The six-foot, four-inch firefighter who — up until last Saturday night — also happened to be the UFC Heavyweight Champion (and a damn good one at that). Miocic has finished 14 fights by way of knockout and has won six straight and nine of his last 10 until losing to Daniel Cormier at UFC 226. Despite the loss, UFC fans need a stark reminder Miocic is no pushover in the octagon. Sin City Sports Mockery compiled a list of Stipe Miocic's Top Five Knockouts.
He fights out of Euclid, Ohio and holds a professional record of 18-2. Miocic attended Cleveland State where he played basketball and was a nationally ranked Division-I wrestler. His UFC journey is littered with the blood and bodies of more than a few challengers.
Stipe Miocic's Top Five Knockouts
Victim One: Andrei Arlovski
It was January 2nd of 2016 as Miocic and Arlovski took to the octagon at UFC 195. Interesting to note, this has been the only Stipe fight since early 2014 in which Miocic didn't have his name attached to the event title. Every event he's been a part of since (and even a few before) has had his name on the marquee.
https://vimeo.com/150573685
Arlovski, a dangerous striker in his own right was on the wrong end of a Miocic flurry which started with a glancing left followed by a signature Stipe short right hand. What followed was a similar combination after Arlovski's back hit the cage. With just 0:54 seconds having elapsed in round one, the lights went out for Arlovski.
Victim Two: Nick Turco (NAAFS)
This one takes place inside the North American Allied Fight Series ring. A bout that took place over ten years ago in Cleveland, Ohio saw Nick Turco take on a young Stipe Miocic. Quite honestly, Miocic may look a little less refined in this video, but the outcome is something we've all grown accustomed to.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKRpSF-SRak
At Fight Nite in the Flats IV, Miocic finished Turco just 0:51 seconds into round one. A firm right followed by a hard left uppercut leaves Turco dazed as he goes to the ground. Turco will find his feet again, but the standing is a short lived affair. Miocic lands another barrage of punches while Turco is against the cage, and it's nap time for Nick.
Victim Three: Fabricio Werdum
This time Miocic found himself up against ground game expert (sound familiar?) Werdum holds a 77-inch reach, but that didn't matter much either. Most worth noting here, this was a title fight. Miocic took home the belt, and quickly.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggKJVPbzHVs
A clearly overconfident Werdum in its natural habitat can be seen here chasing Miocic around the ring jovially. That is until Miocic hammers him with a signature Stipe short right square on the jaw. Werdum is clearly out on the way down, and this one is over nearly as quickly as it began.
Victim Four: Alistair Overeem
Back in 2016 Alistair Overeem hopped into the octagon to take on Miocic for his first title defense. Although Overeem lasted the longest of Miocic's other opponents from 2015-2016 he still didn't make it out of the first round.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BRduRSKevpE
Miocic eventually got Overeem on the ground and simply stood over the top of him raining down his cinder block hands on a relatively defenseless Overeem. After dribbling his head off the mat a few times (in a fashion which would have even made Allen Iverson proud), the fight was over and Miocic had earned his first title defense.
Victim Five: Junior Dos Santos
There is no question, at the time Dos Santos was the man. He'd already beat Stipe by unanimous decision all the way back at UFC on Fox 13 in 2014. With this fight taking place as a title defense for Miocic, it was well over three years later.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_5GpTrInTM
Stipe clearly had unfinished business to attend to in May of 2017. Miocic knocked out Dos Santos in dramatic fashion during round one of the rematch. He walked Dos Santos down, put his back against the cage, and hit him with a (very) hard right hand rounding out the list of Stipe Miocic's top five knockouts.
After getting knocked out himself at UFC 226, Miocic returned to Cleveland to reassess, process and tend to his wife, who is expecting a child soon. Despite the loss, Miocic remains one of the best fighters in the game, so we can expect more than few more KOs before he hangs it up for good.
