Exclusive: UFC Champion Stipe Miocic on being a first responder, trilogy fight with Daniel Cormier
UFC Heavyweight Champion Stipe Miocic discusses how being a firefighter has helped him in the octagon. He talks about past and potential upcoming UFC fights. Miocic also talks about his new collaboration with Fire Department Coffee.
Stipe Miocic is widely considered the “Baddest Man on the Planet” as a two-time – and current – UFC heavyweight champion, but what many fans may not know is that he is a trained firefighter-paramedic and works part time for the Valley View Fire Department in Cleveland.
In fact, Miocic told Fox News that he thinks the UFC and firefighting go hand-in-hand.
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“In both professions, you have to be cool, calm, collected, no matter what the situation is," Miocic said. “You have to strategize and can’t brazenly go in there. I’m sure you saw my first fight against DC [Daniel Cormier], I got knocked silly.”
Miocic contrasted the two professions and explained that he likes to be able to help people through his work as a first responder. Miocic added that being a member of the Valley View Fire Department gave him another family.
“They [his colleagues at the Fire Department] get me out of my own head after fights too, like after beating DC they handed me a toilet brush to go clean the bathroom," Miocic said. “The guys shift my focus in a good way, you know, I get in, we train, we work our shift, and we make the city better.”
Miocic is currently collaborating with a firefighter-run coffee company, Fire Department Coffee (FDC), and created Stipe Miocic Extra Strength Coffee with double the caffeine.
Stipe Miocic is the UFC heavyweight champion (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
FDC Vice President Jason Patton told Fox News that he knew Stipe was a firefighter and had tried their coffee before.
“That’s when we came up with a coffee strong enough to fuel the Baddest Man on the Planet,” Patton said. “We are honored to work with a man that has not only found huge success in the fighting world, but also success in changing the lives of the people around him as a firefighter.”
Miocic is recovering from a torn retina and a hand injury in the wake of UFC 241. Miocic defeated Daniel Cormier in a highly anticipated rematch to become the UFC heavyweight champion for a second time. Miocic lost his first fight against Cormier in 2018.
The first two rounds of the fight did not look positive for Miocic until the momentum shifted in the third round and continued into the fourth round.
“I walked out that fourth round and I just knew that we were done,” Miocic recalled. “I started hopping around and felt good, and started seeing that[Cormier’s] body. I hit him that first time and then it happened again. And I was like, 'Oh, you're done.' I knew it."
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When asked if fans are going to witness a highly sought trilogy fight Cormier Miocic, he answered that it depends on the UFC.
“You know, if it’s what the UFC wants...I’m getting better day-by-day,” Miocic said. “But it’s looking like summer, cause a lot of these fights are getting booked up by June, so, you know, maybe another July or August fight?”
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To hear about some of Stipe Miocic’s past knockouts and his fighting style, listen to the full interview with the UFC heavyweight champion above.
Emily DeCiccio is a reporter and video producer with Fox News Digital Originals. Follow her on Twitter @EmilyDeCiccio.
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