Map of Greece showing Philippi

Philippi (in Greek Φίλιπποι Philippoi) was a city in eastern Macedonia, established by Philip II in 356 BC and abandoned in the 14th century after the Ottoman conquest. The present municipality Filippoi is located near the ruins of the ancient city and it is part of the region of East Macedonia and Thrace in Greece.

History[link]

Artefacts from the Archeology museum of Philippi

Philippi was established by the king of Macedon, Philip II, on the site of the Thasian colony of Krinides or Crenides (Κρηνἱδες, "Fountains"), near the head of the Aegean Sea at the foot of Mt. Orbelos about 8 miles north-west of Kavalla, on the northern border of the marsh that in Antiquity covered the entire plain separating it from the Pangaion hills to the south of Greece.

The objective of founding the town was to take control of the neighbouring gold mines and to establish a garrison at a strategic passage: the site controlled the route between Amphipolis and Neapolis, part of the great royal route which crosses Macedonia from the east to the west and which was reconstructed later by the Roman Empire as the Via Egnatia. Philip II endowed the new city with important fortifications, which partially blocked the passage between the swamp and Mt. Orbelos, and sent colonists to occupy it. Philip also had the marsh partially drained, as is attested by the writer Theophrastus. Philippi preserved its autonomy within the kingdom of Macedon and had its own political institutions (the Assembly of the demos). The discovery of new gold mines near the city, at Asyla, contributed to the wealth of the kingdom and Philip established a mint there. The city was finally fully integrated into the kingdom under Philip V.

The city remained. It contained 2,000 people. When the Romans destroyed the Antigonid dynasty of Macedon in 167 BC and divided it into four separate states (merides), it was Amphipolis and not Philippi that became the capital of the eastern Macedonian state.

Almost nothing is known about the city in this period, aside from the walls, the Greek theatre, the foundations of a house under the Roman forum and a little temple dedicated to a hero cult. This monument covers the tomb of a certain Exekestos, is possibly situated on the agora and is dedicated to the κτίστης (ktistès), the foundation hero of the city.

The Roman era[link]

Ruins of the centre of the city: the forum in the foreground, the market and the basilica in the background.

The city reappears in the sources during the Roman civil war that followed the assassination of Julius Caesar. His heirs Mark Antony and Octavian confronted the assassins of Caesar, Marcus Junius Brutus and Cassius, at the Battle of Philippi in the plain to the west of the city during October in 42 BC. Antony and Octavian were victorious in this final battle against the partisans of the Republic. They released some of their veteran soldiers, probably from legion XXVIII and colonized them in the city, which was refounded as Colonia Victrix Philippensium. In 30 BC, Octavian became Roman emperor, reorganized the colony, and established more settlers there, veterans possibly from the Praetorian Guard and other Italians. The city was renamed Colonia Iulia Philippensis, and then Colonia Augusta Iulia Philippensis after January, 27 BC, when Octavian received the title Augustus from the Roman Senate.

Following this second renaming, and perhaps after the first, the territory of Philippi was centuriated (divided into squares of land) and distributed to the colonists. The city kept its Macedonian walls, and its general plan was modified only partially by the construction of a forum, a little to the east of the site of Greek agora. It was a "miniature Rome," under the municipal law of Rome and governed by two military officers, the duumviri, who were appointed directly from Rome.

The colony recognized its dependence on the mines that brought it its privileged position on the Via Egnatia. This wealth was shown by the many monuments that were particularly imposing considering the relatively small size of the urban area: the forum, laid out in two terraces on both sides of the main road, was constructed in several phases between the reigns of Claudius and Antoninus Pius, and the theatre was enlarged and expanded in order to hold Roman games. There is an abundance of Latin inscriptions testifying to the prosperity of the city.

The early Christian era[link]

Basilica B, seen from the southwest, and the acropolis in the background.

Inscription of Bishop Porphyrios in the Basilica of Paul.

According to the New Testament, in AD 49 or 50, the city was visited by the apostle Paul (Acts 16:9-10). From the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 16:12) and the letter to the Philippians (Philippians 1:1), early Christians concluded that Paul had founded their community. Accompanied by Silas, Timothy and possibly Luke, the author of the Acts of the Apostles, he is believed to have preached for the first time on European soil in Philippi (Acts 16:12-40). According to the New Testament, Paul visited the city on two other occasions, in 56 and 57. The Epistle to the Philippians dates from around 61-62 and is believed to show the immediate impact of Paul's instruction.

The development of Christianity in Philippi is indicated by a letter from Polycarp of Smyrna addressed to the community in Philippi around AD 160 and by funerary inscriptions.

The first church described in the city is a small building that was probably originally a small prayer house. This Basilica of Paul, identified by an mosaic inscription on the pavement, is dated around 343 from a mention by the bishop Porphyrios, who was present at the Council of Serdica that year.

The prosperity of the city in the 5th and 6th centuries was attributed to Paul and to his ministry. As in other cities, many new ecclesiastical buildings were constructed at this time. Seven different churches were constructed in Philippi between the mid-4th century and the end of the 6th, some of which competed in size and decoration with the most beautiful buildings in Thessalonica, or even those of Constantinople. The relationship of the plan and of the architectural decoration of Basilica B with Hagia Sophia and Saint Irene in Constantinople accorded a privileged place to this church in the history of early Christian art. The complex cathedral which took the place of the Basilica of Paul at the end of the 5th century, constructed around an octagonal church, also rivaled the churches of Constantinople.

In the same age, the fortifications of the city were rebuilt in order to better defend against the growing instability in the Balkans. In 473, the city was besieged by the Ostrogoths, who were unable to take it but burned down the surrounding villages.

The Byzantine and Ottoman era[link]

Ruins at Philippi.

Already weakened by the Slavic invasions at the end of the 6th century, which ruined the agrarian economy of Macedonia and probably also by the Plague of Justinian in 547, the city was almost totally destroyed by an earthquake around 619, from which it never recovered. There was a small amount of activity there in the 7th century, but the city was now hardly more than a village.

The Byzantine Empire possibly maintained a garrison there, but in 838 the city was taken by the Bulgars under kavhan Isbul, who celebrated their victory with a monumental inscription on the stylobate in Basilica B, now partially in ruins. The site of Philippi was so strategically sound that the Byzantines attempted very soon to recapture it ca. 850. Several seals of civil servants and other Byzantine officials, dated to the first half of the 9th century, prove the presence of Byzantine armies in the city.

Around 969, Emperor Nicephorus II Phocas rebuilt the fortifications on the acropolis and in part of the city. These gradually helped weaken Bulgar power and strengthen the Byzantine presence in the area. In 1077, Bishop Basil Kartzimopoulos rebuilt part of the defenses inside the city. The city began to prosper once more, as witnessed by the Arab geographer Al Idrisi, who mentions it as a centre of business and wine production around 1150.

After a brief occupation by the Franks after the Fourth Crusade and the capture of Constantinople in 1204, the city fell into the hands of the Serbs. Still, it remained a notable fortification on the route of the ancient Via Egnatia; in 1354, the pretender to the Byzantine throne, Matthew Cantacuzenus, was captured there by the Serbs.

The city was abandoned at an unknown date, but when the French traveller Pierre Belon visited it in the 16th century, there were nothing but ruins, used by the Turks as a quarry. The name of the city was preserved at first by a Turkish village on the nearby plain, Philibedjik (Filibecik, "Little Filibe" in Turkish), which has since disappeared and then by a Greek village in the mountains.

Archaeological excavation of the site[link]

The ruins of Direkler (Basilica B), drawn by H. Daumet in 1861.

Noted or briefly described by 16th century travellers, the first archaeological description of the city was made in 1856 by Perrot, then in 1861 by L. Heuzey and H. Daumet in their famous Mission archéologique de Macédoine. Nevertheless the first excavations did not begin until the summer of 1914, and were soon interrupted by the First World War. The excavations, carried out by the École française d'Athènes, were renewed in 1920 and continued until 1937. During this time the Greek theatre, the forum, Basilicas A and B, the baths and the walls were excavated. After the Second World War, Greek archaeologists returned to the site. From 1958 to 1978, the Société Archéologique, then the Service archéologique and the University of Thessalonica uncovered the bishop's quarter and the octagonal church, large private residences, a new basilica near the Museum and two others in the necropolis to the east of the city.

Explanation board of Phlippi Archeological Museum financing

In the Bible[link]

According to the New Testament, in AD 49 or 50 the city was visited by the apostle Paul who was guided there by a vision (Acts 16:9-10). Accompanied by Silas, Timothy and possibly Luke, the author of the Acts of the Apostles, he preached for the first time on European soil in Philippi (Acts 16:12-40) and baptized Lydia, a purple dye merchant, in a river to the west of the city. While in Philippi, his exorcism of a demon from a slave girl caused a great uproar in the city, which led to their (Paul and Silas) arrest and public beating (Acts 16:16-24). An earthquake caused their prison to be opened. When the jailer awoke, he prepared to kill himself, thinking all the prisoners had escaped and knowing that he would be severely punished. Paul stopped him, indicating that all the prisoners were in fact still there. The jailer then became one of the first Christians in Europe (Acts 16:25-40).

Paul visited the city at least on two other occasions, in 56 and 57. The Epistle to the Philippians dates from around 61-62 and shows the immediate impact of Paul's instruction.

References[link]

Translated from the French Wikipedia article, retrieved February 11, 2005. That article, in turn, gives the following references:

• Ch. Bakirtzis, H. Koester (ed.), Philippi at the Time of Paul and after His Death, Harrisburg, 1998. (English)
• P. Collart, Philippes ville de Macédoine de ses origines jusqu'à la fin de l'époque romaine, Paris, 1937. (French)
• G. Gounaris, E. Gounaris, Philippi: Archaeological Guide, Thessaloniki, 2004. (Greek)
• P. Lemerle, Philippes et la Macédoine orientale, Paris, 1945. (French)
• M. Sève, "De la naissance à la mort d'une ville : Philippes en Macédoine (IVe siècle av. J.-C.–VIIe siècle apr. J.-C.)", Histoire urbaine n° 1, juin 2000, 187–204. (French)
• Ch. Koukouli-Chrysanthaki, Ch. Bakirtzis, Philippi Athens, second edition, 1997. (English)

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Philippi

• Philippi - Catholic Encyclopedia
• Livius, Philippi by Jona Lendering (ancient history)

Coordinates: 41°00′47″N 24°17′11″E / 41.01306°N 24.28639°E / 41.01306; 24.28639

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Frank Mir
Born	Francisco Santos Miranda, III (1979-05-24) May 24, 1979 (age 33) Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Nationality	American
Height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)[1][2]
Weight	261 lb (118 kg; 18 st 9 lb)
Division	Heavyweight
Reach	79 in (201 cm)
Style	Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Kenpo Karate, Boxing, Muay Thai, Wrestling
Fighting out of	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States.
Team	University of Grappling[3] Suffer Training Center
Trainer	Ricky Lundell[4] Robert Drysdale
Rank	Black belt in Kenpo Karate Black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Years active	2001 –present
Mixed martial arts record
Total	22
Wins	16
By knockout	4
By submission	9
By decision	2
By disqualification	1
Losses	6
By knockout	6
Spouse	Jennifer (2004 – present)
Children	3
Notable school(s)	Bonanza High School
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
last updated on: October 11, 2011

Francisco Santos Miranda, III^[5][6] (born May 24, 1979), better known as Frank Mir, is an American mixed martial artist, as well as a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Kenpō Karate.

Mir, one of the most accomplished heavyweights in MMA history, is a two time UFC Heavyweight Champion . He currently holds the record for most victories in the heavyweight division of the UFC with 14 and most wins by submission in UFC Heavyweight division history with 8. He is also the only man in UFC history to win a bout by toe hold.^[7] As of January 2012 he is ranked the #4 In the ESPN MMA Power Rankings.^[8]He holds the distinction of being the first and only man to both knock out and submit MMA legend Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira. Mir is the only person to submit former UFC Heavyweight Champion and NCAA Division I wrestler Brock Lesnar and highly regarded striker Cheick Kongo. Frank Mir has had more fights in the UFC than anyone else currently competing in the heavyweight division.

Early life[link]

His father convinced him to begin wrestling, on the basis that it could help him avoid submissions. Mir then began wrestling at Bonanza High School in Las Vegas, Nevada where during his junior year he lost his first nine matches.^[9] During his senior year (1998) he went 44–1 and won the state championship.^[9] He was also on the school's football team that reached the Southern Zone semifinals in 1997 and where he played as fullback and defensive end. He also took up track and field in 1998 where his discus throw of 177 feet, 10 inches is still a Sunset Regional record.^[9]

Mixed martial arts career[link]

Mir met UFC matchmaker Joe Silva at a school Silva was visiting. Silva saw potential in Mir as a future UFC fighter and suggested that he first prove himself against some fighters in the mixed martial arts world. Mir would make his professional MMA debut against Jerome Smith at HOOKnSHOOT: Showdown on July 14, 2001. Mir won the bout by judges' decision after two rounds. He won another match by submission against Dan Quinn at IFC Warriors Challenge 15.

After these events, Mir made his UFC debut against Roberto Travern. Traven had fought once in the UFC before (at UFC 11), and was the 1999 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championship open class champion and 6th degree black belt in BJJ.^[10] Mir defeated Roberto Travern by armbar at 1:05 of round one at UFC 34: High Voltage on November 2, 2001. The submission earned Mir the "Tapout of the Night" award.

Mir's next match in the UFC was against Pete Williams and took place at UFC 36: Worlds Collide on March 22, 2002. Mir submitted the veteran Williams (who had never been submitted before^[11]) at only 46 seconds into the first round with a shoulder lock that has since been named after Mir.^[12]

He faced Ian Freeman, at UFC 38: Brawl at the Hall, held in London, England on July 13, 2002. Despite several leglock attempts by Mir, Freeman achieved side control at around four minutes into the first round, landing numerous elbows and punches on Mir's head. After Freeman separated, the referee signaled Mir to stand back up. A time out was called due to an apparent cut on Mir's face, and the referee stopped the fight when Mir had difficulty standing up. The call is considered controversial by some fans (including Mir himself) because of the fact that he was never officially finished by Freeman and the fight only stopped due to difficulty standing up, which has been suggested was a smart, but bad call by the referee since that loss.

After the considered-controversial loss to Freeman, Mir then faced David "Tank" Abbott at UFC 41 on February 28, 2003. Mir^[13] defeated Abbott in only 46 seconds into the first round by submission (Toe Hold).

On June 26, 2003 Mir fought Wes Sims at UFC 43: Meltdown. Mir won by disqualification at 2:55 of round one after Sims stomped down on Mir's face after slamming his way out of Mir's armbar attempt. They would rematch at UFC 46: Supernatural on January 31, 2004. Frank Mir won by knockout at 4:21 of round two.

Heavyweight championship[link]

On June 19, 2004, Mir faced Tim Sylvia for the vacant UFC Heavyweight Championship at UFC 48: Payback. Referee Herb Dean stopped the fight at 50 seconds into the first round when Mir's armbar visibly broke Sylvia's right forearm. Mir trapped Sylvia's right arm in an armbar attempt. When Sylvia tried to pull out of the hold, Mir jerked back harder and Sylvia's radius bone snapped about 3 inches below his elbow. Sylvia repeatedly claimed his arm was not broken, even touching it and moving it around to show he was O.K. Sylvia was taken to the nearby hospital where an x-ray showed that his arm was in fact broken in four different places.

With this technical submission win Mir became the new UFC Heavyweight Champion and later received his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black-belt from Ricardo Pires for his performance in the fight.^[14]

Motorcycle injury[link]

On September 17, 2004, Mir was knocked off his motorcycle by a car. The accident caused a break in Mir's femur and tore all the ligaments in his knee. The bone had broken in two places but the injury did not end Mir's career as a fighter. Major surgery was needed to repair the bone in his leg. An interim heavyweight title was created while Mir was recovering from the injury, which Andrei Arlovski won by defeating Tim Sylvia by way of a first round submission. On August 12, 2005, the UFC learned that Mir was not able to fight Andrei Arlovski in October as scheduled, thus Mir was stripped of the title after 14 months, and Arlovski was promoted to be the undisputed UFC heavyweight champion.^[15]

Return to the UFC[link]

Mir recovered from his motorcycle accident and fought Márcio Cruz at UFC 57: Liddell vs. Couture 3 on February 4, 2006. In a shocking upset, Mir was defeated by the relative newcomer in the first round by TKO due to strikes. Initially, referee Herb Dean called for a break to check a large cut on Mir's face. Mir was given the opportunity to continue, and did so.

Mir returned to the Octagon on July 8, 2006 at UFC 61: Bitter Rivals and faced Dan Christison.^[16] Mir had gained a considerable amount of weight and quickly became exhausted. Mir won in a lackluster fashion by unanimous decision after three rounds; the judges all scored the bout 29–28.^[17] Criticism began to flourish with Mir not looking like the same fighter as he was before, both physically and technically.

Mir next faced Brandon Vera at UFC 65: Bad Intentions. Mir showed slightly improved sharpness on his feet, and boxed well until being stunned by a straight right from Vera. He was then dropped by knees from Vera's Muay Thai clinch, where the smaller Vera delivered elbows & punches from side control, forcing the referee to stop the fight. Mir lost by TKO at only 1:09 of the first round. While preparing for UFC 140, Mir explained that the reason why he suffered the 2 losses to Cruz and Vera was because even after having 14 months of recovery, he was still feeling the effects of the motorcycle accident he had.^[18]

Rise back to title contention[link]

Frank Mir was scheduled to fight Antoni Hardonk at UFC Fight Night 9 on April 5, 2007, but had to drop out due to a shoulder injury.^[19] Mir recovered from the shoulder injury and fought Antoni Hardonk at UFC 74 and won via kimura in 1:17 of the first round.^[20] At the end of the bout, Mir walked to the cameras pointing at himself saying "I'm back!". Frank's wife Jennifer was shown on the replay screaming and crying with joy when Frank secured the kimura and the fight was stopped.

After the fight with Hardonk, Mir stated that his long period of time away after his loss to Brandon Vera not only helped him recover from the shoulder injury, but helped recover from his motorcycle accident and while fighting Mirko Cro Cop at UFC 119 UFC commentator Mike Goldberg stated: "Mir, in that motorcycle years ago and, he's fought his way back".

Mir fought Brock Lesnar at UFC 81 on February 2, 2008. Early in the first round, Lesnar took Mir down and, while striking from Mir's guard, landed illegal punches to the back of Mir's head, drawing a foul and a one-point deduction from referee Steve Mazzagatti.^[21] They were stood up and Mir was given a brief recovery period, but Lesnar quickly took Mir down again. When Lesnar escaped an armbar attempt, Mir caught him with a kneebar, causing Lesnar to tap out at 1:30 of the first round.^[22]

[edit] The Ultimate Fighter Season 8

Spike TV on 12 May 2008 announced that the UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira and former champion Frank Mir would be the coaches for the eighth season of The Ultimate Fighter.^[23]

The season, which premiered on Spike TV on September 17, returned to the two-weight class format. It featured light heavyweight and lightweight fighters.^[24] Production on season eight began in late May, with the entire cast announced in September, and concluded in December.^[24]

Interim Heavyweight Championship[link]

Frank Mir fought Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 92 (held on December 27, 2008) for the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship.^[25] This bout was part of a mini-heavyweight tournament, often hyped by Dana White. The winner of this fight would then face the winner of the match between the heavyweight champion Randy Couture and Brock Lesnar. Lesnar won by TKO in the second round, gaining him the heavyweight championship belt in the process and then setting him to face the winner at UFC 100 to unify the belts.

Frank Mir then defeated Nogueira in the second round via TKO due to strikes, showing vastly improved striking (particularly his boxing), by knocking down the Brazilian twice in the first round, and once in the second. He also scored a Judo-trip takedown in round one.^[26] Herb Dean stopped the match at 1:54 of the second round.^[26] Nogueira's loss marked the first time he had lost a fight by TKO.^[27] In a post fight interview, Mir credited his improved striking to a drastic improvement in conditioning.^[28]

Two days after the fight Dana White revealed in an interview that "Nogueira had just gotten over a Staph infection".^[29] Nogueira himself verified this fact several months later in his own interview, stating that he had a Staph infection "20 days before the fight, [requiring] 5 days in the hospital." When asked if this infection affected his fight, Nogueira answered: "For sure." In addition to this significant illness, his knee was injured during training for which he had surgery in February 2009. Despite these legitimate handicaps, Nogueira offered strong praise for Frank Mir's performance, with particular credit given to Mir's ability to maintain "very good distance".^[30]

Heavyweight Championship unification[link]

Frank Mir's victory over Nogueira set in place a re-match with the UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar for the UFC Heavyweight championship.^[31] However, Mir stated, that in his opinion, holding victories over former Interim Heavyweight Champion Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira at UFC 92 and current UFC Heavyweight Champion Brock Lesnar at UFC 81 is enough to recognize him as the owner of the "real belt".^[32] On May 23, 2009 in Las Vegas, Nevada, Frank Mir was scheduled to fight Brock Lesnar at UFC 98, however Mir sustained a knee injury during training which required arthroscopic surgery and the removal of bone chips from his knee. Mir's rematch against Brock Lesnar was rescheduled for UFC 100, July 11, 2009.^[33]

At UFC 100, Mir was lively on his feet but proved unable to counter Lesnar's wrestling and positional dominance. In the second round, after being allowed to standup, he landed a combo ending with a turning right elbow which forced Lesnar to clinch—proceeding to land a jumping right knee to rock his opponent—he was still unable to prevent the takedown. After a period of recovery from the knee Lesnar pinned Mir up against the cage and delivered multiple unanswered blows to his face, forcing Herb Dean to stop the fight via TKO at 1:48 in the 2nd round. With the win, Brock Lesnar became the Undisputed UFC Heavyweight Champion.^[34]

Post title shot[link]

Mir had his next fight against Cheick Kongo on December 12, 2009 at UFC 107. Mir was expected to weigh 20 to 25 lbs heavier than usual, due to the strength and conditioning program that he had undertaken to largely improve his muscular frame. This meant he would have to cut weight to get to the 265 lb limit.^[35] As expected, Mir weighed in for his fight against Kongo at 264.5 lbs. At the weigh-ins, Kongo refused to face Mir during the traditional staredown before the fight. During the fight, Mir stunned Kongo with an overhand left early, dropping him and swarming to secure a guillotine choke victory at 1:12 in the first round. Kongo refused to tap and was rendered unconscious by the choke.^[36]

In the post-fight press conference Mir expressed his desire to fight a rubber match with Brock Lesnar.^[37] Mir later created controversy after commenting that he wanted to break Brock Lesnar's neck, so that he would become the first mixed martial artist to die in competition. Mir later made an apology for his comments.^[38]

Mir faced Shane Carwin for the Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship on March 27, 2010 at UFC 111.^[39] After a brief standup exchange, Mir established the clinch, where Carwin eventually delivered multiple short, powerful uppercuts to Mir's face. Unable to defend himself, Mir lost the fight via KO at 3:48 of the first round.^[40]

At a UFC Fan Expo, Mir said he briefly considered dropping down to the Light Heavyweight division, although he later confirmed he will remain at heavyweight.^[41]

Mir was expected to face Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira on September 25, 2010 at UFC 119 in a rematch from the Interim Championship bout, which Mir won via TKO at UFC 92.^[42] Nogueira pulled out of this fight due to knee surgery and was replaced by Mirko Filipović.^[43] Mir defeated Filipović via third round KO, earning the win with a knee from the clinch in a largely uneventful fight where neither fighter was able to deliver any significant offense.^[44]

Mir faced Roy Nelson on May 28, 2011 at UFC 130. He won via unanimous decision by using superior control and constant pressure. Pushing against the cage, completing a Judo hip throw and securing several takedowns in the third round, showing improved wrestling. Mir landed several hard knees and elbows from the Muay Thai clinch throughout the entire bout, but was unable to finish Nelson.^[45][46]

A rematch with Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira took place on December 10, 2011 at UFC 140.^[47] At that event, Mir was dropped by Nogueira's counter striking and appeared to be knocked out briefly. Mir recovered and gained superior positioning and defeated Nogueira by kimura at 3:38 of round 1, snapping Nogueira's arm in the process and causing Nogueira to tap out. Mir is now the first only one of two fighters (the other being Cain Velasquez) to have finished Nogueira via knock out, and the first and only one to finish him via submission. This marked the first time Nogueira had been stopped via submission. The victory also earned Mir Submission of the Night honors.^[48] UFC President Dana White called it the "submission of the century" at the post fight press conference.

Mir was expected to face Cain Velasquez on May 25, 2012 at UFC 146.^[49] However, on April 20, 2012, Dana White announced that Mir will face Junior dos Santos for the UFC Heavyweight Championship, replacing Alistair Overeem. On May 11, 2012 UFC Primetime returned to promote the fight between Mir and Junior Dos Santos, and concluded on May 25.^[50] Alhough Mir's striking had improved, Dos Santos was able to use superior foot work to strike in and out before Mir could mount any significant offense. Mir lost the fight via TKO (punches) at 3:04 of Round 2 and has since said he will continue his career and go back to the drawing board.

Personal life[link]

Frank Mir's father is Cuban, born of Moroccan immigrants of Russian descent. The surname "Mir" translated from Russian, means "world" or "peace" (depending of the context). The family name was never "Miranda" as the fighter and his father already explained to the press.^[51] Mir and his wife Jennifer have three children together and Jennifer has a son from a previous relationship, whom Mir helps raise and is in the process of formally adopting.^[4][52]

Frank Mir is an atheist.^[53] He followed a vegan diet for a year^[54] but then switched to Paleo diet for supposedly better athletic outcome.^[55]

Mir worked as a bouncer at the Spearmint Rhino strip club in Las Vegas before entering the UFC,^[56] and continued to work as Director of Security there while pursuing his UFC career.^[57]

In addition to fighting in the UFC, Mir was a color commentator for World Extreme Cagefighting events on Versus from 2007 until the spring of 2010, when he was replaced by fellow UFC fighter Stephan Bonnar.

Championships and achievements[link]

Mixed martial arts[link]

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • UFC Heavyweight Championship (One time)
  • Interim UFC Heavyweight Championship (One time)
  • Submission of the Night (Two times)
  • Most wins in UFC Heavyweight division in history (14)^[58]
  • Most wins by submission in UFC Heavyweight division in history (8)
  • Most fights in UFC Heavyweight division in history (20)
  • Most finishes in UFC Heavyweight division in history (11)
  • First and only toe hold finish in UFC history
  • Fastest submission in UFC Heavyweight division in history (46 seconds)
  • Fought five different UFC Heavyweight Champions
  • Defeated four different UFC Heavyweight Champions

• World MMA Awards
  • Submission of the Year (2011) vs. Antônio Rodrigo Nogueira on December 10^[59]

• FIGHT! Magazine
  • Submission of the Year (2008) vs. Brock Lesnar on February 2^[60]

• Sherdog
  • 2008 Comeback Fighter of the Year [1]
  • 2011 Submission of the Year^[61]

Submission grappling[link]

• Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
  • Black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Ricardo Pires
• Pan American Championships
  • Blue Belt Pesadissimo: 1st place (2001)
• North American Grappling Association
  • NAGA Absolute Division Champion (2007)

Amateur wrestling[link]

• Nevada State Wrestling
  • Nevada State Wrestling Champion (1998)

Mixed martial arts record[link]

See also[link]

• List of current UFC fighters
• Ultimate Fighting Championship
• List of male mixed martial artists

References[link]

External links[link]

• – Official Twitter Account
• FrankMir – facebook
• FrankMir.com – Official Website
• TEAMMIR.com – Official Team Website
• Professional MMA record for Frank Mir from Sherdog
• Frank Mir on Myspace
• Official UFC Profile