Video: UFC pays tribute to former heavyweight champ Stipe Miocic after retiring at UFC 309
A week after announcing his retirement, the UFC put together a video sendoff for multi-time heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic.
In his final fight, Miocic was dominated, and then finished in the third round by Jon Jones in the main event of UFC 309 at Madison Square Garden. Following the loss, Miocic spoke to Joe Rogan in his post-fight interview where he announced to the world that his fighting career was officially over.
During Saturday’s UFC Macau broadcast, the UFC aired a tribute for Miocic, celebrating his incredible career with the promotion. Check out the video below.
Thank you for everything Stipe Miocic #UFCMacau | LIVE on TNT Sports 3 and discovery+ pic.twitter.com/EITzZfWhJE
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) November 23, 2024
Miocic is likely a first-ballot Hall of Famer after putting together a 14-5 UFC record, which included two reigns as the UFC heavyweight champion. The 42-year-old captured his first world title with a sensational knockout of Fabricio Werdum at UFC 198 in May 2016, and then went on to break the heavyweight title defense record with stoppages of Alistair Overeem and Junior dos Santos, along with a lopsided decision win over Francis Ngannou in their first meeting at UFC 220 in January 2018.
After that victory, Miocic would lose the title to Daniel Cormier at UFC 226 in July 2018, which began a trilogy series with another all-time great. The Cleveland sports hero would defeat Cormier in back-to-back fights to begin his second reign as champ, before eventuall losing the title to Ngannou in a rematch at UFC 260 in March 2021.
After nearly four years out of the octagon, Miocic made one last walk at the sold out “World’s Most Famous Arena” and faced one of the greatest ever in Jones.