Frank Mir made his professional mixed martial arts debut in 2001 and worked his way into the UFC that same year, defeating Pete Williams with an inside shoulder lock in his fourth fight. After suffering the first defeat of his career to Ian Freeman in 2002, Mir rebounded with four straight victories. He took the UFC Heavyweight Championship in a major upset over Tim Sylvia at UFC 48 in 2004, breaking the defending champion’s arm in the process. Although he was lauded as the best heavyweight in the world after the win, tragedy struck the same year when Mir was involved in a horrific motorcycle accident on September 17, 2004 that broke his femur and tore all of the ligaments in his knee. His return to the cage would come two years later when the not-fully-recovered Mir disappointed fans by losing to Marcio Cruz by TKO in the first round, and repeated the dismal performance against surging young star Brandon Vera later that year.

After being written off by many, Mir came back healthier, stronger and more focused in 2007-2008 to win three straight fights over Antoni Hardonk, Brock Lesnar, and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira to win the Interim Heavyweight Championship, proving that his return back from the accident had been rushed. Mir was the first man to ever finish the legendary “Minotauro” Nogueira.

Predominantly known for his expert-level ground skills—especially off of his back—in a division where Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belts are relatively less common, Mir has evolved his stand-up in recent years to rival that of anyone in the heavyweight division. He duplicated his finish of Nogueira with strikes in 2008 by knocking down French kickboxer Cheick Kongo with a hard left hand in 2009 and finishing him off on the ground.

One of the most talented trash-talkers in the sport, Mir is one of the best in the world at selling a fight, often at the expense of his opponent’s personal dignity. He was also embroiled in one of the most famous feuds in MMA history with WWE import Brock Lesnar, settling on a 1-1 record with the heavyweight behemoth when the dust cleared. The articulate Mir is also an accomplished MMA sportscaster, having called many of the WEC’s live events on cable.