Sherdog Remembers: Sky High
Stipe Miocic may be the reigning king of the heavyweights, but he endured his share of difficulties during his rise to the top of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Five years ago today, he faced Stefan Struve in his first turn as a UFC headliner.
“Skyscraper” stopped the previously undefeated Miocic on second-round punches in the UFC on Fuel TV 5 main event on Sept. 29, 2012 at the Capital FM Arena in Nottingham, England. The first 7-footer to ever compete inside the Octagon, Struve closed it out 3:50 into Round 2.
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“I trained for five rounds, and I knew I had it in me,” Struve said. “I saw he really slowed down in that second round, and I landed a good uppercut. I always want to finish, so you know if I’ve got him rocked that I’m going in for the kill.”
Five years later, Struve remains the only man to have finished Miocic.
“I heard some complaints about my power in the past, but I think they might change their opinion right now,” he said. “I need to work on using my reach better. Some moments were pretty good, some weren’t so good, but I think I showed I have a good chin.”
Though they remain inextricably linked by their head-to-head encounter, the two heavyweights have gone their separate ways since. Struve owns a middling 3-4 record in seven subsequent appearances, while Miocic has gone 8-1 en route to capturing the UFC heavyweight crown.
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