so readily either, especially since he got wtfowned by Mir on his feet in their last fight. He'd have no such delusions about JDS' intentions. In any case, I think if Mir truly had a glass chin, there's no way in hell he would have gotten out of the first round pummelling Lesnar gave him.
You sure know a lot about how Mir thinks.
Based off of Mir's own interviews, which is pretty indicative of what Mir is thinking. Unless of course you feel your opinion that he's has been rocked by the likes of Lesnar, Carwin, and a newly renewed Nog must mean he a glass chin and that trumps anything he says, I'd say Mir has more insight into it than us.
Mir is smart, people dont give him much credit though.