Stipe Miocic had to dig deep on his first octagon appearance. But, thanks to his technique and well-rounded game, the Ohio firefighter and paramedic parlayed his talents into a win on his UFC debut.
Miocic (19-3 MMA, 13-3 UFC) came in as an undefeated prospect and live up to his promise with a gritty unanimous decision victory over heavy-handed veteran Joey Beltran at UFC 136 in Houston, TX.
Miocic used heavy leg kicks early before dipping under for the single leg and grabbing a hold of Beltran’s back while raining down punches. The debutant continued to land leg kicks at will and showed fans their first glimpse of his crisp boxing skills in a solid first round as a UFC fighter.
Beltran came out with a sense of urgency in Round 2 as he put the pressure on Miocic, but “The Mexicutioner” fell right into a takedown. After establishing top control, Miocic attempted an Americana, but Beltran was able to turn out of it and make his way back to his feet. Beltran then landed a takedown of his own, but Miocic calmly got back up. The two exchanged positions in the clinch as Beltran slowed the pace in a grinding fight, but Miocic left a lasting final impression on the judges at the end of the round with an eye-catching flurry of fists before the horn.
In Round 3, Miocic started to use his footwork and smartly circled away from Beltran’s winging punches. He was able to land a takedown and gained full mount before transitioning to Beltran’s back. But the veteran gamely battled his way back to a vertical base one again. With both fighters visibly fatigued, Miocic pushed Beltran back to the mat, and ended the round on his opponent’s back.
After the pair went the distance, two judges scored it 29-28 to Miocic, with the third awarding him all three rounds with a 30-27 scorecard. It gave him his first UFC win at the first time of asking, and put three valuable rounds in the bank as he went the distance for the first time in his career. He also exhibited the grit and fighting spirit that would eventually take him all the way to the UFC heavyweight title in 2016.
After a record three title defenses, Miocic was stopped by Daniel Cormier at UFC 226, but regained his title in the rematch at UFC 241 to set up a highly-anticipated trilogy bout that is expected to take place sometime this summer.
In the meantime, check out Miocic’s debut victory over Beltran in the video above.
