UFC 241: Cormier vs Miocic 2 - Odds and Predictions

Where: Honda Center – Anaheim, CA.

When: Saturday, August 17, 10PM EST

How (TV): Pay-per-view, UFC Fight Pass, ESPN+

(C) Daniel Cormier (22-1-1) vs Stipe Miocic – Heavyweight division

It seems as though patience has paid off for former heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic. More than a year has passed since he dropped the title to current champion Daniel Cormier, and Miocic chose to stay headstrong – refusing to accept any fight other than a rematch with DC. After making three title defenses (the most in heavyweight history), Miocic will finally get his wish as he goes toe-to-toe with Daniel Cormier in the main event of UFC 241.

Unlike Stipe, Daniel Cormier, 40, made one title defense since winning the heavyweight strap. On November 3, 2018 at UFC 230, Cormier successfully defended his title against Derrick Lewis. Cormier defeated Lewis via rear-naked choke submission in the second round. Since then, Cormier has taken much needed time off to recover from recurring back injuries. He also spent the time off as curious as the rest of us as to who his next opponent would be. His lobbying for a Brock Lesnar fight fell through and a trilogy fight with Jon Jones was never agreed to. Cormier made it no secret that he did anticipate fighting Stipe one more time before retirement, and here we are.

”DC” stands at 5 feet, 11 inches tall and has a reach of 72.5 inches. For the past several years, Cormier has been training out of the American Kickboxing Academy in San Jose, California with the likes of former heavyweight champ Cain Velasquez and current lightweight champ Khabib Nurmagomedov. He is 7-0 with one no-contest in his last eight fights. Cormier has been active in MMA since 2009 and is a former Strikeforce heavyweight champ and former UFC light heavyweight champion. He is also an NCAA Division I wrestler and Olympic freestyle wrestler and a PanAm Games gold medalist. He has a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Leandro Vieira. He is ranked at the top of the pound-for-pound list by the UFC.

 

 

 

 

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Tickets on sale tomorrow!! Let’s go Anaheim, he wanted it again and now he’s gonna get it. #andstill #dcchamp2019 #weareaka #zinkinsportsmanagement

A post shared by Daniel “DC” Cormier (@dc_mma) on Jun 12, 2019 at 4:03pm PDT

As mentioned earlier, Stipe Miocic, 36, hasn’t fought since July 7, 2018 at UFC 226. He lost the main event to Daniel Cormier via first-round knockout and hasn’t fought since. Prior to that fight, he had defended the heavyweight title three times and was on a six-fight winning streak overall. He hadn’t lost since 2014 when he lost to Junior dos Santos. He had later avenged that loss as one of his title defenses.

Miocic stands at 6 feet, 4 inches tall – five inches taller than Cormier. He also has a reach of 80 inches – seven and a half inches longer than the champion. Miocic fights out of Independence, Ohio and trains with the Strong Style Fight Team. Like his opponent, Miocic also boasts NCAA Division I wrestling credentials. He is also known for his boxing prowess. He has been active in mixed martial arts since 2010, is ranked as number-one in the UFC heavyweight division and at number-11 in the UFC pound-for-pound list.

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Anthony Pettis (22-8) vs Nate Diaz(19-11) – Welterweight division

In what could be the betting favourite to win fight of the night honors, Anthony Pettis will make his second appearance in the UFC welterweight division to take on the returning, and personal foe, Nate Diaz.

Anthony Pettis, 32, is a former featherweight fighter and lightweight champion. He made his welterweight debut on March 23 where he took on top-5 fighter Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson. Pettis shocked the world when he knocked out the elusive Wonderboy in the second round. Pettis is 3-3 in his last six UFC appearances and is currently ranked at number-eight in the welterweight division and number-nine at lightweight.

”Showtime” stands at 5 feet, 10 inches tall and has a reach of 72.5 inches. Fighting out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Pettis trains with coach Duke Roufus with the Roufusport gym. He has a third dan black belt in taekwondo and a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Daniel Wanderley. Pettis has been active in MMA since 2007 and is a former WEC and UFC lightweight champion.

Pettis’ opponent, Nate Diaz, has not fought in the UFC (or anywhere) since August 20, 2016. On that night, Diaz rematched against the infamous Connor McGregor in what was the UFC’s biggest fight to date. After defeating McGregor by submission in their first fight, Diaz lost the rematch via majority decision. Diaz has been part of the UFC brand since 2007 and was the winner of the Ultimate Fighter season five. He is tied for second in the UFC for earning the most fight bonuses.

The outspoken Nate Diaz, 34, stands at 6 feet tall – 2 inches taller than Pettis. He also has a reach of 76 inches, giving him the physical advantage over Pettis once again. Fighting out of Stockton, California, the southpaw fighter is known for his boxing and grappling prowess. Training with the Cesar Gracie Jiu Jitsu team, Diaz has a second-degree black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Cesar Gracie and trains his boxing with Richard Perez. He has been fighting professionally since 2004.

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Yoel Romero (13-3) vs Paulo Costa – Middleweight division

After much back-and-forth, this middleweight battle is finally set to happen! Originally scheduled for UFC 230 on November 3, 2018, it was later announced that Yoel Romero had to pull out of the fight due to facial injuries. Romero had pulled out of his next scheduled bout as well against Jacare Souza due to illness.

This will be Yoel Romero’s first fight since losing to now-middleweight champion Robert Whittaker at UFC 225 on June 9, 2018. He lost the fight via split-decision. Prior to that loss, Romero, 42, had successfully knocked out Luke Rockhold at UFC 221. He is 9-2 in the UFC with his only two losses both coming at the hands of Robert Whittaker.

The “Soldier of God” stands at 6 feet tall and has a reach of 73.5 inches. He fights out of Coconut Creek, Florida with the American Top Team gym. The Cuban-born fighter is known for his wrestling pedigree as he is a World’s gold medalist, PanAm gold medalist, and Olympic silver medalist in freestyle wrestling. He has been active in mixed martial arts since 2009 and is currently ranked at number-two in the UFC middleweight division.

 

 

 

 

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2days

A post shared by Paulo Costa (@borrachinhamma) on Aug 14, 2019 at 9:31am PDT

Paulo Costa, 28, has been on a tear since joining the UFC – and since going pro in 2012. Costa went 8-0 professionally before joining the UFC. Since then, Costa has remained undefeated and has beaten names such as Uriah Hall and former middleweight champion Johnny Hendricks. He beat both mean via TKO. His last fight was against Hall on July 7, 2018 and earned him a performance of the night bonus.

”Borrachinha” also stands at 6 feet even. He will give up 1.5 inches of reach to Romero in this matchup however. Fighting out of Brazil with trainer Eric Albarracin at Team Nogueira Champion Team gym, Costa has a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under UFC legend Minotauro Nogueira. He is officially ranked at number-seven in the middleweight division by the UFC.

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Gabriel Benitez (21-6) vs Sodiq Yusuff (9-1) – Featherweight division

Gabriel Benitez, 31, currently finds himself on a two-fight winning streak in the UFC. On December 9, 2017, Benitez earned a unanimous decision victory over Jason Knight. In his last fight, Benitez fought Humberto Bandenay on May 18, 2018. He defeated Bandenay with a nasty slam knockout earning a performance of the night bonus.

”Moggly” stands at 5 feet, 8 inches tall. He has a reach of 71 inches. Fighting out of Tijuana, Mexico, Benitez trains with the American Kickboxing Academy. He has been active in MMA since 2014 and is a former competitor on the Ultimate Fighter: Latin America season one series.

Sodiq yusuff, 26, has gone 2-0 in the UFC since arriving after his appearance on the Dana White Contender series. Yusuff debut in the UFC in late 2018 and won via knockout against Suman Mokhhtarian. He followed by winning his next, and most recent, bout on March 30. He fought against Sheymon Moraes and earned a three-round unanimous decision victory.

”Super” Sodiq stands at 5 feet, 9 inches tall – one inch taller than his opponent. He has an equal reach of 71 inches. There is very little physical advantage for either fighter in this bout. Yusuff fights out of Maryland with Team Lloyd Irvin. The Nigerian-born fighter is currently on a four-fight winning streak.

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Derek Brunson (19-7) vs Ian Heinisch (13-1) – Middleweight division

After suffering back-to-back losses against top middleweight contenders Jacare Souza and Israel Adesanya, Derek Brunson, 35, bounced back to win his last fight. Brunson last fought Elias Theodorou on May 4 earlier this year. Brunson edged out a three-round unanimous decision victory. He is currently ranked at number-eight amongst the UFC middleweight division.

The American-born fighter stands at 6 feet, 1 inch tall and has a reach of 77 inches. Brunson is a southpaw fighting out of Wilmington, North Carolina. He is affiliated with the Hard Knocks 365 gym. He has a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under David Branch and possesses NCAA division II wrestling credentials. He has been active in MMA since 2010.

Since earning a UFC contract after appearing on the Dana White Contender series, Ian Heinisch, 31, has gone 2-0 in the UFC with two unanimous decision victories. His last fight came back on May 18 this year where he fought, and defeated, Antonio Carlos Junior. This bout against Brunson will be Heinisch’s first main card pay-per-view appearance.

Standing at 5 feet, 11 inches tall, “The Hurricane” gives up two inches of height to his opponent. Heinisch also has a reach of 71 inches. He sacrifices six inches to Brunson in that category as well. Currently on a five-fight winning streak over all, Heinisch fights out of Colorado with factoryX Muay Thai.

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