Mirko Filipovic was dizzy yesterday, but not from the strikes, but from the anestetics. Our best free fighter finally decided to undergo a nose surgery. In "Sestre milosrdnice hospital", dr. Vladimir Bedekovic, the chief of plastic and reconstructive surgery of head and neck, did the septum deviation surgery. Although he was prepared for every fight, the problem with breathing caused Mirko Cro Cop to lose breath in the second and third round. - when i cheked in the doctor saw my closed nose channel, and he couldnt belive that i could be a top sportsman with that kind of nose. It seems that this problem took more than 50 percent of my combat stamina. – said Cro Cop before the surgery. The procedure lasted longer than 2 and a half hours --- Klaudija, Mirkos wife and an expert in anestetics was with him all along.
The fact that he decided for this operation tell us that mirko wants to continue his carrer after all.
source: vecernji list translation: yamato_damashii in www.nokaut.com/forum
Cheick Kongo defeat Cro Cop by Decision (Unaminous)
This is 2nd Cro Cop loss in his last 2 fights There is no fire in Cro Cop any more. I'm big Cro Cop fan, but i must say that is Cro Cop death like a fighter. In 15 minutes, Cro Cop hit Kongo with 4 middle kicks and that it. No boxing, no high kick and low kick – just one big nothing. Only little domination in 1st round, but without big punch. Totally disappointing fight by Mirko Cro Cop Filipovic. Zao mi je Mirko ali odustani jer nije sve u novcima. Rusis sve sto si godinama gradio.
VIDEO Cheick Kongo Vs. Cro Cop
Play-by-Play Cheick Kongo Vs. Cro Cop
Round 1 Kongo works the legs and lands a knee to the body. "Cro Cop" fires two left leg body kicks that land. Kongo slips while throwing a kick but Mirko can't take advantage. Kongo pushes Cro Cop against the cage and throws knees to the inside of Mirko's right thigh. Filipovic catches a Kongo body kick and takes him to the mat. The Croatian lands an elbow from half-guard and throws left hands to the body. Mirko takes the mount with 50 seconds remaining. Punches land for the PRIDE veteran. Kongo escapes in the round's final seconds Sherdog.com scores the first 10-9 for "Cro Cop."
Round 2 Two hard body kicks score for Kongo. Filipovic answers with a stiff left leg to Kongo's midsection. Kongo takes Filipovic down with a single-leg. Kongo elbows the head from side-control. "Cro Cop" eats a nasty left elbow before using good leg work to achieve full-guard. Heels on hips for Mirko. Kongo stands over Filipovic and lands an axe kick to the body. Mirko kicks the taller fighter off and works to his feet. Knees to the body score for Kongo. The French fighter lands three knees to the body before the horn sounds. Though now tired, Kongo absolutely dominated Mirko in the second round, 10-9.
Round 3 Knee to the body and a straight right snaps Cro Cop's head back. Kongo knees Mirko in the groin. "Big" John McCarthy stops the contest to warn the French fighter. Stiff body kick lands for Kongo. And another. Filipovic is getting schooled in London. Kongo clinches with the Croat against the fence. McCarthy separates them and restarts the action. Kongo lands a knee to the chin that stuns Filipovic. 40 seconds remain in the contest. The horn sounds to end the bout. Kongo took it to the PRIDE ace without a doubt, 10-9. All three judges agree, 29-28 for Kongo.
from www.sherdog.com
VIDEO Cheick Kongo Post Fight Interview
Heavyweight Cheick Kongo talks about his victory over Mirko Cro Cop at UFC 75.
Kongo Upsets Cro Cop on UFC 75
What was expected to be Armageddon turned out to be more of a chess match, but in the end, Paris, France’s Cheick Kongo was Garry Kasparov as he scored a three round unanimous decision win over Mirko Cro Cop in a heavyweight upset that saw the former PRIDE star lose two fights in a row for the first time in his mixed martial arts career.
All three judges scored the bout 29-28 for Kongo, whose record now stands at 21-3-1. Cro Cop, who was knocked out in the first round by Gabriel Gonzaga in April, falls to 22-6-2 and 1-2 in the Octagon.
Cro Cop didn’t show any ill effects from the Gonzaga fight early, as he stalked forward confidently. But though Kongo let his foe lead, he wasn’t shy about letting his own strikes go, landing the occasional leg kick. The two briefly locked up against the fence in the bout’s third minute, but were re-started by referee John McCarthy. Moments later, Cro Cop put Kongo on the canvas and showed his new knowledge of the Octagon landscape, pushing the Frenchman against the fence and working his strikes from the mat, eventually getting into the mount position. For his part, Kongo held Cro Cop close, looking to force a standup, but to no avail, as Cro Cop stayed active and even attempted a triangle choke when the two scrambled just before the bell.
Kongo took the role of aggressor in round two, keeping Cro Cop from getting too close with his strikes. With under four minutes left, the two clinched, and Kongo scored a takedown, quickly moving into side control. Cro Cop escaped serious danger quickly, but Kongo didn’t let his opponent get up, instead opting to fire kicks from a standing ad position on the prone Cro Cop before jumping back into the guard. With just over a minute left, Cro Cop fired up with both legs, giving himself enough room to stand, but Kongo kept him pinned against the fence, and after a brief break by McCarthy, he finished the round by scoring with knees at close range.
With the fight apparently deadlocked, Kongo again pushed the pace in the final round in an attempt to score the upset. But Kongo’s good early work was interrupted when the bout was halted briefly for Cro Cop to recover from low knees. When the bout resumed, Kongo kept the heat on, scoring with kicks and then pushing the Croatian to the fence. After another re-start by McCarthy, Cro Cop tried to fire off his deadly left kick, but it had little effect on Kongo, who continued his forward march. As the bout entered it’s final 1:30, Cro Cop, now sporting a mouse under his right eye, tried to pull the fight out, but Kongo was not to be denied. And while his victory was not the most scintillating of wins, his rock solid gameplan worked like a charm in the final two rounds, in the process leaving Cro Cop’s future open to debate.
When Mirko Cro Cop steps into the Octagon to test his mettle against Cheick Kongo this Saturday night in London, England, it will be a battle of two standup super predators – two men occupying the top of the striking food chain. It has all the earmarks of a spectacular fight, if both men come out aggressively firing shots in search of a crowd-pleasing knockout victory.
But there is a lot more at stake at UFC 75 than just trying to win the “knockout of the night” bonus check from UFC President Dana White. Cro Cop was on the fast track to a title shot against Randy Couture before he was abruptly derailed by Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 70. A win over Kongo in dominant fashion puts him right back on course.
Kongo, by contrast, wants to prove that he is ready to challenge for the title, and a win over Cro Cop makes a resounding statement.
What must each man do to increase his chances of victor? Let’s break it down.
BRING THE PRESSURE EARLY AND CLOSE THE DISTANCE
Make no mistake about it: Kongo is willing to stand and trade strikes with anyone in the UFC, including Cro Cop.
The Parisian knockout artist has very good power in both hands, but his length and punching style requires that he throw shots from the outside to maximize their impact. But fighting on the outside isn’t an option on Saturday night.
Cro Cop excels, and many would argue that he is almost unbeatable, when he dictates the pace of a fight. Stalking at a measured pace, the Croatian Special Forces veteran’s aura of intimidation causes trepidation in foes, leading them to retreat and hesitate in the face of the impending onslaught. That allows Cro Cop to set the distance and use slight shoulder and hip feints to open the door for exactly what his foe fears most – a lead or counter high kick that they neither see nor feel but later hear about from their corner as they regain consciousness.
On the other hand, Cro Cop isn’t nearly as effective when he is moving backwards. He begins to hesitate himself, focusing more on preparing for a sprawl to prevent a takedown attempt than unleashing hell in the form of his vaunted strikes.
Of course, the problem with forcing Cro Cop to move backwards is an obvious one – Kongo must wade into the heart of darkness and risk getting knocked out, rather than staying on the outside and taking advantage of his superior height and reach in an attempt to outpoint Cro Cop. But that is what he needs to do if he is going to win the fight.
When referee “Big” John McCarthy signals that it is time to “get it on,” Kongo needs to quickly close the distance with his hands very high. Cro Cop’s natural tendency is to step right and throw a quick high kick in response to someone rushing him. Kongo can block the kick with his arms, if it comes, and then begin firing his very dangerous hands.
Nevertheless, Kongo should be careful not to become right hand happy. Cro Cop has a devastating left cross but a very ho-hum right hook. Kongo should guard against a counter left by quickly following any right hands with clean-up left hooks, as well as smothering Cro Cop’s left side to crowd the shot.
Cro Cop will become frustrated if he is pressured and crowded early, which could lead to sloppy, telegraphed high kicks that open the door for good crisp counter shots by Kongo.
KEEP GONZAGA FRESH IN CRO COP’S MIND
UFC 70 wasn’t the first time that Cro Cop suffered a devastating knockout loss. Back in April 2004, former UFC Heavyweight Champion Kevin Randleman landed a leaping left hook that crumbled Cro Cop to the canvas in the opening round of Pride’s 2004 heavyweight grand prix. It was every bit as shocking and devastating as Gonzaga’s knockout win over Cro Cop in Manchester, England last April.
It is always interesting to see how an intimidating knockout fighter will rebound from getting knocked out himself. Cro Cop didn’t keep fans wondering for long, as he returned to the Pride ring less than a month later, facing Hiromitsu Kanehara at Pride Bushido 3. Despite facing a vastly inferior foe, Cro Cop was extremely tentative in the fight, hesitating to pull the trigger on fight-ending strikes time and time again, even though opportunities to fire away remained constant throughout the bout.
In other words, Cro Cop’s mind was filled with doubt following his first knockout loss. He never expected Randleman to land such a brutal blow, and his subconscious undoubtedly wondered if Kanehara would follow suit. Had Cro Cop faced a more dangerous foe on that May evening in Japan, that self doubt may have led to back-to-back losses for the first time in his career because mixed martial arts is not a game for those who hesitate.
Saturday night will be the second time in his career that Cro Cop tries to rebound from a devastating knockout loss. Will he be the same gun-shy fighter that showed up against Kanehara?
Kongo needs to find out early before Cro Cop has a chance to regain his confidence inside the Octagon. That means starting early with the intimidation game.
Kongo should show up at the weigh-ins and act very confidently toward Cro Cop. He should demonstrate to the Croatian that he isn’t intimidated—that he views Cro Cop as damaged goods.
At the beginning of the fight, he should come out very aggressively, as mentioned above. He needs to get into Cro Cop’s face early and often, looking to take advantage of any lingering effects of UFC 70.
CHOP DOWN THE TREE
One of the most underrated parts of Cro Cop’s game is the devastation he causes with leg kicks. Whereas most fighters use leg kicks sort of like a boxer uses the jab, Cro Cop views them as yet another knockout weapon in his arsenal.
One year ago, he put that weapon on vivid display against Hidehiko Yoshida.
Yoshida, a former Olympic gold medalist in judo, was a guy that needed to close the distance in order to have a shot at beating Cro Cop. The Croatian’s response was to fire leg kick after leg kick with the speed and power similar to what we see when Alex Rodriguez swings a baseball bat.
Through the first two-thirds of the opening round, Cro Cop focused his attack on the Japanese judoka’s legs. Each time one found its mark, Yoshida’s face twisted in pain. Finally, after 12 or 13 savage kicks, Yoshida’s leg was so damaged that he could not put any weight on it, and he was forced to verbally submit.
Kongo is an excellent kickboxer, so leg kicks shouldn’t be as effective against him because he is very adept at checking them. But if he fights very aggressively, then his weight will be forward more often, which leaves him very susceptible to leg kicks. Cro Cop can seize upon that by blasting leg kicks in the opening round.
Landing those kicks will allow Cro Cop to score and circle, thereby maintaining the proper distance to keep his left high kick in play.
DON’T RETREAT, PLANT AND FIRE
For all of Cro Cop’s striking prowess, it is remarkable that he rarely engages in thrilling exchanges. Cro Cop is much more of a stick-and-move fighter who can end things with a single blow than a Mike Tyson-type guy who rushes in behind scud missiles looking to destroy any and everything in his path.
Part of that is due to the fact that his standup weapon of choice is a kick, not a punch. Kicks need space. They need to be set up. So they don’t tend to be as effective during in-fighting.
Nevertheless, Cro Cop’s left cross is an extremely devastating weapon. When it finds a bull’s-eye, it can end a fight with it in the blink of an eye. At the very least, he can cause fight-altering damage, even when it isn’t perfectly placed.
Kongo loves to fire lead right hands when he charges in, and Cro Cop can effectively counter such an attack by slipping to his own right, planting his feet and firing a straight left. If Kongo drops, the fight is over. If he stops in his tracks, Cro Cop can follow up with a left high kick. Either way, he will be much better served if he plants and fires, particularly against a guy with limited takedown skills, than if he retreats and tries to fight while backing up.
Was UFC 70 merely a temporary pause in Cro Cop’s quest to eventually wear UFC gold? Can Kongo follow in Gonzaga’s footsteps and catapult his career at Cro Cop’s expense?
