For three rounds, heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier seemed to be dominating in his rematch against Stipe Miocic. But in the fourth, Miocic found the key to victory: body shots.
His face bruised and bloodied after three rounds of punishment, Miocic landed multiple body blows that wore down Cormier before going upstairs and connected with a right hand that sent "DC" stumbling. Sensing the end was near, Miocic picked up the pressure and went on the attack with a series of punches that sent Cormier to stumbling to the canvas and prompting referee Herb Dean to stop the fight at 4:09 in the fourth round.
The 40-year-old Cormier, who won the heavyweight title against miocic in July 2018, looked poised to repeat his performance. He got off to a fast start and landed several hard punches before slamming his foe to the mat. Cormier capped the round with a series of unanswered hammer fists.
Cormier showed little respect for Miocic, continously approaching him with his hands down. Although Miocic did connect with a few flush shots, Cormier's speed was too much and he seemed to have the edge when it came to exchanges.
But as the fight progressed, Cormier seemed to wear down while Miocic appeared to gain steam. The exchanges got even more intense in round three, but Miocic appeared to be finding his distance. The former champion scored a takedown with a little over 90 seconds remaining in the round, but Cormier recovered quickly and stunned Miocic with a right hand in the closing minute.
Round four is when it all came crashing down for Cormier. A late-fight adjustment, Miocic began attacking the body of Cormier with repeated heavy blows. Although Cormier shook the first few off and continued to keep throwing, Miocic's body attacks took their told. And if anything, they set up the head shot that ended things.
"I knew I was hurting him," Miocic said when asked about the change in strateg. "Just keep working, keep working. He was going to leave something open."
With the win, Miocic reclaimed the belt and likely established himself as the best heavyweight fighter ever. He likely defend it against Francis Ngannnou, who dominated Junior dos Santos in June. Or it's possible he could have to defend it in a third fight against Cormier, although that would depend on what the former champion decides to do with his career next.
The 40-year-old Cormier has spoken often about possible retirement, and the topic was brought up in the Octagon following his loss. Clearly emotional, the former double champ didn't seem ready to commit to a decision.
"You don't make decisions based on emotions, but this is a tough pill to swallow," Cormier said. "At 40 years old, you know, with so many other opportunities, I need to speak to my wife, and we need to make an educated decision on what we're going to do."
For Cormier, there's only two fights that make sense for him to postpone retirement: a third fight with Jon Jones or a heavyweight rematch with Stipe Miocic. Which do you want to see?