Cro Cop ready for another run at UFC glory
by Zimooya | June 12, 2009 | In MMA, Mirko Filipovic, UFC, UFC 99 | No Comments
Source: http://www.usatoday.com/
Mirko Filipovic joined the UFC two years ago amid more hype and expectation than perhaps any fighter in mixed martial arts history — and Cro Cop flopped.
After three desultory fights forced Filipovic into a yearlong retreat for mental adjustments and knee surgery, he returns to the octagon at UFC 99 on Saturday night in Cologne, Germany, against Mostapha Al Turk. The former anti-terrorist policeman in his native Croatia should have plenty of countrymen cheering the start of his second run toward the UFC heavyweight title.
And the 34-year-old Cro Cop insists he’s better prepared to put on the show many expected when he first joined the UFC. After tinkering with his training and clearing his mind, he’s ready to show off a new approach still built on the superb kickboxing and standup fighting that made him a star in Japan and an international attention-grabber.
“I’ve spent much time thinking about it,” Filipovic said. “Maybe I was empty after (Japan). Maybe I wasn’t adapted for the cage. Maybe I wasn’t hungry enough, I don’t know. I don’t mean blood for real, but I just couldn’t smell the blood as I could in my previous fights. I just wasn’t the old one.”
