The historic series that showcased Ohio firefighter Stipe Miocic as an all-time great continues to be a topic of conversation. This is primarily due to the unforgettable battles he had with Daniel Cormier within the Ultimate Fighting Championship circuit. The extent of the competition between Miocic and Cormier was so intense that they faced each other thrice from July 7, 2018, to August 15, 2020, with the heavyweight title at stake. Out of the three matches, Miocic emerged victorious in two, the last one leading to Cormier’s retirement from mixed martial arts. Despite the passage of three years since their last battle, their intertwined fates within the cage continue to ignite discussions.
A thorough breakdown of the Miocic-Cormier rivalry by numbers takes us through some interesting statistics. The period between their first and third face-offs extended to 770 days. Cormier initially defeated Miocic in the first round of their UFC 226 fight in July 2018 but then suffered defeats in the subsequent two rematches. These happened in August 2019 at UFC 241 and in August 2020 at UFC 252 when Miocic’s win was unanimously favored. Their clashes racked up approximately 53 minutes and 42 seconds of fight time, signifying over 10 full rounds within the Octagon.
Another striking statistic from their rivalry involves their fans. A staggering 17,464 fans assembled to witness the first chapter of the Miocic-Cormier contest in Las Vegas at UFC 226- this was the trilogy’s highest attendance figure. The third match, unfortunately, did not allow public attendance due to the Covid-19 pandemic. During their three meetings, both fighters exhibited exceptional prowess with a total number of 741 strikes landed by Miocic and Cormier in combination. This fight led to four successful title defenses for Miocic, setting an unmatched record in the heavyweight champion division.
In terms of specific accomplishments, Cormier achieved significant milestones as well. Despite an eight-inch reach disadvantage and a five-inch height disadvantage against Miocic, Cormier managed to outland Miocic by 49 strikes. Also, Cormier became the fifth two-division titleholder in the history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship when he trounced Miocic at UFC 226, joining the ranks of established fighters such as Randy Couture, B.J. Penn, Conor McGregor, and Georges St. Pierre. Miocic and Cormier had a combined winning percentage of .927 prior to the start of their rivalry, clearly indicating that they were both formidable opponents.