Daniel Cormier Questions Stipe Miocic’s Previous Strength of Schedule Ahead of UFC 226 Showdown

It’s been relatively civil between the two men who will be headlining Saturday’s heavyweight spectacle at UFC 226 between current Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic and his challenger, light heavyweight king Daniel Cormier.

The two men in question were even respectful towards each other during the recent filming of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 27 as opposing coaches, but as their superfight edges closer, Cormier has fired the first shot at his rival.

While Miocic is considered the best heavyweight in UFC history after he broke the record for most successive title defenses (3) with his win over Francis Ngannou in January, Cormier believes Miocic has been fortunate with his opponents, criticizing their performances and gameplans against the Ohio native.

During the UFC 226 open workout scrum, Cormier was blunt in his assessment of Miocic’s opponents.

“He’s fought some tough guys,” Cormier said about Miocic. “Fabricio Werdum, I don’t know what he was doing. He ran right into Stipe’s fist. Stipe might have still won that fight. Alistair Overeem, I don’t know what he was doing. He hurt him and then he thought he tapped. [Rematch] with [Junior] dos Santos, I think Cain Velasquez may have turned Junior into a zombie nowadays. I love the guy but he is and Francis Ngannou can’t wrestle.

“This will be the first time he’s fighting somebody that can do everything.”

Cormier was extra critical of Ngannou, who Miocic beat to claim the heavyweight record for most title defenses. Miocic dominated the feared striker over the five-round fight back in January, outclassing him everywhere, landing 200 to Ngannou’s 33 significant strikes while successfully taking the Cameroonian down on six different occasions.

Cormier was critical of Miocic’s inability to capitalize on his domination during the fight, stating he would have found multiple ways of winning if it were him.

“This dude’s a good champion. He is and I love Francis Ngannou; I think he’s a great guy but if I spent 22 minutes on top of him, I would have gotten four or five submissions and found a way to get some TKO stoppages,” Cormier said about the fight.

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