Sherdog’s Top 10: Greatest Fighters of the 2010s

8. Stipe Miocic

Sherdog's second greatest heavyweight makes yet another list. Miocic's prime is well encapsulated by the 2010s. He turned pro in 2010 and ended the decade by recapturing his heavyweight crown against Daniel Cormier. The list doesn't include his close decision triumph in the rubber match against Cormier but neither does it include his knockout loss in the rematch against Francis Ngannou. I've written extensively about Miocic's unique, complex legacy before, which is a deeper discussion than the one here. In his prime, Miocic was an excellent fighter with very good striking and wrestling, but never reached the heights of other champions at their very best, such as Cain Velasquez, Junior dos Santos or Cormier. However, thanks to his indomitable will, toughness and constant desire to train and improve, Miocic had two things none of those other men did: consistency and longevity.

After racing out to a 9-0 start as a mixed martial artist, Miocic was knocked out by Stefan Struve in 2012. Miocic rebounded by winning three in a row, taking clear decisions over Roy Nelson and Gabriel Gonzaga before needing just 35 seconds to knock out Fabio Maldonado. He then lost again in a close five-round decision against dos Santos. Miocic refused to be denied, however, recording a fifth-round knockout of Mark Hunt and a 54-second pasting of Andrei Arlovski to earn his first title shot against Fabricio Werdum. Miocic made the most of it, knocking out Werdum in half a round. As champion, he knocked out Alistair Overeem at the end of the first round despite almost being stopped himself earlier in the stanza, then easily disposed of dos Santos, who by that point was a shadow of his former self, in a rematch. However, Miocic's greatest win would come against Francis Ngannou, an absolutely incredible, brilliant performance for five straight rounds, utterly dominating the younger, stronger, and heavier puncher. Miocic was then shockingly knocked out late in the first round by a 39-year-old Cormier moving back up from light heavyweight. Initially, matters didn't look much better in their rematch, as Cormier was having his way for the first two and a half rounds, badly beating Miocic in the striking and wrestling alike. However, Miocic again showed the amazing heart and will of a champion, staying tough as Cormier got tired, and pelting him with damaging blows to the body, eventually reconquering his throne with a late fourth round knockout. Miocic finished the 2010's with a 19-3 overall record and 4-1 in championship fights, both enviable marks.

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