Junior Dos Santos: ‘Frank Mir Lacks Heart’

Hype vs. reality.

It’s a part of the game that comes along with building up to any major fight. UFC middleweight contender Chael Sonnen hates the word hype because he feels like when a fighter says something just to build up the anticipation to a big bout, they are essentially lying to everyone and not revealing their true feelings.

So it did come as a surprise when UFC heavyweight champion Junior Dos Santos, who has remained a fairly quiet and reserved individual throughout his time in past interviews, seem to blast opponent Frank Mir with some pretty rigid comments heading into UFC 146.

During the first episode of UFC Primetime, Dos Santos ripped into Mir for failing to rebound in tough situations during past fights.

“He’s not a man, he gives up,” said Dos Santos. “Against Shane Carwin he pretended he was hurt, he’s full of it.”

For his part, Frank Mir believes that his latest opponent is just trying to learn the art of trash talking, and currently he’s receiving a failing grade.

“No one likes to hear anything negative said about them, but I just broke down on why he said what he said when he backed it up on certain fights and I looked at it. I have no issues with my matches so I just took it as him trying to sell the fight, and try to stir the pot,” Mir said on Thursday.

“Dos Santos I think has done better as far as a fighter in the Octagon, than he has as far as trying to sell the fights. So it’s something he’s new at and maybe not very successful with.”

Is Dos Santos just trying to sell this fight? Is this hype or reality talking?

Well, the UFC’s reigning heavyweight champion had the chance to recant those statements on Thursday and he wasn’t about to back off. In fact, he reiterated his initial comments and put a big exclamation point on the end.

“I don’t promote fights by talking trash. What I say, I say because I believe it. I confirm and I stand by what I said and what I meant by that remark is that I feel Frank Mir lacks heart and lacks the ability to perceive through tough spots in a fight,” Dos Santos stated.

“That’s my personal opinion, that’s what I truly believe.”

Dos Santos points out that anything he says is what he feels or believes, and it’s never embellished to try and sell a fight. There’s nothing for sale here, this is what Dos Santos thinks about Frank Mir, and he can like it or not, but it’s not changing.

“I don’t say things just to sell fights,” said Dos Santos. “I’m not a trash talker, I never will be. If I said it, that’s my true opinion.”

Dos Santos will get the chance to back up those words when he meets Frank Mir in the main event of UFC 146 next weekend.

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