S. Miocic (photo) with his old belt. Photo: Reproduction/Twitter @ufc_brasil
the american Stipe Miocic spoke and made it happen. In a great fight, held this Saturday (17), in the main fight of UFC 241, in Anaheim (USA), the fighter managed to overcome Daniel Cormier and return the knockout suffered a year ago, when he lost his heavyweight title (up to 120,2kg) to DC himself. After four well-fought rounds, the former champion succumbed to a series of blows applied by Stipe and suffered his second defeat in his career.
The fight marked a possible farewell for Cormier from the Octagon. The athlete, during the preparation period for the card, stated that he did not know if he would continue to work professionally in MMA. After the setback, it remains to be seen whether DC will try to recover once and for all or hang up the gloves at the age of 40.
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Daniel entered the Octagon carrying the responsibility of staying at the top of the division and carrying the burden of having been defeated just once in his career. Cormier's last defeat came in 2015, when he was beaten by his eternal rival, Jon Jones.
The new champion, Miocic, had, this week, declared that he had no doubts that he would be able to defeat the talented DC. For the North American, the qualities in his game are superior to those of his rival.
With the victory, Stipe remains the heavyweight who has made the most effective title defenses. In total, during his reign, the North American had carried out three successful defenses.
The victory marked the 19th victory in the career of Miocic, who is now 36 years old. On the other hand, at 40, Cormier has 22 achievements and, now, two setbacks.
The fight
Miocic started the fight with a low kick to Daniel. The champion remained studying his opponent and soon fired two low kicks in a row. Trying to stay out of Stipe's range of action, Cormier relied on low kicks to try to keep his opponent away from trying to land a powerful blow. Little by little, DC began to loosen up and soon managed one of his famous takedowns, suspending Miocic and taking the fight to the ground. The champion soon spread his weight and looked for transitions to try for a submission or a knockout by attacking from top to bottom. On the ground, Daniel began throwing blows that touched Stipe's face, who was trying his best to defend himself. After having his arms blocked by Miocic, Cormier managed to get up and tried to hit his opponent on the ground again. Protecting himself, Stipe left his head exposed and was punished by hard punches, but the round ended.
The athletes returned for the second stage with Cormier trying to perform at short distance. The fight began to become tense, as the athletes began to exchange frank fights and the possibility of a knockout was high. The fight basically became a boxing match. The athletes exchanged punches without fear of falling. However, after two minutes, Stipe grabbed Daniel and tried to calm the duel. After they broke free, Miocic surprised DC with an upper, which shook the champion, but Daniel continued to walk forward and look for the fight. The duel remained tense, with both opponents connecting good blows. In the final minute, the former champion attempted a takedown on Cormier, who defended well. The stage then ended.
In the third round, the fight continued to be fought on the feet. Stipe managed to hit Daniel with a jab and a right, which exploded in the champion's face. But DC showed a lot of resistance to absorb the blows. Miocic's face was starting to get bruised from the champion's blows. The firefighter, however, like Cormier, showed more resistance than in the last duel. Stipe surprised the audience by taking down Daniel, but the athlete soon got up. In the final minute, Miocic shook after a sequence of punches applied by DC, but there was no more time.
The fourth round began with the fighters sparing more blows. The former champion tried to frame DC behind bars, but Daniel quickly got out of the situation. Unlike the previous stages, Cormier walked backwards and was chased by Miocic. Slower, the owner of the belt seemed to save energy. Stipe began to invest in punches to the waistline, which seemed to bother the champion. Cormier began to act on the counterattack. After a nice jab and straight shot, Miocic managed to rock Daniel and take the athlete down. Stipe went up and continued hitting Daniel until the referee stopped the fight.
UFC 241 results
MAIN CARD
Heavy weight (up to 120,2kg): Stipe Miocic derrotou Daniel Cormier by knockout at 4m09s of R4 – title fight
Welterweight (up to 77kg): Nate diaz defeated Anthony Pettis in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Average weight (up to 83,9kg): Paulo borrachinha derrotou Yoel romero in the unanimous decision of the judges (29-28 29-28 29-28)
Featherweight (up to 65,7kg): Sodiq Yusuf defeated Gabriel Benítez by knockout at 4m14s of R1
Middleweight (up to 83,9kg): Derek Brunson derrotou Ian Heinisch in the unanimous decision of the judges (29-28 29-28 29-28)
PRELIMINARY CARD
Light weight (up to 70,3kg.): Khama Worthy derrotou Devonte Smith by knockout at 4m15s of R1
Bantam weight (up to 61,2kg): Cory Sandhagen derrotou Raphael Assunção in the unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 29-28, 30-27)
Light weight (up to 70,3kg.): Drakkar Klose derrotou Christos Giagos in the unanimous decision of the judges (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Bantam weight (up to 61,2kg): Casey kenney defeated Manny Bermudez via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Strawweight (up to 52,1kg): Hannah Cifers defeated Jodie Esquibel via unanimous decision (30-28, 30-27, 30-27)
Bantam weight (up to 61,2kg): Kyung Ho Kang derrotou Brandon davis in the judges' split decision (29-28 28-29 29-28)
Flyweight (up to 56,7kg): Sabina mazo defeated Shana Dobson via unanimous decision (30-25, 30-24, 30-25)
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