Shortly after winning a decision over Frank Mir at UFC 169 to snap a two-fight losing streak, Alistair Overeem called out the last man he beat, way back in 2011, Brock Lesnar.
"I heard there's word that Brock Lesnar is coming back to the UFC. Well, I'll be here waiting for him," Overeem said.
Whether or not Lesnar comes out of retirement to take another beating from the kickboxer remains to be seen but Overeem was certainly elated to be back in the win column for the first time in years. Scores were 30-27 from all three judges in favor of Overeem.
Overeem landed a knee to the jaw of Mir early in the first round that staggered and badly hurt the former two-time heavyweight champion. That powerful strike was the most impactful from either man all fight long.
Mir fell to the ground and appeared seconds away from having the fight stopped but, with the exception of a few nasty elbow strikes and punches, Overeem decided to play it conservatively and Mir managed to hang on and survive the round.
In the second round, Mir managed to land a double-leg takedown on Overeem. After a scramble, Mir pulled guard to go for a guillotine choke on Alistair.
The Dutchman defended the choke and spent most of the rest of the round on top, landing the occasional but bruising elbow shot. In the third round, Mir went for more take down attempts but got stuffed on all of them by the kickboxer.
From there, Alistair fought cautiously but clearly did enough damage with elbows and punches to the body and face of Mir to secure the win. All three judges scored the fight 30-27 in favor of Overeem.
Post fight, Alistair explained his conservative approach in the fight. "Usually, I go for the knockout," he said.
"I had to play it safe. Frank is very tough and an experienced fighter. I've seen him trick opponents by faking to be dazed...I wanted to make sure I got the 'W'."
Mir has now lost four fights in a row. Prior to the fight, the former UFC champ said that, while he hoped to continue to fight in the UFC, should he be released after another loss, he'd be open to fighting for other promotions in lieu of retiring.
Follow Elias on Twitter @EliasCepeda @YahooCagewriter
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