At UFC 99, Mirko Cro Cop Expects to Have the Fans on His Side

Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic is one of the most popular mixed martial arts fighters in the world, but his most devoted fans -- the ones in his native Croatia -- haven't had many opportunities to see him fight. Cro Cop has fought almost exclusively in Japan, so as he prepares to fight in Continental Europe for the first time ever at UFC 99 in Cologne, Germany, he says he expects to have a big contingent of fans with him when he takes on Mostapha Al Turk.

"Many friends of mine are traveling," Cro Cop told me Tuesday on a call to promote UFC 99. "My brothers, my brothers-in-law, my father-in-law, my family will be taking their own cars to Cologne. Many, many people are going in their cars. It's only about 10 hours of driving to get there. Many, many, many people are coming, people are organizing trips, and definitely, many Croatian fans will be there."

"Mirko Cro Cop is a popular fighter," UFC President Dana White said. "People here in the United States love him, the UK, Croatia, Germany, Japan, he's one of the best in the world, and we want the best fighters in the world."

While he's popular everywhere, Cro Cop said that he's still first and foremost known for his fighting in Japan, where he had dozens of fights -- both in the Pride Fighting Championships and as a K-1 kickboxer. But he also said that as MMA fans increasingly use the Internet to research their favorite fighters, he's becoming better known around the world.

"I grew up as a fighter in Japan, definitely," Cro Cop said. "That's the place where I have the majority of my fans. Of course, I know that people recognize me in the States, even though I've fought only once there. European fans, today in the Internet era, it's just a global village -- everyone knows everyone. Fights all over the world are easy to get. You can get pay-per-view easily, people are watching it from Brazil to Russia, from Canada to Japan. I think people recognize me all around the world as a good fighter and I know I'll have big support Saturday night in Cologne."