“Why Are They Doing This?” - Fans Left Stunned by Long-Awaited Heavyweight Clash Nearly Two Decades Too Late
Back in 2012, when the UFC’s heavyweight division was stacked with some of the biggest names in the sport, a Cain Velasquez vs. Frank Mir showdown felt like a fight that was bound to happen.
Mir, a then 19-fight veteran with elite Brazilian jiu-jitsu credentials, was scheduled to face the rising Mexican-American powerhouse at UFC 146. Velasquez had already established himself as one of the division’s most relentless heavyweights, combining exceptional conditioning, wrestling, and heavy hands. But the matchup never became a reality until now.
Cain Velasquez vs. Frank Mir - AIGA Global's Wrestling extravaganza
When Alistair Overeem was forced out of his UFC 146 title fight against Junior dos Santos, Mir (18-11-0) stepped in as a replacement to challenge the Brazilian for the heavyweight gold. That decision ultimately robbed fans of a clash they had been waiting for.
Nearly 14 years later, Velasquez (14-3-0) and Mir are finally set to share the cage. Yet instead of excitement taking over, the announcement has left fans pondering a very different question: why?
For the unversed, the former UFC heavyweight kings are scheduled to face each other in California, as part of an AIGA Global wrestling tournament. While the matchmakers have yet to finalize a date and venue for the bout, it is slated to take place in November.
Red Corner MMA recently posted a video of the two legends facing off on social media. With the event scheduled for November, the promoters appear to have already started the festivities, but despite their decorated careers, their history in the UFC, and years of competing on the same cards, fans weren't exactly enthusiastic about finally seeing Velasquez and Mir face each other.
"Why are they doing this?probably make more with mvp in a mma match," asked one fan, to whom the bout didn't even make sense, but elsewhere in some other promotion. For others, the sight of the veterans facing each other became a trip down memory lane - "My goodness. Frank Mi. Makes me feel old. Remember when he caught Brock Lesnar in a kneebar in their first fight. That’s 18 years ago."
Fans Question Frank Mir's Shape
As seen in the video, 44-year-old Velasquez appears to be in better shape than 47-year-old Mir, who visibly carries more weight around his midsection, and naturally, the internet was quick to notice. “Mir looks to be in terrible shape,” one fan wrote. Another took a more sarcastic route, referencing Mir's infamous bout with Tim Sylvia, where the former UFC heavyweight champion broke Sylvia's arm.
“If Mir isn't allowed to snap your arm then he's screwed. Cain for the win in wrestling.” But perhaps the most fitting reaction played on something that has followed both men into the later stages of their lives, fatherhood. Velasquez has two children, while Mir has four. Yet for fans, there was another “father” in the room, and he remains undefeated - “Father Time remains undefeated!”
UFC 146 Throwback to When Heavyweights Ruled the Octagon
For longtime UFC fans, the Velasquez-Mir matchup also brings back a very different era of the heavyweight division. UFC 146 wasn't just another pay-per-view with a heavyweight fight at the top. In fact, it was a card almost entirely built around the big men.
Five heavyweight bouts opened the main card in succession - Mir challenging Junior dos Santos for the title, Velasquez against Antonio "Big Foot" Silva, Roy Nelson vs. Dave Herman, a young Stipe Miocic going against Shane del Rosario, and Stefan Struve vs. Lavar Johnson.
The names alone are enough to take longtime fans back. Dos Santos was the reigning heavyweight champion, while Velasquez was still chasing another run at the belt after the former beat him to it. Meanwhile, "Big Country" Nelson was already one of the division's most recognizable characters.
Miocic was only beginning to establish himself in what would later become an illustrious journey to the top of the 265-lb mountain. Even Struve, at just 24 years old, was already a familiar face in the UFC's heavyweight ranks.
The card feels almost unusual by today's standards. Five heavyweight fights, one after another, with every bout carrying a name that meant something to the division. There was no need to manufacture nostalgia around it. The heavyweight division simply had it.
More than a decade later, Velasquez and Mir finally getting the matchup that slipped away at UFC 146 is therefore bound to stir memories. But it also highlights just how much time has passed. What was once a clash between two of the division's elite is now a meeting between two retired UFC champions, with the fight taking place under completely different circumstances.
