Mir vs. Cro Cop Pick
The main event of UFC 119 on Saturday night features Frank Mir taking on Mirko Cro Cop in a heavyweight collision.
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Mir enters the fight as the favorite with a betting line of -250 while Cro Cop has been given a line of +180 according to online sports book BroburySports.com. Here is a closer look at both fighters heading into this bout, which will take place from Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana at 10PM ET on Pay Per-View.
Frank Mir (13-5):
Strengths: Mir is one of the best submission fighters in all of MMA and certainly in the UFC Heavyweight division. Eight of his 13 wins have come by submission. Over the past few years, Mir has developed his striking, which allowed him to earn wins over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cheick Kongo.
Weaknesses: Mir still is not the greatest striker and he tends to leave himself open to big strikes. That is what happened in his losses to Shane Carwin and Brock Lesnar. Mir is also a little slow on his feet, which can hurt him against quicker opponents.
Last Five Fights:
First round KO loss to Shane Carwin at UFC 111 on March 27, 2010
First round submission win over Cheick Kongo at UFC 107 on Dec. 12, 2009
Second round TKO loss to Brock Lesnar at UFC 100 on July 11, 2009
Second round TKO win over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 92 on Dec. 27, 2008
First round submission win over Brock Lesnar at UFC 81 on Feb. 2, 2008
Mirko Cro Cop (27-7-2):
Strengths: Cro Cop has some of the most devastating kicks in MMA. His head kicks are notorious and his body kicks also do great damage. Cro Cop is not bad defending off his back, and he has shown some submission skills, including a win over Pat Barry at UFC 115.
Weaknesses: Cro Cop has lost a little speed on his striking and he has not been the dominant fighter he was in Pride earlier this decade. Cro Cop has struggled with superior strikers and he hasn’t fought a submission specialist like Mir in quite some time. Cro Cop is also admittedly not 100 percent for this fight as he is having problems with his vision.
Last Five Fights:
Third round submission win over Pat Barrt at UFC 115 on June 12, 2010
Second round TKO win over Anthony Perosh at UFC 110 on Feb. 20, 2010
Third round submission loss to Junior dos Santos at UFC 103 on Sept. 19, 2009
First round TKO win over Mostapha Al-Turk at UFC 99 on June 13, 2009
First round TKO win over Hong Man Choi at K-1 Dynamite!! on Dec. 31, 2008
Who will win: Cro Cop is a shell of his old self and he is taking this fight on short notice and less than 100 percent. He always has the ability to land a devastating head kick, but Mir will be quicker and better in every area of the fight. Look for Mir to land a big strike and then pounce on Cro Cop to earn the submission victory with a choke in round two.
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