CLEVELAND — UFC heavyweight titleholder Stipe Miocic did not have to wait long for an answer to a challenge to fight lineal heavyweight boxing champion Tyson Fury.
Less than a day after saying on Ariel Helwani’s MMA show that a possible super-fight crossover bout with Fury is on the wish list, the veteran boxer responded through his management team, MTK Global, and appears interested in the matchup.
“Stipe says he wants to box me, that would be a good fight for sure,” Fury said. “After I get Wilder out of the way, I’ll fight Stipe in a boxing match if he wants it. It would be a big crossover fight like Mayweather and McGregor.”
RELATED | UFC champion Stipe Miocic wants crossover match with boxing’s Tyson Fury, not Daniel Cormier trilogy
The 6-foot-9 Fury is undefeated in 30 professional bouts with 29 wins, 20 of which by knockout, and one draw against Wilder. Currently, Fury is contractually obligated to have a rematch with Wilder, which is expected to take place in the first quarter of 2020.
If and when a bout with Miocic comes to fruition, Fury is confident he will get his hand raised in victory.
“I’m open to that fight, so he should come and see me,” Fury said. “It would be the same outcome for any of them. They’ll all get smashed.”
The difference between the Mayweather-McGregor bout is simple, as Miocic took off a year from mixed martial arts competition early in his career to work on his striking, and he made it into the national Golden Gloves Boxing Tournament.
McGregor had not fought in a boxing match before or since the Mayweather fight.
A Cleveland native and graduate of Eastlake North High School, Miocic took a lot of strikes to the face on his way back to the UFC heavyweight championship, but he withstood the barrages of heavy-handed punches from Daniel Cormier in the first three rounds and used a flurry of his own to reclaim the belt.
Miocic landed nearly 100 fewer strikes than Cormier, including 60 fewer significant ones, but when it counted, he finished with a whirlwind offense and reclaimed the heavyweight title with a technical knockout victory in the main event of UFC 241 at Honda Center in Anaheim, California on August 17.
After struggling to find his range in the first three rounds, Miocic picked his spots during the fourth frame and was sticking and moving, engaging with punches, including several left hooks to Cormier’s ribs, and getting out of the pocket before the defending champion could respond.
Then, after a lead hook to the body, Miocic landed a straight right hand to Cormier’s chin. That wobbled Cormier and Miocic moved in for the finish. Miocic landed three right hands before connecting on three short lefts while putting Cormier against the cage.
As Cormier slumped to the canvas, Miocic alternated right and left-handed punches and forced the referee’s stoppage with 52 seconds remaining in the fourth round.
The record-holder for the most consecutive successful defenses of the UFC heavyweight championship, Miocic improved to 19-3-0 in his professional career with the victory over Cormier, including a 13-3 mark since joining the UFC in 2011.