WATCH: Stipe Miocic & Fabricio Werdum Come Face-To-Face At UFC 203
UFC 203 featured some pivotal bouts in the heavyweight division on September 10. The main story of the night came from the headline bout between Stipe Miocic and Alistair Overeem. The heavyweight title was on the line in Miocic’s first defense and it was a cracking one-round affair. Fighting on home turf in Cleveland against the most decorated striker in the division, Miocic faced adversity early on. ‘The Reem’ dropped the champion with a clean punch and rushed in for the submission finish.
Miocic was able to escape Overeem’s signature guillotine choke and come back to win. The Dutchman was wobbled by a slick flurry of punches and never recovered. The end came in a rare knockout from full guard, and the crowd erupted for their local hero. The main event runner-up would claim he felt Miocic tap from the choke, but Joe Rogan‘s analysis of the footage seemed to dispute Overeem’s statement.
The Werdum Connection
Much like Overeem did at UFC 203, Stipe Miocic travelled to the champion’s turf against Fabricio Werdum at UFC 198. Unlike ‘The Reem’ though, Stipe managed to destroy ‘Vai Cavalo’ with a beautiful one-punch knockout. Werdum also fought at UFC 203, defeating Travis Browne by decision in their rematch. The Brazilian Jiu Jitsu ace had his own controversy to deal with in the co-main event, but it happened after the fight when he kicked Edmond Tarverdyan.
Apparently Werdum and Browne’s coach will not face any repercussions for their actions at UFC 203. Given their history and that they were both successful in Ohio, Miocic and Werdum appear to be angling towards a rematch. During an interview with John Pollock after UFC 203, Werdum discussed the infamous scuffle with coach Edmond. After claiming he felt Tarverdyan was going to ‘punch his face,’ ‘Vai Cavalo’ exchanges words with Stipe Miocic. Could a rematch be on the horizon?
