Stipe Miocic: Brock Lesnar’s ‘disrespectful’ appearance at UFC 226 was a ‘sh*t show’
Stipe Miocic let Daniel Cormier and Brock Lesnar have their moment at UFC 226. But that doesn’t mean he was cool with it.
A titanic matchup between Miocic and Cormier at UFC 226 — which ended in light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier knocking out Miocic to add the heavyweight title to his collection — was arguably overshadowed by the post-fight craziness that saw former UFC champion and current WWE star Brock Lesnar enter the cage at Cormier’s behest.
Lesnar and Cormier briefly became physical before engaging in some verbal back-and-forth, with UFC president Dana White later saying that he expected the two to fight soon. It was a classic piece of pro-wrestling style fight promotion, but lost in all that was the fallen champion who dutifully left the cage as that scene was going on.
Speaking to ESPN on Monday, Miocic made his thoughts brutally clear on the matter.
“It was a sh*t show and it was disrespectful,” Miocic said. “I didn’t think that was what the UFC was all about.”
Miocic is known for being one of the more soft-spoken stars in MMA, so it wasn’t surprising that he chose not to get involved with Cormier-Lesnar shenanigans. However, that doesn’t mean he wanted to stay completely silent; in fact, he expected to have the opportunity to say his piece before Lesnar became involved.
“I thought they were going to interview me [after the fight] and I was going to ask for a rematch,” Miocic said. “When Brock came in, I said, ‘I’m out of here, I don’t need this circus.’ How can you give a guy a title shot who hasn’t fought in over two years, is suspended, and his last fight is a no-contest because he was taking PEDs?”
Despite Miocic’s objections (he told ESPN that he is only interested in an immediate rematch with Cormier), it looks like the gears are in motion for Lesnar, who will not be eligible to compete until January as he continues to pay the price for his past drug-test failures, to fight Cormier next. That’s a tough pill to swallow for Miocic given that he recently set the record for the most consecutive successful UFC title defenses (3) when he defeated Francis Ngannou at UFC 220.
He believes the UFC will do anything to pop a pay-per-view buy rate, even if it means giving a prime main event slot to a fighter who technically has not won a fight since July 2010 (Lesnar’s unanimous decision nod over Mark Hunt at UFC 200 on July 9, 2016 became a no-contest due to a pair of failed drug tests).
“I want a title shot. I deserve it,” Miocic said. “[Lesnar] hasn’t fought in how long? For him to get a title shot, as I get thrown to the side? It just seems like they are desperate for pay-per-views.
”I cleaned out the division. I defended it more than anyone, and you’re gonna tell me I don’t deserve a chance to get it back? Get out of here. Kiss my ass if you don’t think I deserve that.”
As for where he stands with White, the UFC’s mastermind who undoubtedly played a part in orchestrating the theatrics and stands to gain plenty from a Lesnar return, Miocic’s interaction with him in the aftermath has been almost non-existent.
“It was like a two-second conversation, he apologized for everything that happened in the cage,” Miocic said. “I just said, ‘Whatever.’ The apology didn’t mean anything. That’s what they want to happen.”
Stipe Miocic let Daniel Cormier and Brock Lesnar have their moment at UFC 226. But that doesn’t mean he was cool with it.
A titanic matchup between Miocic and Cormier at UFC 226 — which ended in light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier knocking out Miocic to add the heavyweight title to his collection — was arguably overshadowed by the post-fight craziness that saw former UFC champion and current WWE star Brock Lesnar enter the cage at Cormier’s behest.
Lesnar and Cormier briefly became physical before engaging in some verbal back-and-forth, with UFC president Dana White later saying that he expected the two to fight soon. It was a classic piece of pro-wrestling style fight promotion, but lost in all that was the fallen champion who dutifully left the cage as that scene was going on.
Speaking to ESPN on Monday, Miocic made his thoughts brutally clear on the matter.
“It was a sh*t show and it was disrespectful,” Miocic said. “I didn’t think that was what the UFC was all about.”
Miocic is known for being one of the more soft-spoken stars in MMA, so it wasn’t surprising that he chose not to get involved with Cormier-Lesnar shenanigans. However, that doesn’t mean he wanted to stay completely silent; in fact, he expected to have the opportunity to say his piece before Lesnar became involved.
“I thought they were going to interview me [after the fight] and I was going to ask for a rematch,” Miocic said. “When Brock came in, I said, ‘I’m out of here, I don’t need this circus.’ How can you give a guy a title shot who hasn’t fought in over two years, is suspended, and his last fight is a no-contest because he was taking PEDs?”
Despite Miocic’s objections (he told ESPN that he is only interested in an immediate rematch with Cormier), it looks like the gears are in motion for Lesnar, who will not be eligible to compete until January as he continues to pay the price for his past drug-test failures, to fight Cormier next. That’s a tough pill to swallow for Miocic given that he recently set the record for the most consecutive successful UFC title defenses (3) when he defeated Francis Ngannou at UFC 220.
He believes the UFC will do anything to pop a pay-per-view buy rate, even if it means giving a prime main event slot to a fighter who technically has not won a fight since July 2010 (Lesnar’s unanimous decision nod over Mark Hunt at UFC 200 on July 9, 2016 became a no-contest due to a pair of failed drug tests).
“I want a title shot. I deserve it,” Miocic said. “[Lesnar] hasn’t fought in how long? For him to get a title shot, as I get thrown to the side? It just seems like they are desperate for pay-per-views.
”I cleaned out the division. I defended it more than anyone, and you’re gonna tell me I don’t deserve a chance to get it back? Get out of here. Kiss my ass if you don’t think I deserve that.”
As for where he stands with White, the UFC’s mastermind who undoubtedly played a part in orchestrating the theatrics and stands to gain plenty from a Lesnar return, Miocic’s interaction with him in the aftermath has been almost non-existent.
“It was like a two-second conversation, he apologized for everything that happened in the cage,” Miocic said. “I just said, ‘Whatever.’ The apology didn’t mean anything. That’s what they want to happen.”
