Mirko Cro Cop: “…I will beat him, but I will die trying”
source | MMAFighting.com
“It was one of the fights I will never forget, and I just want a rematch with him,” Cro Cop told Ariel Helwani on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour. “I can’t say I will beat him, but I will die trying. That’s how I feel. I feel good right now. There are a few things I still want to do and definitely fighting Gabriel Gonzaga is one of them.”
Cro Cop (30-11-2, 1 NC), the former PRIDE grand prix winner and K-1 champion, would have gotten a UFC heavyweight title shot with a winner over Gonzaga at UFC 70 on April 21, 2007. Most people know what happened next — the Croatian star was knocked out with his own trademark move: a left head kick.
After that, Cro Cop, now 40, had a mediocre run in the UFC, going 3-6. He calls the defeat against Gonzaga the worst of his storied career.
“I really believe that I’m a better fighter than Gabriel Gonzaga,” Cro Cop said. “I don’t want to be a big mouth and I respect him. He’s a great fighter. But I will do my best, definitely. He will do his best. We are going to perform a great show and the fans will be happy.”