UFC 119 now Officially, Official with "Mirko vs Mir"

According to MMAJunkie, MMAWeekly and among other media outlets, UFC executives officially made official the main event of UFC 119, Frank Mir will in fact take on former Pride Grand Prix Champion Mirko “Cro Cop” at the Conseco Fieldhouse, in Indianapolis, Minn. on September 25th.

Frank Mir, a former heavyweight champion who first obtained championship gold after a run through the 265-pound division after compiling an impressive 5-1 run before defeating then heavyweight champ Tim Sylvia, with a 50 second armbar, into the first round, back at UFC 48.

Mir, though, has fallen on tough times, as he has lost two of his last three bouts. An impressive win over division standout Cheick Kongo is sandwiched between two losses to current UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar, and most recently a loss to heavyweight contender and alleged steroid user Shane Carwin, at UFC 111 in March of this year.

“Cro Cop”, a Pride superstar made headlines back in 2006 when he decided to sign with MMA juggernaut, The Ultimate Fighting Championship, though he competed with mixed results, garnering a 1-2 run with his first outing with the UFC.

After a brief stint with DREAM, Mirko is now on the heels of a two-fight win streak inside the octagon, and a 5-1 record in his last 6 fights, with wins over Anthony Perosh and an impressive performance against the dynamic, Pat Barry at UFC 115 last June. Filipovic was in rare form, after being knocked down twice in the first round, Mirko stormed back to steal the second frame, and eventually was able to overwhelm “HD” in the third with a barrage of strikes, dropping the New Orleans native, and eventually securing a rear naked choke to close the show, and pocketed “Submission of the Night” honors for his efforts.

I think fans, and media alike, are pleased with the sudden change up, as UFC 119 was first sought to be where Brock Lesnar would make his title defense against challenger Cain Velasquez, before his fellow Minnesotans. However, after having just competed at UFC 116 in a successful title defense against challenger Shane Carwin, the heavyweight king pin needed some time away from the cage, and with the family, while Lesnar was expecting his next child to be born that July, the same month he last competed.

Then, Mir vs Nogueria II, a rematch nearly two years in the making, was put into effect, to some dismay as the waning interest in the fight was found to be null. However, in a term of both unfortunate and fortunate events, Nogueria was pulled from the card after the former Pride and UFC heavyweight champion suffered a hip injury.

“Cro Cop” was expected to make his return at UFC 123, a rumored event for Germany that is riddled with people of Croation descent, making him an ideal candidate for the card.

However it appears that Mirko had no qualms about stepping up on short notice against Mir, a Jiu-Jitsu specialist who now has a penchant for striking.

So, what do you think? Is everyone pleased with the change, or were we all anticipating the Nogueria vs Mir rematch?

Can “Mir KO” pull out a victory, or is defeat imminent?