Sources http://www.fightersonlymagazine.co.u...le.php?id=1613 http://www.411mania.com/MMA/news/936...e-in-2009?.htm Mirko ‘CroCop’ Filopivic says he will probably retire in 2009 - and he wants his final fight to be in the UFC. He told Croatian newspaper Jutarnji (‘Early Riser’) today that he turns 35 later this year and has to give serious thought to quitting MMA. Asked about his plans for the year, he said: “I'm not in the years when you can create a long-term plan... today my health is my priority. “I believe that during 2009 I will fight three more times for Dream, then I hope for a farewell fight in the UFC.†He was speaking as it emerged that the operation he requires on his knee has been postponed for nearly two weeks because of flu. Filopovic has severe knee damage and needs ligaments repairing, but has to wait until his immune system is strong enough to handle an operation. He said that after the operation, he will need three months to recover and then will train “For several weeks†to get fighting fit before competing again. John Joe O’Regan
At least he knows his days are numbered. 4 fights is too much for him at this point IMO. He could be KTFO in his first fight this year and if he is, he should retire immediately.
I stopped taking an interest in CroCop after the Kongo loss. To me, he was a bit like Tyson. Beating up on relative weak japanese guys and clowns and intimidating everybody until the comp stepped up (Fedor, Hunt) and put him in his place, and then more guys stopped being afraid of him and took his ass out (Gonzaga, Kongo), and now every fight is a challenge to CroCop because his mystique is gone. Nobody is scared of CroCop.
there is alot to what you say here. But I also think it has a lot to do with he is much older now, and not the same fighter. I agree that he was beating up on a bunch of clowns in Japan, but his fight against Fedor was legit. At the time, there were only a few HW's in the world that could hang. I agree, much of the mystique of "CroCop" is gone, guys aren't afraid of those kicks any more. But the CroCop who lost to Kongo, isn't the same fighter that lost to Fedor in Legendary fashion. He won't fight 4 times in '09. Ain't gonna happen at this stage of his career. They could put together a final fight in the UFC with Hardonk. It would be somewhat marketableopcorn:
the only thing wrong with crocop is his fear of getting hit, he wasnt the same since the randleman ko and the gonzaga ko only made it worse. during the gonzaga fight crocop didnt throw a single punch, not one. another thing that pissed me off about crocop was the fact that he said he lost to gonzaga because they fought in a cage. wtf. so a high kick to the head in a cage feels totally different to a highkick in a ring.
yeah, that was some bullshit. What is funny, is all the retards over at Sherdog, totally fell for it, hook, line, and sinker::
Before the high kick, Gonzaga was in CroCop's guard and pushing him into the fence and raining elbows down on his skull, opening a few cuts in the process before Herb Dean stood them back up. It might have been a different matter in the ring where CroCop is more difficult to keep down. Even Fedor couldn't land any clean punches in CroCop's guard.
This is alot to do with it. As well as Nog. You can't expect these guys to go through wars and it not have long term affects on them. Its no different from boxing. CroCop has been fighting for a long time and in that time he has been in wars. When he was younger, his body healed easier, now it isn't. With that combined with age just making him slower, its just obvious. All of the UFC fans that only know CroCop ,Wanderlei, and Nog from their recent fights in the UFC don't understand how really great these guys were. And I am not taking shots at anyone on the board, I know WE all know how good they were, it just aggrevates me how new fans to the sport want to take cheap shots at guys who were straight up warriors in the ring/cage
