UFC 241 primer: Daniel Cormier vs. Stipe Miocic II

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Daniel Cormier and Stipe Miocic rematch for the UFC Heavyweight title at UFC 241. Get the details here. The main event at UFC 241 is a Heavyweight title rematch when champion Danie…

UFC 226 Weigh-in

Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Daniel Cormier and Stipe Miocic rematch for the UFC Heavyweight title at UFC 241. Get the details here.

The main event at UFC 241 is a Heavyweight title rematch when champion Daniel Cormier (22-1(1) MMA; 11-1(1) UFC) defends against the man he took the belt from, Stipe Miocic (18-3 MMA; 12-3 UFC). The UFC rankings have DC as the pound-for-pound #1 in the world; Miocic is #11 pound-for-pound and the #1 heavyweight contender. UFC 241: Cormier vs. Miocic 2 airs live from Anaheim, CA this Saturday night, August 17. The main card airs on PPV through ESPN+ with a fight time of 10:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. PT, with the prelims starting at 8:00 p.m. ET on ESPN and 6:30 p.m. ET on Fight Pass.

The first battle between these two champions took place a year ago at UFC 226. Cormier was hoping that would lead to a title fight against Brock Lesnar, who entered the Octagon after the fight. But that never materialized, and now it’s rematch time.

How do these two stack up?

Cormier: 40 years old | 5’11” | 72” reach
Miocic: 36 years old | 6’4” | 80” reach

What have these two done recently?

Cormier: W – Derrick Lewis (Sub) | W – Stipe Miocic (KO) | W – Volkan Oezdemir (TKO)
Miocic: L – Daniel Cormier (KO) | W – Francis Ngannou (UD) | W – Junior dos Santos (TKO)

How did these two get here?

Daniel Cormier makes his 2nd Heavyweight title defense here. When he won the belt from Miocic, Cormier was already Light Heavyweight champ – a belt he relinquished to focus on Heavyweight. This late-career title run has really cemented his legacy as an all-time great. He’s a former Strikeforce Heavyweight champ, a UFC Light Heavyweight champ, and UFC Heavyweight champ. He’s lone loss is to Jon Jones, and he’s dominated a tremendous list of opponents. He’s also 40 years old, and well established as a UFC analyst at this point. We’re certainly in the very final stages of a massively impressive career.

Stipe Miocic won the UFC Heavyweight title by knocking out Fabricio Werdum back in May 2016. He went on to defend the belt three times – the first time in the history of the UFC Heavyeeight title that a champion had been able to put together three defenses. Since losing to Cormier, he’s been inactive. In fact, he only has three fights total in the last three years, making it a bit hard to know exactly where he stands coming into this fight.

Why should you care?

Because Cormier is an exceptional talent, and this is going to be one of your final opportunities to see him do his thing.