UFC 119: Mir vs. Cro Cop

UFC 119: Mir vs. Cro Cop will be held on September 25, 2010 at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. This will be the first time the UFC has hosted an event in Indiana.

The main card will be between former UFC Heavyweight Champ Frank Mir and Mirko Filipović (Cro Cop).  Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira was originally scheduled to face Mir, but announced on August 15, 2010 that he would have to pull out of his bout due to an injury that will require surgery. Cro Cop announced that he will not be 100% in his fight against Mir, due to such short notice, but he will fight for his fans.

This will be Mir’s first fight since losing to Shane Carwin for the UFC Interim Heavweight Championship. He has never lost two fights in a row. However, Cro Cop is coming off an impressive victory over Pat Barry, earning him submission of the night via rear naked choke.

In the co-main event, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira will face Ryan Bader in a Light Heavyweight bout. Shortly after defeating Keith Jardine, Bader, along with a few others, left Arizona Combat Sports for the Lions Den MMA Academy, claiming they were unable to improve any further at ACS. Bader is undefeated in his mixed martial arts career and is the season 8 TUF winner. Nogueira is the twin brother of Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira and is currently 22-3 in his mixed martial arts career, having won both of his fights in the UFC. He has notable wins over Vladimir Matyushenko, Jason Brilz, Alistair Overeem, and Dan Henderson.

Matt Serra will fight Chris Lytle in a rematch from 2006 that Serra won via split decision. Serra has only fought four times since their last meeting, while Lytle has had eleven octagon appearances.

Main card

Heavyweight bout: Frank Mir vs. Mirko Filipović
Light Heavyweight bout: Antonio Rogerio Nogueira vs. Ryan Bader
Welterweight bout: Matt Serra vs. Chris Lytle
Lightweight bout: Sean Sherk vs. Evan Dunham
Lightweight bout: Melvin Guillard vs. Jeremy Stephens

Preliminary card (Spike TV)

Middleweight bout: C.B. Dollaway vs. Joe Doerksen
Heavyweight bout: Matt Mitrione vs. Joey Beltran

Preliminary card

Lightweight bout: Thiago Tavares vs. Pat Audinwood
Lightweight bout: Steve Lopez vs. Waylon Lowe
Welterweight bout: TJ Grant vs. Julio Paulino
Heavyweight bout: Mark Hunt vs. Sean McCorkle