It?s that time again, fans and friends: time for ?A Closer Look at UFC 130?. My exhaustive look at the full UFC 130 card has hopefully been both educational and entertaining, and it?s about to reach its conclusion. There are only two fights left that I haven?t examined in detail. One of them is the main event, the other is the subject of this entry: a huge co-main event pitting two huge Heavyweights against each other. In a key match-up that will put the winner on the shortlist of possible UFC Heavyweight Championship contenders, former UFC Heavyweight and Interim Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir takes on former IFL Champion and ?Ultimate Fighter? Season 10 winner Roy Nelson. Let?s do this.
Frank Mir has spent most of his professional career in the Octagon: to date, only two of his nineteen professional MMA fights have occurred outside of the UFC. In Mir?s original UFC run from 2001 to 2004, he quickly took the Heavyweight division by storm, winning six of seven bouts and the UFC Heavyweight Championship. The UFC?s Heavyweight division was admittedly one-dimensional back then, and Mir?s submission skills were a breath of fresh air amongst a crop of fighters who normally used their large size to swing big punches. Few old-school fight fans can forget when Mir snapped Tim Sylvia?s arm like a twig to claim the UFC Heavyweight Championship.
Unfortunately, a very bad motorcycle accident forced Mir on the sidelines for so long that the UFC stripped him of his championship. Mir attempted a comeback in 2006, but the fight seemed to have gone out of him: he was sloppy as well as out of shape. Mir found new life and underwent a major career resurrection when he fought Brock Lesnar at UFC 81. Booked as little more than a sacrificial lamb, Mir submitted Lesnar in the first round and began an epic rivalry with the soon-to-be UFC Heavyweight Champion. Since then, Mir has fought for and won the UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship, lost it to Lesnar, and then fought for it again against Shane Carwin. Mir?s four most-recent fights have seen him go 2-2, with both wins and both losses via stoppage.
His opponent, Roy Nelson, is a puzzle amongst the Heavyweight division. Famous for his big gut, Nelson made waves in the short-lived IFL organization and won that promotion?s championship. He also made waves after the IFL folded when he revealed that the UFC would only allow him into the Octagon if he lost weight. Nelson refused to do so and ultimately had to compete on ?The Ultimate Fighter? to earn his shot inside the world?s most prestigious MMA organization.
But when the time came, Nelson seized his opportunity. Nelson ran right through the woefully-mismatched Season 10 cast, ultimately KO?ing Brendan Schaub to win the season. He then followed that up with a thirty-nine second KO of Stefan Struve. Most recently, Nelson lost to Junior dos Santos via Unanimous Decision. Nelson likely took solace in the fact that he was the only fighter to ever take the feared Brazilian wrecking machine to a three-round decision.
The thing I like the most about this match is that it could go anywhere and still be entertaining. Frank Mir?s stand-up has improved a lot, and Roy Nelson?s standup has always been very dangerous. When it goes to the ground, both men are very gifted. Aside from Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mir may have the best pure ground game in the UFC?s Heavyweight division. Nelson?s may not be as good, but it?s definitely good enough to stand toe-to-toe with Mir?s for a prolonged period of time. It could go either way, so I?ll reserve judgment until my official ?Picks and Predictions? post.
And that?s it, fans and friends! Only one entry remains in ?A Closer Look at UFC 130?. Be sure to be here tomorrow when the series concludes and I give my official UFC 130 picks and predictions!
Source: http://www.fighters.com/05/26/a-closer-look-at-ufc-130-frank-mir-vs-roy-nelson
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