UFC 92: Another Piece of the Puzzle

On December 27, the UFC will be one step closer to solving the puzzle that is the Heavyweight Championship. UFC 91 Saw Brock Lesnar defeat the legendary Randy Couture to solidify his contention for the unified UFC Heavyweight title. The other half of that hotly contended title comes down to a matchup between jiu jitsu technicians Frank Mir and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, whose own legendary status rivals that of Couture.

The splintering of the heavyweight title into multiple components is a result of Couture’s dissatisfaction with the UFC as an organization and the fact that he left them with the need to create an interim belt in his absence.  Couture was widely touted as the best heavyweight in the world, second to only Fedor Emelianenko, whose own differences with the UFC practically rule out the possibilities of him ever stepping into the octagon.  Ironically, Couture is no longer involved in the title race, yet his actions were the catalyst for the division between the belts.

So now we are back to the UFC, back to the quest for the title which, in all likelihood won’t resolve the looming question of who the world’s best heavyweight is, but will definitely answer the question as to who the best heavyweight in the UFC is.  Which for many people,  is all that matters.

Mir vs. Nogueira is a ground fight fan’s dream. Both fighters have, to put it mildly, impressive jiu jitsu. Both fighters have snatched victory from the jaws of defeat by overcoming superior striking with basic jiu jitsu administered with lethal efficiency.  At UFC 81, Mir withstood a ground and pound barrage from Lesnar to pull out an knee bar victory.  In the same event, Nog captured the interim heavyweight title by enduring a striking storm of his own from Tim Sylvia. Nog was able to pull out a guillotine submission victory in the third round after getting the shorter end of the stand up exchanges.

The fight hype machine was fed even further by pitting Nogueira and Mir against one another as coaches on the latest season of the Ultimate Fighter. While Noguiera came off as a nurturing mentor whom anyone would want to learn from, Mir wasn’t portrayed in as positive a light. In fact, I would find it hard to believe that anyone who watched the entire season would walk away afterwards with a more positive viewpoint on Frank Mir. I really admired him and his fighting style when the show started. Now…well I definitely still admire his fighting style. Where Nog was portrayed as Mr. Miyagi, Mir came across more like the sensei at the Kobra Kai dojo. You could almost hear him yell “Sweep the leg” from his corner.  I fully understand that it is a reality show and it portrays people how the producers want to portray them, however Mir was definitely portrayed in an unfavorable light. ( Note that this unfavorable image does not take into account negatives such as Spike TV’s promos featuring repeated usage of both Mir’s commentary on his superior communication skills in ‘Call of Duty: World at War’ or his commentary on the amazing realism of ‘Transporter 3′)

So what’s the bottom line? Well, on the feet, both fighters are fairly comparable skill wise but I would give a slight edge to Nogueira in terms of a solid chin and his ability to take punishment. True, we’ve seen Mir take beatings before, but I doubt anyone will disagree that Minotauro can take a beating like no other. On the ground, they are also fairly even.  I don’t really see a distinct advantage for either fighter in this respect.  What I feel will decide this fight is heart, plain and simple. Nog’s heart is legendary. Mir’s, not so much. While Mir has been in a few intense battles, he hasn’t been ground to a pulp quite as extensively as Nog. The amazing part is that Nog also managed to win most of those fights he’s been beat down in. With such a closely matched fight, I give the slight advantage to Noguiera. 

I’m not entirely confident that he will win, but if I had to choose between the two I definitely choose Noguiera.  Regardless of who wins, they definitely have their work cut out for them in the massive MMA beast that is Brock Lesnar.  If Mir should pull out the win, the Lesnar he would face is dramatically improved from the Lesnar he beat months ago. If Nog should take it, he’ll definitely need that solid chin of his for that fight!