During the Pride FC era, Mirko Cro Cop has been one of the most feared heavyweight-MMA fighters in the world. His stoic composure, paired with efficient kickboxing and a deadly left high kick made him a dangerous opponent for every top fighter in the business. His MMA résumé features multiple historic fights against the likes of Fedor Emelianenko, Minotauro Nogueira or Josh Barnett, the 2006 Pride Open Weight Grand Prix belt as well as endless highlight-reel finishes.
But Cro Cop has never been able to cut it in the UFC.
After Pride’s demise in 2006, the Croatian stepped foot in the Octagon for the first time and went 1-2 within 7 months, including an upset-knockout loss via his signature left high kick to Gabriel Gonzaga – a loss that, as many feel, marked the end of Cro Cop’s prime.
After another stint in Japan, he returned to the UFC in 2009 and collected a few nice wins, but after losing three in a row – all of them brutal stoppages – Filipovic called it quits and left the UFC for good.
At least, that’s what everybody thought. On April 11th, Cro Cop will return to the UFC again, in the main event of UFC Krakow, against the man that dethroned him in 2007: Gabriel Gonzaga.
Since his last UFC departure, Cro Cop has fought some MMA bouts in Japan and kickboxing matches in K-1 and Glory, but still, one could wonder why he is giving it a third shot in the UFC now, at 40-years old.
Well, not because of the money, he says. The UFC quoted the “Croatian Sensation” as follows:
“I didn’t sign because of a huge contract, but exclusively for my own pleasure. I can’t wait for my fight for which I’ll be ready as a beast! I owe that to myself and my fans. I got a chance to, in a sports sense, right some things, if I can do that, great, if not, still good, at least I’ll know that I tried and that I gave it my all.”
(via UFC UK’s Facebook)