UFC 103 Preview: Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic Faces Crossroads Against Junior Dos Santos

Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic (25-6-2) is considered by many fans to be a living legend in the sport of mixed martial arts. The Croatian striker carved out his legacy as being a devastating kickboxer who could knock out nearly anyone in the ring with his patented left head kick that every opponent knew was coming. Mirko's striking, feints, and set ups made it nearly impossible for his opponents to gauge when the blow would strike, and Mirko fed on opponents for years in PRIDE from that mystery.

Nowadays, the jury is still out on whether the old "Cro Cop" will ever return. He was one of the first big name PRIDE fighters to make the trek to the UFC to try to prove his skills in the Octagon, winning his debut battle against Eddie Sanchez at UFC 67. In retrospect, it looked more like a Sanchez who was mentally defeated before he even stepped foot in the cage. Mirko's legendary status will do that to a fighter.

After a shocking loss to Gabriel Gonzaga at UFC 70 and a crushing defeat at UFC 75 at the hands of Cheick Kongo, Mirko moved on to take on competition outside of the organization. Many fans deemed the experiment over, and many believed that Mirko's career was on a downturn toward retirement.

Fortunately for fans, Mirko has managed to come back to the UFC with a surgically repaired knee, fixed deviated septum, and from the sounds of it -- a new hunger and determination to succeed. His UFC 99 match-up with Mustapha Al Turk ended in the first round via TKO, although there was some controversy surrounding how it ended. Nonetheless, fans are now rallying behind Mirko's presence back in the Octagon with open arms. Unfortunately, he's drawn a heavy-handed Brazilian beast in Junior Dos Santos (8-1).

Dos Santos burst onto the scene at UFC 90 by knocking out an arguable top 10 fighter in Fabricio Werdum, and backed up the belief that he could be a crushing force in the division by devastating newcomer Stefan Struve at UFC 95. The powerful 6'4", 240 lb. fighter was instantly thrust into discussions regarding the potential for a title run, but the UFC is still feeding Dos Santos some stiff tests... the next being Mirko "Cro Cop".

On paper, the first version of "Cro Cop" in the UFC doesn't stand a great chance against Dos Santos. He was much slower, looked to be bothered by the range of Kongo, and was unable to defend against the crushing elbows that Gonzaga pummeled him with during their bout. Today, "Cro Cop" should be much more adept to the problems he'll face in the Octagon. He's stated that he's trained extensively in his own cage in Croatia in which he has gained a considerable amount of knowledge in moving around it for his footwork, a huge issue that many fans have pointed out. Will that be enough?

I hate to play Devil's Advocate here, but this is a tough fight for me to jump back on the "Cro Cop" bandwagon for due to the real mystery as to whether his training is going to pay off for him on Saturday. I still believe he looked a bit slow against Mustapha Al-Turk, and Al-Turk was far from a formidable test considering Mirko has only been submitted once in his entire career. Dos Santos is a much more game opponent, and this should be the real test as to whether he's returned. The range could be a bit of a problem for Mirko as well, but speed and footwork will ultimately be what breeds success for Mirko in this fight.

I think this is truly the crossroads for Mirko. Many fans feel he was done after being beaten by Cheick Kongo, but a loss here would ultimately crush his goals for this run in the UFC, a shot at the title. He'd likely need to pick up some big wins in order to get back into the mix, and I don't think we'll ever see the quick version of Mirko "Cro Cop" back in MMA. Prove me wrong, Mirko...