Cro Cop does it again!
Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipović (44) will fight against Roy Nelson (42) in the Bellator 216 on Saturday night in Uncasville, Connecticut. The fight will take place around 4 am on Sunday Croatia time, reports Index.hr on February 16, 2019.
While the grand event will be held at the Mohegan Sun Casino Arena, if you’re in Croatia, you can watch the fight between Mirko Filipović and Roy Nelson on MaxTV, TotalTV, VipTV, H1TV, IskonTV, OptiTV on Fight Channel and gol.hr.
If he wins, Mirko Filipović will get revenge on Roy Nelson who won seven years ago, on October 29, 2011, at the UFC 127. Their rematch was originally scheduled for last May in London but was canceled due to Filipovic's left knee injury.
Recall, ‘Cro Cop’ and ‘Big Country’ were supposed to fight at the jubilee Bellator 200, though the Croatian fighter had to pull out due to his ACL injury. Filipović sent an apology to Nelson and announced that they would fight again.
"I will recuperate as soon as possible and hope that we will then have a chance. I'm really looking forward to this, and I hope you will accept a fight again,” Filipović said to Nelson at the end of May.
Filipović recovered from his injury faster than expected and defeated Roque Martinez at the Rizin 13 spectacle in Japan. Mirko’s next fight was supposed to be at the Rizin this New Year's Eve, though they failed to move forward after Floyd Mayweather announced his appearance at the competition, which ate most of the event’s budget.
"I will do whatever it takes,” Mirko said ahead of the fight on Saturday against Nelson.
At the official weighing, Mirko Filipović weighed 106.5 kilograms, which is significantly less than Nelson's 118 kilograms. Since he has never lost in a rematch, Mirko Filipović is considered the favorite by bookies.
Before his 51st professional MMA performance, Mirko Filipović published photos on his Facebook page from the official Bellator photo session.
“I’m very close to the end of my line. So far, I feel good, and my shape is good, and my cardio is good. But it won’t last forever, and I’m aware of that,” Cro Cop told MMAjunkie ahead of the fight.
He added that he felt better than ever at his age.
“It’s a mental advantage, definitely. I feel good. That’s the most important thing,” the Croatian concluded for MMAjunkie.
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Mirko Cro Cop Filipović and Roy Nelson will allegedly face each other in the US in February, according to ESPN.