What's Next for the Winners and Losers of UFC 119: "Mir vs. Cro Cop"?

UFC 119 was an interesting event to say the very least. We saw Ryan Bader beat Antonio Rogerio Nogueira and cement his status as a top-division athlete. Chris Lytle put himself “into the mix” for the first time in years (some cynics would say “ever”) with his dominant performance over former UFC Welterweight Champion Matt Serra. Sean Sherk returned and will likely become a lightning-rod of heated debate due to his controversial win over Evan Dunham. All this happened, and then Frank Mir knocked out Mirko Filipovic. So what’s next for the big winners and losers of UFC 119? Here are my thoughts.

Next for Mark Hunt: Retirement. No one comes back from six straight stoppage losses. Hunt did give us an exciting fight, but he got submitted so quickly that I honestly don’t see him ever being taken seriously again. There will always be a home for him in places like lower-level promotions and (most likely) the entirety of Japan, but I think he should just save himself the trouble and retire already.

Next for Sean Sherk/Evan Dunham: Each other, which is why I’m grouping them together. Trust me: this story will see a second chapter. It may happen immediately, it may not, but Sherk/Dunham 2 must take place before Sherk is ever taken seriously again. Despite sporting a hideous gash on his head for most of the fight, Dunham remained dynamic, engaged frequently, and should have taken the Split Decision victory. Even Dana White has said that he hated this decision, so a rematch is a no-brainer.

Next for Ryan Bader: Losing to Jon Jones, plain and simple. Bader proved at UFC 119 that his “dynamic mode” has an “off” switch. When he doesn’t want to engage he can be downright boring. Bader’s tepid performance was certainly good enough to give him the win, I’m not disputing that. But unless he brings his best from the first bell to the last, the Ryan Bader we saw at UFC 119 will be easy pickings for Jonny Bones, who doesn’t seem to know how to fight in any style other than “awesome”.

Next for Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: A decent run at Light Heavyweight that never truly lives up to the potential it could have had when Nogueira knocked out Luis Arthur Cane. “Little Nog” will likely stick around and be successful just like his bigger brother, but like Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, his success will only go so far. And unlike “Big Nog”, I don’t see Rogerio ever becoming a UFC champion. It’s becoming increasingly apparent that the Nogueira brothers are a part of the “old guard” that today’s current stars are quickly passing by.

Next for Frank Mir: A rematch with Shane Carwin, perhaps? Or maybe someone like Roy Nelson. Mir took an important step towards re-establishing himself as an elite-level Heavyweight, but he’s not there yet. I’d be a hypocrite if I said that Mir is at the top of the rankings after beating Cro Cop, because I’ve adamantly stated and defended my stance that Mirko Cro Cop is not a top-division UFC fighter. When you look at it from that point of view, and when you consider how timid Mir was until he scored the surprise KO, Mir still has quite a road ahead of him before he’s up there and challenging for the belt again. But beating Cro Cop did prove that it’s still a possibility.

Next for Mirko Cro Cop: I bet right about now a lot of people are expecting me to go on a big “TOLD YOU SO” rant, especially when you consider how I sat back and let the critics get in their shots when Randy Couture demolished James Toney. But you know what? I honestly felt sad when I saw Cro Cop go limp. Cro Cop was a good fighter. No, that’s wrong. He was an amazing fighter. His run in PRIDE rivals all the other famous runs that PRIDE fans loved so much: Wanderlei Silva’s, Fedor Emelianenko’s, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira’s, the list goes on. But he’s a shadow of a shadow of his former self, and this fight proved it. So, yeah, I’m honestly sad that Mir proved once and for all that Cro Cop will never be relevant in the UFC, even after the Cro Cop defenders lambasted me for saying as such. I honestly don’t know where Mirko goes from where, but I can say with certainty that it won’t be anywhere good.

So there’s my take, fans and friends. What do you think the future holds for the big winners and losers of UFC 119?