{"id":280005,"date":"2018-07-05T07:03:31","date_gmt":"2018-07-05T14:03:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/?p=280005"},"modified":"2018-07-05T07:03:31","modified_gmt":"2018-07-05T14:03:31","slug":"stipe-miocic-says-ufc-mentioned-daniel-cormier-fight-before-ufc-220-and-he-told-them-to-shut-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/stipe-miocic\/stipe-miocic-says-ufc-mentioned-daniel-cormier-fight-before-ufc-220-and-he-told-them-to-shut-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Stipe Miocic says UFC mentioned Daniel Cormier fight before UFC 220 \u2014 and he told them to ‘shut up’"},"content":{"rendered":"

This weekend, in the main event of UFC 226, UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic will attempt to defend his title against UFC light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier. It’s an irrefutable superfight, and one that the UFC apparently mentioned to Miocic before<\/em> his last fight, a unanimous decision defeat of Francis Ngannou at UFC 220.<\/a><\/p>\n

Speaking at a UFC 226 media lunch this week, Miocic divulged that the UFC called him two days before his high-stakes battle with Ngannou to discuss a potential fight Cormier, who defended his title against Volkan Oezdemir on the same card. They also mentioned his coaching The Ultimate Fighter against Cormier.<\/p>\n

Miocic, who was understandably distracted at the time, told them to shut up.<\/p>\n

\u201cI told them, \u2018shut up,\u2019\u201d Miocic said (via MMA Fighting<\/a>). \u201cI got more things to worry about.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIt had nothing to do with Cormier,\u201d Miocic said, explaining that he was focused on fighting Ngannou, who the UFC was selling as the hardest puncher in MMA history. \u201cDude, leave me alone \u2014 I\u2019m fighting in two days. You\u2019re talking about how I\u2019m gonna get hit by the Ford Escort power and you\u2019re gonna come at me with this?\u201d<\/p>\n

Miocic also said that, shortly after his UFC 220 defeat of Ngannou, the UFC contacted him again to discuss a super fight with Cormier. Apparently, however, he still wasn’t receptive. His main objection was the stipulation that he coach a season of TUF against Cormier, as his wife was pregnant.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo, I didn\u2019t want to do it,\u201d Miocic said. \u201cMy wife is pregnant, I want to make sure it\u2019s OK with her. She\u2019s the boss. She\u2019s carrying our child. I\u2019m not carrying a child. She\u2019s put a lot into it. I just wanted to make sure it was good with her, make sure it was OK for me to leave. Make sure it was right.\u201d<\/p>\n