Strikeforce
Daniel Cormier wants Frank Mir bout rescheduled for planned Strikeforce event in January
Oct 16, 2012 - 12:35:03 PM Daniel Cormier wants Frank Mir bout rescheduled for planned Strikeforce event in January

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

After defeating Josh Barnett in the Strikeforce Heavyweight World Grand Prix finals earlier this year, Daniel Cormier eyed a successful exit from Strikeforce on Nov. 3 against former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir. However, Mir suffered an injury which took him out of the fight, and the entire Nov. 3 event was eventually cancelled.

For Cormier, the fight was supposed to be an opportunity to close out his Strikeforce run on a massively high note. Instead, he remains a part of the Strikeforce roster until at least January, where they've said they'll hold a major event. Cormier's hoping the bout with Mir at the least can be rescheduled for that card.

"I don't have an opponent," Cormier told AXS TV's "Inside MMA" on Monday night (transcribed by MMAJunkie.com). "But with the two-month delay, hopefully Frank Mir is healed up and ready to go. I haven't been told I'm fighting for sure, but if they're promising a stacked card, I'm hoping I'm one of the guys they look at and you put [me] on the card and it becomes a little bit better."

Cormier said he didn't have a problem taking a final fight in Strikeforce considering what the organization has done for him through this early stage in his MMA career, but the loss of the Nov. 3 event has been far from ideal.

"This last Strikeforce fight was never a negative to me," he said. "It's what I owe to that organization and Showtime for all they've done for me. It wasn't a negative. But now it's drifting along, drifting along. I'm ready for it to get done... January's show is happening. Let's not lose interest in Strikefore. It's a great organization."

Penick's Analysis: Fighters will continue to support Strikeforce for what it once was, but it's not the same organization anymore. It's just not. Two cancelled events in a row are keeping fighters out of work and forcing them to sit on the sidelines while they're healthy and ready to fight. For Cormier, it's even worse because the rest of his division has already been moved out of Strikeforce, with many getting fights in the UFC. He's the best fighter from Strikeforce's heavyweight division (along with Alistair Overeem), and he's not been able to come over to compete against the best in the UFC until his final Strikeforce fight is completed. If Mir is available, that's still the fight to make, but if they don't have an opponent for him by January, he needs to be able to come into the UFC.