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Daniel Cormier talks about Stipe Miocic’s intent on fighting heavyweight boxer Tyson Fury.
Since winning back the UFC heavyweight belt from Daniel Cormier in August, Stipe Miocic has yet to determine when his title defense would happen. What he is open to as of the moment is a crossover fight against former heavyweight boxing world champion Tyson Fury.
A third fight with “DC” is on the table, but may be pushed back with Miocic’s intent to fight “The Gypsy King.” Cormier himself was in a similar situation when he called for a fight with Brock Lesnar. But according to him, things are quite different.
“After all that was done last year when I was going to fight Brock Lesnar and I said, ‘I’ll wait for Lesnar, and if Lesnar can’t go I’ll fight Stipe’,” Cormier told MMA Junkie. “I think it’s kind of the same thing (with him trying to fight Tyson Fury). But reality is, it’s vastly different. I think it’s misguided. I had Lesnar in my face. He came into the octagon and all that.
“I’ve got to be honest with you: The moment they said Brock can’t fight, I said, ‘Then let’s give Stipe his fight.’
“The moment they said it, I said, ‘OK, find a date for Stipe and I to fight,” he continued. “He deserves his rematch.’ I think the idea of the way things happened may have been a little bit misunderstood, but it went exactly as I said. From the moment of the fight I said, ‘If Brock doesn’t fight, I’ll fight Stipe.’ When they said, ‘No Brock.’ I said, ‘OK, let’s do Stipe.’”
Cormier was set to retire after his 40th birthday in March, but his loss to Miocic urged him to come back one more time to try and win back the title.