Why 'big-game hunter' Frank Mir wanted Fedor Emelianenko in Bellator grand prix

Even before he officially got the matchup, Frank Mir knew he wanted a fight with Fedor Emelianenko.

The way Mir, a former UFC heavyweight champion, sees it, former longtime PRIDE titleholder Emelianenko is the biggest name in the eight-man field of the Bellator MMA World Grand Prix 2018.

MMAjunkie first reported plans for the multi-event tournament, which kicks off in January, this past week. And on Wednesday, officials formally confirmed the opening-round pairings, which include Emelianenko (36-5 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) vs. Mir (18-11 MMA, 0-0 BMMA) in the same bracket as Quinton Jackson (37-12 MMA, 4-1 BMMA) vs. Chael Sonnen (29-15-1 MMA, 1-1 BMMA).

Mir vs. Emelianenko is tentatively slotted for April.

“It’s like being a big-game hunter,” Mir, 38, told MMAjunkie Radio prior to the unveiling of the opening-round pairing. “I don’t want to go out there and shoot a little quail. You want to take out the biggest and the baddest.”

Mir will make his promotional debut as part of the fight with Emelianenko. The longtime UFC heavyweight was granted his release from the promotion in July while serving a suspension for a failed drug test (he’s denied taking any performance-enhancing drugs).

During his time off, Mir has kept busy with his podcast, “Phone Booth Fighting” (with Richard Hunter), and commentating duties for the Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB) promotion.

“I’ve seen so much more now, because I’ve watched so many countless hours of video of two guys fighting, actually breaking it down analytically.” said Mir, who suffered losses to Andrei Arlovski and Mark Hunt in the final of 27 career UFC fights (one shy of Michael Bisping’s current record). ” … My mind has advanced even more so.”

As for the possibility of fighting three times to claim the Bellator grand-prix crown and the vacant heavyweight belt, Mir, who hasn’t been in the cage since March 2016, said he likes having a fight schedule again.

“It’s nice to be a fighter again,” he said. “A little bit of limbo was the last year-and-a-half, not having a fight scheduled and not being able to participate. I finally get to fight again. It’s something that, when you don’t get to do what you love, it makes it even worse.”

For more on Bellator’s upcoming schedule, visit the MMA Rumors section of the site.

MMAjunkie Radio broadcasts Monday-Friday at 1 p.m. ET (10 a.m. PT) live from Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino’s Race & Sports Book. The show is hosted by “Gorgeous” George Garcia, Brian “Goze” Garcia and Dan Tom. For more information or to download past episodes, go to www.mmajunkie.com/radio.