Yahoo: Mir says he wants Lesnar to die: Should he be fined or suspended?

[Clark Kent]

02-23-2010 03:30 PM:Frank Mir is dynamite for the sport. His talent in the cage in undeniable and he's got the "it" factor outside the cage. Simply stated, his chops put him among the elite. Mir trash talks but there's an air of civility and smugness when he does it. But every once in a while a trash talker can overdo it and put his foot in his mouth. Chael Sonnen got nabbed right before UFC 109 when he was praising Mark Coleman during the prefight press conference just two weeks after calling the guy a bum on MMAWeekly Radio. Mir put his foot in his mouth late last week on a Pittsburgh radio show.

There's no doubt Mir hates Brock Lesnar. He's stated it many times that Lesnar took the quick road to the UFC heavyweight title, is short on technical ability and worst of all, he behaves like a pro wrestler. This is where Mir moves into "pot calling the kettle black" territory.

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During the conversation on the Mark Madden Show on WXDX in Pittsburgh, when asked if the dislike for Lesnar is genuine Mir again explained why he thinks the champ is bad for the sport (1:57 mark).

"He doesn't like me and I can guarantee, you talk to anybody in my family, it's a legitimate hate. His very being bugs me just because I've seen a lot of children out there who look to athletes and martial artists as role models, and it just makes me cringe. I sit there and go, 'Man, I lost to this guy the second time around and now people think that's the way to be -- be big, obnoxious and angry.' That's not right. We have anger toward each other. Everything I stand for he despises and dislikes, and I can tell you I truly do not like him as a person whatsoever."

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Sounds familiar. Mir has said that on many occasions. But for some reason Mir became the guy he dislikes so much. Completely unprovoked at the end of the interview when being asked why he has so many fans, Mir went Mike Tyson on Lesnar (4:05 mark).

"A lot of individuals are so worried about being politically correct, I'd rather go ahead and say what's on my mind than to sit there and come up with some PC 'Oh, the guy is a great fighter and I have a lot of respect for him.' If I don't mean it, why is it even coming out of my mouth? ... I want to fight Lesnar. I hate who he is as a person. I want to break his neck in the ring. I want him to be the first person that dies due to Octagon-related injuries. That's what's going through my mind."

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Tyson saying he wanted eat Lennox Lewis' children shocked some but eventually blew over and only added to his bad *** mystique. And what Mir said probably isn't the best thing for a growing sport that again was recently labeled "Bloodsport" by some Aussie media members. UFC president Dana White is one of the most politically incorrect and anti-establishment guys in sports, but even he may cringe at Mir's "die in the Octagon" comment. Don't forget White has ripped fighters like Lesnar, Paul Daley and Dan Henderson for going overboard with their postfight antics and trash talk.

Now the question is, does Mir need to be publicly disciplined or apologize?

That's easy for me. If he doesn't mean it, don't bother. In era of phony, disingenuine mea culpas, the last thing MMA needs to do is jump on that bandwagon. Luckily the sport is still undercovered and underpromoted, so this won't blow up much. If Randy Moss, Pedro Martinez or Kevin Garnett says something like this, they get reprimanded and fined. That's always been a ridiculous policy by the big three -- MLB, NFL and NBA. Athlete entitled to speaks like jackasses. It's up to the viewing audience and consumer to ultimately decide their longterm fate. For me, Mir went overboard. Oh well. As long as he doesn't want kill me the next time I interview, I feel comfortable.

But we do have to point out Mir's stance on not being "PC" is ridiculous. At the end of the interview he sounded identical to why he and many others hate Lesnar.

Bottomline, it's all good for the sport. Sure if you're Jay Mariotti or Skip Bayless, get your panties in a bunch. But we all know those guys are huge hypocrites who are often more boorish to their own co-workers than Mir would ever be to another fighter or fan. For the most part, boxing's biggest stars over the years, have been bullies and trash talkers. Deal with it. It's no different in MMA.

Listen here for the entire interview.

Thanks to WXDX for the audio



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Cagewriter is an MMA blog edited by Steve Cofield.

 

[MattJ]

I am a Frank Mir fan, but he went WAY over the line with this comment. You don't wish death on someone, especially if they have a wife and kids.

 

[K831]

"I want to fight Lesnar. I hate who he is as a person. I want to break his neck in the ring. I want him to be the first person that dies due to Octagon-related injuries. That's what's going through my mind."

The last part, that's what's going through my mind makes me wonder if this isn't more like what I hear often; "when I get in the ring, that guy is my mortal enemy, I want to destroy him." type of stuff regarding mindset. Does he really mean that he wants Lesnar to die, or that he just hates his guts and wants to beat him soundly? I dunno.

I like Mir as a fighter, having said that, it isn't shocking when he says things bordering on douche-baggery.

No matter Lesnars past antics or some of the issues others have with him, there is no reason to wish him anything but success as a husband, father and human being, even if you would prefer to see him lose, or be the guy beating him.


As far as being disciplined? No, other fighters that DW has come down on said stupid stuff in post fight interviews during a UFC event on UFC property etc... I don't think it's the same as doing a separate interview.

 

[crushing]

Even ESPN is picking up on these comments on PTI. I was very surprised to hear them say that MMA is safer than boxing! Anyway, the UFC President should talk to Mir and let him know how hard he has been working to mainstream MMA and counter the arguments that MMA is "human cock fighting" or "bloodsport". Also, these comments start treading into the area of ridiculous statements made by 'pro' wrestlers and boxers. I would like to see MMA stay above those forms of entertainment.

 

[Gordon Nore]

Although I'm not familiar with the UFC's rules on this, I don't see Mir's statements as actionable. There is trash talk in competition, particularly in the fight world, so as harsh as Mir sounds, his behaviour is within the general norm. Whether or not he meant it is another matter altogether. If action is taken against Mir based on what he meant, then that starts to look like thought crime. Is speech only protected if you mean it?

If the threats were made outside the context of the Octagon -- if Mir said he was going to wait for him in the parking lot, there might be cause for action.

Now is it PC? I don't particularly care whether his comments are perceived as PC or not? I think the remarks are low-class and in poor taste and thuggish. Isn't that bad enough?

 

[Archangel M]

Does "wishing death" on someone really work??

 

[Gordon Nore]

Does "wishing death" on someone really work??

Boy, as an elementary teacher, I sure hope not. "Mr Nore hates me. I wish he was dead."

 

[Skpotamus]

I think the best punishment would be to simply let Lesnar beat him into retirement. Mir got a gift break by the ref in their first fight and caught the kneebar only after Lesnar was pulled off of him, he was getting mauled. In the second fight, he did get mauled. I don't see a third changing.

 

[crushing]

Does "wishing death" on someone really work??

If it did, it would give "thought crimes" to a whole new meaning!

 

[terryl965]

Frank just went over the line here, they should do something what I have no clue. But being an athlete you should have some sense of what is right and wrong.

 

[kaizasosei]

I think nothing. What you gonna fine them? Just put them in the ring..
If anything he should be pitied for showing too much weakness and having people on his *** because of the dumb things he said. Taking it seriously though, i would think that such an attitude may give him an edge fighting if he really means it however it is a bit scary and psycho but the honesty makes up for it in my opinion. He did say 'in the ring'. Not that he was planning a driveby or laying a curse on his buddy, although sounds like it wouldn't be too hard convincing him to.


He better know what he is doing, because the media seems to love people making mistakes. Plus, when you say you want to kill people, they tend to want to kill you back or at least prepare for you.

 

[CoryKS]

I've watched interviews with football players, particularly defensive tackles, who have said that when they hit a guy they are trying to kill him. Granted that it wasn't personal, just whoever happened to get in their way. Point is, there are a lot of athletes who tap into that emotion to get their best performance.

It's pretty tacky for Mir to have expressed it publicly before a fight, and it doesn't help him. If by some fluke chance Lesnar does suffer an injury that leads to death, Mir's words will come back to haunt him. There will certainly be a deeper investigation by officials into the cause of death, and the viewing public may simply judge him guilty. His career would be over and he could be looking at serving time if any unexplained anomalies show up in the investigation.

Best to just shut your mouth and fight. You want to take the guy's head off, give it a shot and then afterward you get on television and say, "I'm sorry that this unfortunate accident occurred. My thoughts and prayers are with the Lesnar family at this time." And then go home and fap to the video if you want, sicko.