When Frank Mir and Alistair Overeem fought each other at UFC 169, fans might as well have dubbed it a "loser leaves town match." But it seems like the man who lost, Mir, isn't leaving the UFC anytime soon.
Mir's manager, Malki Kawa, spoke with Fox Sports about what the former UFC heavyweight champion has been up to since the UFC 169 loss.
"He's just taking time off," Kawa said. "He's taking a little bit of time and we'll figure out what his next fight is going to be, and what he's going to do next. Right now we haven't come to a conclusion on that time frame yet."
UFC President Dana White had previously said that both Mir's and Overeem's roster spots in the UFC were on the line at UFC 169. The loss to Overeem was Mir's fourth in a row. But to Mir's credit, the guys he was losing to were ranked in the top five within recent memory.
Mir has been with the UFC since UFC 34 in 2001 and sports a 14-9 record in the Octagon. He won the UFC heavyweight title against Tim Sylvia at UFC 48 in 2004. The fight ended in devastating fashion as Sylvia's arm visibly broke onscreen as Mir cranked on an arm-bar attempt.
Mir also won an interim title at UFC 92, becoming the first man to defeat Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira via strikes. Mir is also the only man to defeat the touted Brazilian by submission as well. The Las Vegas native owns a number of UFC records for the heavyweight division, including most wins in the UFC and most fights, and he is tied for most finishes.
For his sake, I hope Mir does step away from the sport. He's been great on the mic, providing analysis for the WEC in the past, and is one of the more knowledgeable fighters in MMA. He's also not at the point to where he can't form sentences and needs captions for when he talks.
It's clear Mir can't hang on the same level as the heavyweight elite, and other than collecting another paycheck, there's really nothing for Mir to obtain by stepping back into the Octagon. There are plenty of ways for a man like Mir to get paid without having his brain cells scrambled.
