‘Cro Cop’ one-and-done in UFC

Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic said all the right things in announcing his return to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Despite being one of the world’s biggest mixed martial arts stars, Filipovic said he was troubled by his 1-2 record during a brief stint in the organization in 2007.

He was returning to prove his UFC struggles were a fluke and claimed he had his sights set on a UFC title.

Instead, it appears he was simply using the UFC as a tuneup. With the organization hosting an event in Germany, close to his native Croatia, Filipovic was able to negotiate a deal to get himself on the card.

After his win over Mostapha Al-Turk on Saturday, Filipovic informed UFC president Dana White that he had signed with Dream and would no longer compete in the UFC.

The news angered White, who doesn’t like signing fighters to one-fight deals.

He stated before the fight that he was doing it in this case because it was the first time he had negotiated a contract over the phone and he wanted to get Filipovic on the card as he was taking the bout on short notice.

• TAPOUT GYM GRAND OPENING — Leading MMA apparel company Tapout will host a grand opening of its first training center on Friday and Saturday.

The gym is located at 4040 W. Hacienda Ave., between Valley View and Wynn.

The events will include demonstrations of MMA techniques and autograph sessions and will run from 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. each day.

Friday’s festivities include the U.S. debut of the Professional Armwrestling League.

• COUTURE-NOGUEIRA OFFICIAL — Randy Couture will meet Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in the main event of UFC 102 on Aug. 29 in Portland, Ore., the organization confirmed Monday.

The bout between the former heavyweight champions has been rumored for quite some time.

Couture lost his heavyweight title to Brock Lesnar in November, and Nogueira lost the interim heavyweight title to Frank Mir a month later.

• SYLVIA KNOCKED OUT — Ray Mercer, a 48-year-old former boxing champion, knocked out former UFC heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia in nine seconds in Birmingham, Ala., on Saturday night.

The bout was scheduled under boxing rules for New Jersey on May 30, but the state’s athletic commission would not allow it to be contested.

The fight was moved to Birmingham, but Alabama had a problem with the matchup as well. It was canceled, then later allowed under MMA rules.

Sylvia weighed in at a massive 310 pounds, more than 40 pounds above his MMA fighting weight. He had been out of action since Fedor Emelianenko dismantled him in July.

Sylvia was slated to fight Paul Buentello at Affliction III on Aug. 1, but Sylvia will not compete on that card after the knockout.

• TRUESPORT TO RETURN — TrueSport MMA will host its second amateur mixed martial arts card at the Hard Rock Hotel on Sept. 12.

The organization’s first show was at the Hard Rock on May 16.

TrueSport features mostly local amateur fighters.

Tickets for the event will go on sale on Aug. 10.

• CARANO BOUT RULES CHANGE — The Strikeforce bout between Las Vegan Gina Carano and Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos will be conducted with five-minute rounds.

Most Strikeforce women’s bouts consist of three three-minute rounds.

The fight will be for the newly created Strikeforce 145-pound women’s title and also will be scheduled for five rounds, similar to men’s title fights.

Strikeforce has not announced whether the rules will be adopted for future women’s bouts or if they apply solely to this fight, which is the main event of its Aug. 15 show in San Jose, Calif., on Showtime.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509.