With Both Fighting for Relevancy and Respect, Frank Mir vs. Brendan Schaub Tentatively Scheduled

Frank Mir has faced a long and difficult road since returning to the UFC in 2006 after recovering from a gruesome motorcycle accident. Since then, Mir has fought to the top of the Heavyweight division, at one time becoming the UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion. Since that big win over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 92, Mir has gone 2-2 with both losses by (T)KO. Most recently, Mir competed in a horrible three-round snooze-fest against formerly-feared striker Mirko Filipovic that saw Mir pick up the last-minute KO win. After a strong negative reaction towards a possible third encounter with Brock Lesnar, it appears that rising Heavyweight star and former “Ultimate Fighter” cast member Brendan Schaub will be the next man to challenge Frank Mir. Here are all the details.

According to MMA Weekly, both Frank Mir and Brendan Schaub have verbally agreed to fight each other sometime in early 2011, although nothing has been signed and an exact date is still to be determined. After a convincing Unanimous Decision over former UFC Heavyweight Championship contender Gabriel Gonzaga (who has since been released by the UFC), former “Ultimate Fighter” Season 10 cast member Brendan Schaub vocally called for higher-level competition. In fact, “The Hybrid” called out Frank Mir in particular. Schaub is on a three-fight win-streak with two finishes, and has only lost once in the UFC.

As stated earlier, Frank Mir was tentatively scheduled to fight Brock Lesnar for a third time following Lesnar’s recent loss to newly-crowned UFC Heavyweight Champion Cain Velasquez at UFC 121. The two men have a sordid and storied history: in their first fight, not only did Frank Mir spoil Lesnar’s debut, he handed him his first-ever loss. In their second fight, Lesnar resoundingly trounced Mir and left his face a bloody, bruised mess. To this day, the two men remain arch-rivals. Despite all of this, early reactions towards Mir/Lesnar 3 were so negative that Dana White basically called off his plans to make it happen. It appears that Mir has found his next opponent.

I like this fight for several reasons, and I think both men have it in them to put on an entertaining performance. First and foremost, I don’t think Brendan Schaub is afraid of Frank Mir or his ground game. The biggest problem I saw with the Mir/Filipovic fight was that Frank Mir was afraid to strike with Mirko Cro Cop and Mirko Cro Cop was afraid to grapple with Frank Mir. In his four fights in the UFC, Schaub has shown no fear of facing anyone in any facet of the MMA game.

If push comes to shove, Schaub will push the pace and force Mir to engage with him. And that’s an entertaining fight for several reasons. It always feels like Frank Mir’s best has to be dragged kicking and screaming out of him, but when it does emerge, Mir is an amazing performer. His striking has gotten a lot better, and his submission skills have always been at the top of the division.

Brendan Schaub is also no joke, and I think he’s proven once and for all that he’s ready for top-division competition. His loss to Roy Nelson is basically a distant memory now that he’s gotten some convincing wins under his belt. This fight will be the biggest test of Schaub’s career so far, and that includes the Nelson fight. If Schaub beats Mir, he’ll have all the base he needs to campaign for and ultimately receive a rematch with “Big Country” Roy Nelson, if he chooses to do so. And if Schaub wins that rematch, or any other match against a top-division athlete, I think we’ll have finally seen Schaub emerge as a legitimate championship contender.

So big, big things are in store for either man if one of them is able to finish and finish convincingly. Regardless of who wins, a boring performance is the last thing both fighters need right now, so expect this fight to be one to remember. And what about you, fans and friends? What’s your early opinion on this planned fight?