Report: Cro Cop in for Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira vs. Frank Mir at UFC 119
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira has suffered a training injury that will likely require surgery and has pulled out of his UFC 119 main-event rematch with Frank Mir. Stepping in for the heavyweight will be Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic.
The news comes from Fighters Only magazine, citing a source close to the Nogueira camp, and comes just six weeks before the UFC's Indiana debut.
Nogueira (32-6-1, 3-2 UFC) reportedly suffered a hip injury that will require surgery. Mir (13-5, 11-5 UFC) beat Nogueira when they first met at UFC 92 in December 2008 by knockout.
The UFC had yet to confirm the new main event as of early Sunday evening. Nogueira's twin brother, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, meets Ryan Bader in UFC 119's co-main event.
Filipovic (27-7-2, 4-3 UFC) is coming off a submission win over Pat Barry at UFC 115 in June – his first submission victory in nearly four years. Filipovic, the former Pride Open-Weight Grand Prix champion, is 3-1 since returning to the UFC following a nearly two-year hiatus that saw him go 3-0-1 outside the promotion.
Mir last fought at UFC 111 in March, losing by knockout to Shane Carwin in a No. 1 contender's fight for the chance to meet heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar. Mir's last victory came at UFC 107 last December, a submission of Cheick Kongo.
UFC 119 will take place at the Conseco Fieldhouse in downtown Indianapolis on Sept. 25. The main card will air live on pay-per-view with at least two preliminary card fights airing live on Spike TV. The state of Indiana passed legislation to regulate MMA a year ago; that legislation took effect Jan. 1, paving the way for the UFC to make its Indiana debut.
The main card also sees the return of former lightweight champion Sean Sherk, who fights for the first time since UFC 98 when he meets unbeaten Evan Dunham. Indianapolis-based welterweight Chris Lytle rematches with Matt Serra, who beat him in the finale of Season 4 of "The Ultimate Fighter." And on the Spike prelims, Purdue University product and former NFL lineman Matt Mitrione, whose TKO of Kimbo Slice at UFC 113 effectively packed the bags of the infamous former street fighter, fights in front of his home fans when he meets Joey Beltran in a heavyweight bout.
READ MORE...
WANT MORE VISITOR TO YOUR BLOG!
Traffic G
Link Referral
Link Reviewer
