Tweet
Much has been made of the historic importance of July's UFC 100 in Las Vegas.
But the evening's highly anticipated main event between UFC heavyweight champ Brock Lesnar (3-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) and interim champ Frank Mir (12-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC) was supposed to take place at UFC 98.
A knee surgery Mir deemed necessary forced the rescheduling of the bout, but in the most recent episode of HDNet's "Inside MMA," Lesnar said he's not sure the move was made for the right reasons.
"I'm a little disappointed that it got pushed back," Lesnar said. "In my mind, is Frank really hurt, or is he just scared?"
Mir submitted Lesnar with a knee bar at UFC 81 in February 2008. Lesnar's first trip to the octagon - and his just his second career fight - Mir found himself in trouble early in the contest, but took advantage of a restart by referee Steve Mazagatti to lock in the fight-ending maneuver.
Lesnar said he's learned his lesson regarding the over-aggressive approach that cost him the bout.
"The biggest thing was that you've got 15 minutes," Lesnar said. "As soon as I entered the octagon, there were a few other key factors that played into why I rushed the fight. But those would be just plain old excuses.
"I lost the fight fair and square. I had him up against the fence, and believe I was winning the fight. But I made a rookie mistake and he capitalized on it. I'm looking forward to this upcoming fight with Frank."
Lesnar predicts a similar fight in July, but with a different final outcome.
"I think he understands the position that I had him in the first fight," Lesnar said. "I don't think it's going to change much in the second one, (but) with a different outcome for sure."
Lesnar also found humor in Mir's claims that the former WWE superstar is keeping "his belt."
"[Mir] won a make-believe belt from (Antonio Rodrigo) Nogueira," Lesnar said. "He is a former champion. But there's no ifs, ands or buts about it. I'm the current champion."
The conclusion of Lesnar's two-part interview with Ron Kruck airs on the April 10 episode of HDNet's "Inside MMA."
But the evening's highly anticipated main event between UFC heavyweight champ Brock Lesnar (3-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC) and interim champ Frank Mir (12-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC) was supposed to take place at UFC 98.
A knee surgery Mir deemed necessary forced the rescheduling of the bout, but in the most recent episode of HDNet's "Inside MMA," Lesnar said he's not sure the move was made for the right reasons.
"I'm a little disappointed that it got pushed back," Lesnar said. "In my mind, is Frank really hurt, or is he just scared?"
Mir submitted Lesnar with a knee bar at UFC 81 in February 2008. Lesnar's first trip to the octagon - and his just his second career fight - Mir found himself in trouble early in the contest, but took advantage of a restart by referee Steve Mazagatti to lock in the fight-ending maneuver.
Lesnar said he's learned his lesson regarding the over-aggressive approach that cost him the bout.
"The biggest thing was that you've got 15 minutes," Lesnar said. "As soon as I entered the octagon, there were a few other key factors that played into why I rushed the fight. But those would be just plain old excuses.
"I lost the fight fair and square. I had him up against the fence, and believe I was winning the fight. But I made a rookie mistake and he capitalized on it. I'm looking forward to this upcoming fight with Frank."
Lesnar predicts a similar fight in July, but with a different final outcome.
"I think he understands the position that I had him in the first fight," Lesnar said. "I don't think it's going to change much in the second one, (but) with a different outcome for sure."
Lesnar also found humor in Mir's claims that the former WWE superstar is keeping "his belt."
"[Mir] won a make-believe belt from (Antonio Rodrigo) Nogueira," Lesnar said. "He is a former champion. But there's no ifs, ands or buts about it. I'm the current champion."
The conclusion of Lesnar's two-part interview with Ron Kruck airs on the April 10 episode of HDNet's "Inside MMA."
It's funny that Lesnar says that Mir earned a "make-believe" belt....Didn't Mir win their fight??
Comment