Mir Picks Carwin, Wants Lesnar Rubber Match
Greg Savage Oct 11, 2009
Frank
Mir made it clear that he is set on breaking the 1-1 deadlock
he has with UFC heavyweight champion Brock
Lesnar Friday during a Q and A session for fans after the WEC
weigh-ins in San Antonio, Texas.
However, the former UFC heavyweight champion said he believed the pair wouldn’t be fighting for the belt should their third encounter happen in the near future. Mir told the crowd that he felt Shane Carwin would defeat Lesnar in their main event bout at UFC 106 on Nov. 21 in Las Vegas. Noting Carwin’s strength, Mir stated that he did not believe Lesnar would be able to bully Carwin the way he did to him at UFC 100 last July.
When asked if he had spoken with Lesnar since the bout and their
post-fight altercation, Mir said he had not, but that he was still
planning on it.
“If I do what I have to do, I will get locked in the cage with him again and we will discuss it then,” said Mir, who is slated to face Cheick Kongo at UFC 107 on Dec. 12 in Memphis.
Finally, Mir touched on his interest in fighting middleweight champion Anderson Silva, who reportedly named Mir his choice candidate at heavyweight last August. In an exclusive interview with Sherdog.com shortly after, Mir said he’d “rip (Silva’s) shoulder out of the socket.”
“I would be extremely interested in that fight,” said Mir Friday. “I have learned that size helps people win fights. It would be a bad night for him if we end up grappling. He should keep doing a few exhibitions at light heavyweight and stay at middleweight.”
In other notes:
• WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner informed the group that he has been cleared to resume fight training and that his hand is 100 percent. He said he hopes Donald Cerrone -- the toughest man he has ever fought -- wins his interim-title fight against Benson Henderson Saturday night because he really wants to fight him again.
• Varner, discussing the simmering feud with Cerrone that has nearly boiled over on a number of occasions, told the crowd that he’d been informed by the WEC that if anything happened between the two fighters outside of the cage their careers with the promotion would be in jeopardy.
• Miguel Torres repeatedly stated that he would like to rematch Brian Bowles as soon as possible. The former bantamweight champ seems obsessed with erasing the humbling knockout loss as quickly as he can. He also noted that he should be returning to the WEC cage in January.
• Torres also stated that it looks like Bowles will square off with No. 1 contender Dominick Cruz next, so he will have to take at least one fight before getting his chance to fight Bowles. He said if Cruz wins, he would still rather face Bowles than take a crack at Cruz and regaining the title.
However, the former UFC heavyweight champion said he believed the pair wouldn’t be fighting for the belt should their third encounter happen in the near future. Mir told the crowd that he felt Shane Carwin would defeat Lesnar in their main event bout at UFC 106 on Nov. 21 in Las Vegas. Noting Carwin’s strength, Mir stated that he did not believe Lesnar would be able to bully Carwin the way he did to him at UFC 100 last July.
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“If I do what I have to do, I will get locked in the cage with him again and we will discuss it then,” said Mir, who is slated to face Cheick Kongo at UFC 107 on Dec. 12 in Memphis.
Mir declined to answer whether he was suffering from a knee injury
during his loss to the brutish 2000 NCAA Div. I wrestling champion,
which had postponed the bout by two-and-a-half months. He made it
clear he was not going to walk down the same path he felt Antonio
Rodrigo Nogueira took after losing to Mir.
Finally, Mir touched on his interest in fighting middleweight champion Anderson Silva, who reportedly named Mir his choice candidate at heavyweight last August. In an exclusive interview with Sherdog.com shortly after, Mir said he’d “rip (Silva’s) shoulder out of the socket.”
“I would be extremely interested in that fight,” said Mir Friday. “I have learned that size helps people win fights. It would be a bad night for him if we end up grappling. He should keep doing a few exhibitions at light heavyweight and stay at middleweight.”
In other notes:
• WEC lightweight champion Jamie Varner informed the group that he has been cleared to resume fight training and that his hand is 100 percent. He said he hopes Donald Cerrone -- the toughest man he has ever fought -- wins his interim-title fight against Benson Henderson Saturday night because he really wants to fight him again.
• Varner, discussing the simmering feud with Cerrone that has nearly boiled over on a number of occasions, told the crowd that he’d been informed by the WEC that if anything happened between the two fighters outside of the cage their careers with the promotion would be in jeopardy.
• Miguel Torres repeatedly stated that he would like to rematch Brian Bowles as soon as possible. The former bantamweight champ seems obsessed with erasing the humbling knockout loss as quickly as he can. He also noted that he should be returning to the WEC cage in January.
• Torres also stated that it looks like Bowles will square off with No. 1 contender Dominick Cruz next, so he will have to take at least one fight before getting his chance to fight Bowles. He said if Cruz wins, he would still rather face Bowles than take a crack at Cruz and regaining the title.
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