Frank Mir: A Life Spent Overcoming Adversity

Smug arrogance is often the first thing fans associate with Frank Mir.  A quick survey of his attitude towards Brock Lesnar reveals why. 

In an interview with Maxim, he described how Lesnar was "whimpering and wincing" from his kneebar.  On another occasion, Mir expressed a desire to kill Lesnar and thereby cause the UFC's first fatality.

While the former WWE star may be his top rival, Mir extends blunt criticisms to other opponents as well.  For instance, he managed to enrage Cheick Kongo by commenting on how his takedown abilities "sucked."

But athletes often have more to them than meets the eye.  In Mir's case, a cocky exterior hides one of sports' greatest comeback stories.     

Loser to State Champion

Mir's first impression of mixed martial arts was watching UFC 1 with his dad.  Shocked by how brutally effective Royce Gracie's jiu-jitsu was, his father wisely encouraged him to take up wrestling.  

The elder Mir, a kenpo karate instructor, had already taught his son how to kick and punch.  But ground-fighting would prove to be a completely different beast.    

As a junior in high school, he would lose the first nine matches of his amateur wrestling career.  Most people would give up or convince themselves that they weren't naturally talented enough. 

But Frank Mir was not a quitter.  Instead of taking the easy way out, he persevered.  When winter sports season came around again, he became a Nevada state champion wrestler.  

Fall from Grace and Frustrating Recovery

After taking the UFC heavyweight belt from Tim Sylvia with a bone-snapping armbar, Mir was king of the world.  But his celebration was cut short by a traffic accident just three months later.  On Sept. 17, 2004, a careless driver ran a red light and sent him flying off his motorcycle.  

The diagnosis, torn knee ligaments and a fractured femur, left doctors unsure about whether he could even relearn to walk normally.

He once again defied the odds by announcing a return to the Octagon.  But despite a successful rehabilitation program, he wasn't exactly out of the woods yet.  After all, months of not exercising had made him badly overweight.  As a result, he went on to lose by technical knockout to both Marcio Cruz and Brandon Vera.  

UFC 74 would prove to be the turning point in his road back to the top.  He showed up as the lean, muscular athlete that everyone remembered him as.  His opponent, Dutch kickboxer Antoni Hardonk, didn't even make it out of the first round.  A kimura armlock was all it took.  

Dealing with Wrestlers

Mir has been on a roll since his battle with Hardonk.  He's racked up the most heavyweight wins in UFC history and won an interim heavyweight belt.  In addition, he's triumphed over two legends from PRIDE Fighting Championships; Mirko Filipovic and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.  And he's only suffered two losses while doing it all. 

Unfortunately, those defeats were one-sided beatings from Brock Lesnar and Shane Carwin.  To avoid being overpowered by national champion wrestlers in the future, he significantly revamped his weight training in an effort to pack more muscle onto his 6-foot-3 frame.  The results are visibly noticeable.

While he will have to face an elite wrestler to see if this is truly paying off, it's looking favorable.  In his last UFC outing, he controlled noted grappler Roy Nelson in the clinch and even completed a spectacular judo throw.  During the post-fight interview, his opponent expressed surprise over how strong he was.