The Player Gets Played – Cro Cop Walks After UFC Tuneup

“Cro Cop” Opts for Three-Fight Deal with DREAM

It took one less than satisfying outing in the UFC for Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic to bolt the Ultimate Fighting Championship for Japan and DREAM.

Shortly after poking the eye out of Mostapha Al-Turk at UFC 99, Filipovic dropped the bomb on UFC president Dana White, telling White he had already signed a three-fight deal with the Japan-based DREAM promotion.

After signing a one-fight deal which he billed as his shot at redemption in the UFC and the first step toward a title shot, Filopovic poked out Al-Turk’s eye, grabbed the check, and headed off toward The Orient and greener pastures. White brought Filipovic back to take advantage of the Croat’s popularity in Europe – and because Filipovic told White the one-shot contract was the opening salvo in a run for the UFC title.

Not so much.

“Cro Cop” turned down proposed fights with Cain Velasquez and Cheick Kongo and signed to fight tomato can Al-Turk.

“Isn’t that a dirty fucking thing to do?” White said about Filopovic. “He fucked me. The first time in the history of the company I do one over the phone. He promised me a three-fight deal and he fucked me.”

It may not be the last time White suffers such an injustice at the hands of a fighter and his management. Working with what has been a stranglehold on the highest end of the MMA market, White could exert serious leverage on any fighter who wouldn’t play ball with his promotion, but that may change as more players enter the bidding war for top talent.

Filipovic said all the right things in the runup to the fight, but he in fact already knew it was a one-and-out visit to the UFC. It now seems clear that Filipovic, a Croatian national, simply wanted to fight in Germany near his fan base before saying goodbye to the UFC – forever.

“He didn’t keep his word,” White said. “He talked about honor and all this other shit and he fucked me. He fed me this bullshit about wanting to take a run for the title, and what I think he did was, he went out and did this. He turned down every other fighter I offered him, because I needed him to fight Cain. He didn’t just poke Al-Turk; he poked me, too.”

Filopovic should have gotten the Knockout of the Night bonus for taking down White…

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