Croatia’s Roberto Soldic is a hard-hitting southpaw with a stunning knockout record. Due his incredible skills in MMA, he has often been compared to combat sports legend Mirko Cro Cop Filipović.
‘Robocop’ Roberto Soldic is a former two-division KSW world champion having held titles at both welterweight and middleweight. The Croatian knockout striker will next be fighting at ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video booked for May 5. Soldic will be looking to add another knockout against former ONE welterweight world champion Zebaztian Kadestam.
Mirko Cro Cop is a Croatian southpaw knockout machine who had competed in K-1, PRIDE FC, the UFC, RIZIN, and much more. He is a retired combat sports legend having impressive records in both MMA and Kickboxing.
Roberto Soldic and Mirko Cro Cop
In an exclusive interview with MMA Sucka’s Tim Wheaton, Roberto Soldic discussed being compared to Mirko Cro Cop. ‘Robocop’ said:
“I like that. When I was younger, it was something [I always liked]. He’s a legend, you know. They always called me ‘Mini Cro Cop’ and I don’t get angry.” He continued, “The guy is a legend and a pioneer of MMA. I am very close to him now. He always calls me before [my] fights. I was there in Zagreb. It’s also one of my dreams come true because this guy’s a legend. Everyone knows him. When you say MMA, you [think] Fedor [Emelianenko] and Cro Cop.”
See the full interview below:
Roberto Soldic was inspired by the entire fighting generation of that era. Aside from Mirko Cro Cop, he added:
“That was exciting. Even kickboxing [Guys like] Ernesto Hoost, [Xhavit] Bajrami, [Alistair] Overeem, so many guys, man. It was really exciting. I was small but I followed these guys. Even Stefan Leko, he’s also in Germany and I saw him a couple of times. He’s a good friend too. Those were my heroes when I was a kid.”
PRIDE FC and K-1 were a huge inspiration for a young ‘Robocop,’ he added:
“Kevin Randleman. Mark Coleman. Those guys. That time [Alistair] Overeem was also in MMA and kickboxing. Mike Bernardo and Andy Hug. All those guys, I watched every time, even now sometimes. Even my coach, Ivan Hippolyte.”
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Thank you for the transcript courtesy of Sportskeeda MMA.