Tonight's UFC 252 card is headlined by the rubber fight in the trilogy between Daniel Cormier and Stipe Miocic. DC won by knockout in the first round of their first fight, in July 2018, and Miocic returned the favor by knocking DC out in the fourth round in August 2019 after landing some big body shots later in the fight. These two men have been training to beat each other for two whole years, and the culmination is being tagged as who will be the GOAT in the Heavyweight division. However, this fight doesn't really have the typical big fight feel.
One theory I have is that the hardcore or casual MMA fan both have different reasons to not get excited about tonight's matchup. For the hardcore fans, the long wait for the final fight in the trilogy has soured the matchup. The heavyweight strap was tied up for over two years as a list of contenders and more intriguing matchups began building. Francis Ngannou is looking like a monster again winning four straight fights in a total of 2:42 of ring time. Also, there's always the added drama of if Jon Jones will look to become a champ champ and move up to the division.
I personally don't believe the winner of this fight becomes GOAT. Cormier is just 4-1 in his UFC career in the division, and while you can't blame him for the timing, Stipe never had to defeat a dominant champion like Cain Velasquez. The Greatest Of All Time, is an ambiguous title, but the nature of the beast of being a heavyweight champ in UFC is that no one has really held the belt long enough to be a GOAT. In all of MMA, no one comes close to Fedor, who never fought for the promotion.
Casual fans don't seem interested in the fight because there isn't any manufactured bad blood and trash talk between the two men. Stipe is a volunteer fire fighter and all around badass, but he doesn't have the charisma needed to reach the next level. Cormier, who is the opposite, and can talk a good game, is still stained by his two losses to Jon Jones in some fans' eyes. DC respects Miocic, and this is more of a professional rivalry than personal.
When it comes to the X's and O's of the fight, you can make a good case for both men. Miocic is the bigger and younger fighter. He's 5" taller and has a 7 1/2" reach advantage. Stipe also is more heavy handed with 15 career wins by knockout. Meanwhile, Cormier is an NCAA champion and Olympic wrestler. During their four round fight at UFC 241, DC was only able to take Miocic down once in three attempts. Despite that, Cormier landed 162 strikes to Miocic's dome, while Stipe attacked DC's body, landing 27 of 30 attempts.
If Miocic thinks he can eat DC's striking and survive his early onslaught of wrestling he can tire out the contender and turn the tides later in the fight again. I personally don't see that happening. Cormier is a very prideful man and he's been talking all week about how this is a legacy fight for him. As great as his career has been, he lost twice to Jones, won bronze at the Olympics in 2004 and had a weight cutting issue in 2008. I'm a believer in a storybook ending, and I see Cormier walking away from the sport as champ.
In the co-main event, the Sugar Show looks to continue his McGregor like run against Chito Vera. Vera is a step up in competition for the 25-year old phenom, and will be his toughest competition to date in the Octagon. The 27-year old "Chito", is 9-7 in the UFC and has yet to taste defeat by knockout or submission. Sugar has shown in the past that he starts to slow down late in the 2nd round, but he has had over two more years of training since those fights. I think the star train keeps rolling for O'Malley tonight.
JDS, coming off two losses by knockout facing Jairzinho Rozenstruik in another heavyweight banger. This is a good test for the younger fighter who has struggled in his last two contests. Rounding out the pay-per view is wrestling machine Merab Dvalishvili taking on Jon Dodson. Dodson is a gate keeper in the Flyweight division, but has gone 4-5 in his last nine fights. This is a great test to see where Merab, the Longo-Serra, product stands.
While this isn't the flashiest PPV UFC has held, there are enough interesting matchups and storylines to make for a great fight card.
Pick 5 Challenge (25-25 +$279) Updated 8/28
Check back here in the coming weeks for my Fight Night Predictions. I will say I'm starting to feel a little nervous about Frankie Edgar next week. I still love the guy, but the damage he took during his 13-year UFC career is catching up to him, with his first two career knockout losses occurring in his last four fights.
UFC 252 (2-3 -$10)
Daniel Cormier -115
Sean O'Malley by KO/TKO +175
Jair Rozenstruik -130
Virna Jandiroba by KO/Submission +190
Jim Miller +115
UFC 8/29 (2-2 +$26)
Anthony Smith +222
Robbie Lawler +205
Ion Cutelaba +260
Maki Pitolo +106
Polyana Viana +120
