Roy Nelson is facing a familiar opponent, in familiar territory that has not been so lucky for him in his recent fights. Nelson’s last few fights have been in the Mohegan Sun Arena and he has not won any of them. While he may know what to expect in facing Frank Mir, he never knows what to expect fighting where he has been losing.
“Indian curse”, Nelson jokingly told MMA News at the media day in New York City. After laughing off the coincidence he added, “I don’t know what it is. I just have really bad luck and, hopefully, this time I can change it.” Speaking with both men, it was hard to find either heavyweight having anything bad to say about one another.
When Nelson was reminded of his Grappler’s Quest win from early in their careers, at this point it would be hard to surprise Mir now at this stage in their careers. “Frank’s been competing at the top levels in jiu-jitsu for a long time,” Nelson said at the possibility of a submission win. Nelson, who has a black belt of his own said, “I don’t think you can surprise another black belt.”
“Frank’s awesome,” Nelson said, acknowledging they are both coming off of losses and like Mir, thinks they’re just “pushing through it. I’m just lucky to be here.” While they do know each other’s styles well, Nelson said he may be able to surprise Mir and some fans with something new. “Maybe I’ll come in with a flying jump-kick or something,” he said, “or front flip or a backflip. Punches and kicks are going to be thrown, that’s for sure.”
Who will have better luck at Bellator 231, Roy Nelson or Frank Mir?
