Jon Jones and Frank Mir have been on tour promoting their upcoming fights; Mir will compete at UFC 169 while Jones is slated to headline UFC 171 against Glover Teixeira. At a stop in Moscow, Russia, at Maxim bar, Jones and Mir engaged in some tomfoolery in a back room that was captured on camera.
The two appear to be engaging in a fight with kicks thrown, and takedowns executed but it's all in good fun. The pair was not fighting for real, and in fact are very friendly. Jones and Mir both train at Greg Jackson's MMA gym, and Mir served as Jones' assistant coach on The Ultimate Fighter Season 17.
Jones' upcoming battle with Glover Teixeira is highly anticipated, and somewhat controversial, as many believe his tightly-knit battle with Alexander Gustafsson warranted an immediate rematch. It's possible that Gustafsson never gets another crack at "Bones," as the light heavyweight champion has dropped hints he plans on moving to heavyweight to challenge Cain Velasquez for his crown.
Before any of that goes down, though, Mir will step foot in the octagon in February against the hulking Alistair Overeem. Combined, the two have lost five straight fights, but still get fights because of their exciting styles.
Overeem is the larger man, and relies more on landing heavy strikes, evidenced by his 42 percent knockout rate, while Mir is more likely to go the takedown or submission route. The loser will be in dire straits with regards to his standing in UFC.
If the video above is any indication though, Overeem must be on his guard at all times if Mir guns for a ground battle via early takedown. He was able to get Jones on the floor quickly in their little sparring battle. Overeem has defended 77 percent of takedowns against him in his career, but there's no accounting for what may come from an extremely desperate opponent.
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