Daniel Cormier reacts to Stipe Miocic trilogy fight booking

Former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier has shared his initial thoughts on his August 15 trilogy fight with Stipe Miocic, which was just made official.

Cormier shared his thoughts on the matchup on Twitter, shortly it was announced that contracts had been signed.

This one is for all the marbles. 1-1, both knockouts but great fights, I can’t wait to fight this dude again!! Now it’s time to work as hard as I ever trained. #weareaka #zinkinsportsmanagement #2xheavyweightchamp 2xlightheavyweightchamp pic.twitter.com/BvyhectS4X

— Daniel Cormier (@dc_mma) June 9, 2020

“This one is for all the marbles,” Cormier wrote. “1-1, both knockouts but great fights, I can’t wait to fight this dude again!! Now it’s time to work as hard as I ever trained.”

Miocic and Cormier have battled twice already.

The pair first met in July 2018, when Cormier, then the light heavyweight champion, moved up to challenge Miocic for his title. In that first fight, Cormier scored a first-round knockout win over Miocic, becoming a concurrent two-division UFC champion in the process. Only a few other fighters have accomplished such a feat.

After Cormier defended the UFC heavyweight title with a win over Derrick Lewis in late 2018, he and Miocic rematch in August of 2019. In this rematch, Cormier started strong, but was ultimately stopped by Miocic in the fourth round. It was a punishing body attack that sealed the deal.

Ever since that rematch, fight fans have been eager to see the pair, now tied 1-1, settle their score in a trilogy fight. The winner will be widely regarded as the best heavyweight of the modern era—maybe ever.

This Stipe Miocic vs. Daniel Cormier rematch is also important as it’s expected to be the last fight of Cormier’s legendary MMA career. He initially planned to retire before he turned 40 in March, 2019, but has delayed those plans to settle his rivalry with Miocic.