My Mom's Basement - QUARANTINE MINI-POD: STIPE MIOCIC

Episode Date: August 18, 2020

Robbie Fox catches up with UFC Heavyweight Champion Stipe Miocic just days after he successfully defended his belt against Daniel Cormier at UFC 252, and finds out all about what it was like for the champ. 3Chi: Use code BASEMENT at checkout to receive 5% off at 3Chi.com My Mom's Basement Merch: https://store.barstoolsports.com/products/my-moms-basement-tie-dye-hoodieYou can find every episode of this show on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or YouTube. Prime Members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. For more, visit barstool.link/mymomsbasement

Hey My Mom's Basement listeners, you can find our episodes on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube, and Prime members can listen ad-free on Amazon Music. The baddest man on the planet, just a few days off his amazing victory over Daniel Cormier, I was lucky enough to be there in the arena for it. I was one of the few people that actually got to watch that fight live, Stipe. So how are you feeling? Where were you at? I was on press row. You weren't looking for me, looking for my advice, the cheat code while you were in the clinch? No, and I didn't. I heard something.

I thought, you know, I wasn't – my bad, dude. I apologize for that. It's fine. It's fine. Honestly, I'm just happy, you know, everything went well. You know, we train hard, especially with the time, everything that's going on. But I am – you know, we're just, you know, it was a team effort.

It wasn't just me and there was my coaches and it was awesome. Yeah, I would imagine so. How do you feel right now, like a few days coming off that? It's Tuesday, you fought on Saturday night. Do you feel like you were in a car crash or something? I'm a little beat up. Not as bad as I thought, but my leg's pretty beat up and I'm sore. Yeah.

I've been worse. I've been a lot worse. So this was an incredible fight. I want to get to it, but I want to go back to the beginning first, because I remember a few months ago when this pandemic first kind of broke in the first few months of it, and people were saying, when is this title fight going to happen? You were attending to some people in your community as a first responder. As a firefighter in Cleveland, Ohio, you said, I don't think this fight fight going to happen? You were attending to some people in your community as a first responder. As a firefighter in Cleveland, Ohio, you said, I don't think this fight's going to happen until I'm done doing what I have to do over here. And at one point, I remember you even saying there's no way I could fight in August

because of all of the Ohio restrictions. Did you feel rushed coming into this fight? No, not at all. The reason I said it was to help everyone. I'm helping my community because that's what I do. But also the same time, everything was shut down. Like I couldn't train. I had no gym. Gym was shut down. But, you know, when they came to me with it and, you know, we sat down with my coaches. We all sat sat down talked about it we actually uh put a gym in my basement which i didn't want to but i did uh so you know it all worked out so uh and then within a week or two after we started camp luckily the gym opened but my wife actually we talked to the the state and they gave us me like a little clearance where i could i could train the gym if it was still closed oh that's pretty cool a little heavyweight champ leniency a little i'm the baddest man on the planet from cleveland i'm the one bringing titles here now no big deal no big deal no big

deal so what was the gameplay coming into the game plan coming into this fight the trilogy you know you won the last fight in the first fight it went not your way and then the second fight you obviously come back and you win kind of uh halfway through it like cormier was winning the fight in the beginning and then you made the correct adjustments. So what was it like coming into this fight, kind of knowing what you had to do to win? You know, the main thing was don't start slow, you know, stay moving, stay active and, you know,

listen to my coaches right off the rip. And that's one thing I'm good at is listening to my coaches. And, you know, that first fight I didn't really listen during the game plan. The second fight, I was listening, but I just wasn't doing what I needed to do. But then this third fight, I made sure that I was, you know, I had the prize and knew what I was doing. Yeah, it seemed like I was saying after the fight, your corner should get a lot of credit for making the correct adjustments. In the second fight, in this fight, coming back with the game plan that you had like it seemed to go your way not necessarily from the the start i'm not saying it

was a dominant fight where it was like easy for you to win this thing but uh you know yeah but but you obviously so you get taken down in the first round and you kind of got back up really quick you finish strong and then by the second round you almost had Cormier finished you know it seemed like he got saved by the belt do you feel like if you had more time in that round that fight would have been over uh yeah I think man like 20 seconds I think it would have been a lot closer um yeah but honestly if it wasn't for my coaches we wouldn't be here we wouldn't be in the position that we're at and you know winning the championships that we did and I'm very lucky and very blessed to have them in my corner.

They're all amazing guys, not just coaches, but my friends and family. They're family to me. Yeah, you could see that. And the way you celebrate with them afterwards, right? I mean, even I always go back to we're doomed when you jump over. I'm the fucking heavyweight champ. One of my favorite celebrations in history. Well, good.

No one knows this, but the first thing I actually said when I jumped over is we did it. Look at that. I mean, that's as wholesome as it gets. That's a family man. That's a team man. That's Stipe for you. That's why people love you, I think.

When you start fighting DC, did you kind of fall back into a rhythm? You've been in the octagon with him so much, right? Is it like riding a bike where you get back in and you're like, oh, yeah, this is kind of how this guy's timing goes. This is kind of how this guy fights. Uh, a little bit, I think it's a little bit of both, you know, that, but also, you know, he definitely made some adjustments. So you gotta be ready for that.

But I made my adjustments and like I said, I just needed to come out stronger, more fast and moving more and just being more active. And that was the main thing we needed to work on was being more active. And I saw you said you got rocked in the first round a little bit how hard did dc hit in comparison to your other opponents i mean you've hit some of the hardest hitting fighters in ufc history yeah you know uh dc it's hard i mean it was 240 pound man he's gonna hit hard um he just caught right right in the back right right in the back of the ear you know i just i was trying to get out of the way and just you know he caught me good and uh you know for that split second i was like whoa and got a little uh stanky leg

and i was good um you know i got my hands back up and he called me a third two i think it was third back home with a good hook i didn't see it uh kind of i was fine but he caught me my body like tingle went numb for a split second like yeah i should probably do better defense keep my hands up dude i feel like the shots were making my body go numb being in there in the arena it was that weird blood sport fight club vibe where we were here in every shot land and it was just like oh shit the octagon's shaking because you're two big guys in there what was it like for you with the no fans is that a noticeable thing as you're a fighter or are you so focused on cormier that you're not even really thinking about it no it was a little awkward just because you

know people are screaming yeah you suck or you're getting knocked really thinking about it? No, it was a little awkward just because, you know, people are screaming, you know, you suck, or you're getting knocked out, or anything like that. But, you know, it was a little weird. But, you know, once, you know, we did everything, got my grease on, mouthpiece in, ready to go. Once I stepped in the octagon, it was game time. It was, you know, I got another man trying to beat me up. So it's kind of fight or flight.

Was it, like, easier to hear your corner? Were you more focused on them because of that? Was that helpful? Yeah, actually, I got another man trying to beat me up. So it's kind of fight or flight. Was it like easier to hear your corner? Were you more focused on them because of that? Was that helpful? Yeah, actually, I loved it. I would hear them clearly. It was great. You know, and plus it wasn't as hot, you know, it was still hot, but it wasn't, you know, when you usually have like 15,000 people screaming, it's a little hot, not terribly,

but it was definitely a lot cooler, which I didn't mind. Dude, I was freezing my ass off on press roll. I swear to you. I was literally, I kept saying to my cameraman, like, I need a lot cooler, which I didn't mind. Dude, I was freezing my ass off on press roll. I swear to you. I was literally, I kept saying to my cameraman, like, I need a hoodie or something here. It was a little chilly in the apex, but once you start fighting, you know. I'm sure. I'm sure. So you poked him in the eye later in the fight.

I mean, you got poked in the eye early on in the fight, and I can't imagine what was going through your mind then. Just like, oh, here we fucking go again after all the issues you have had. He apologized. He apologized. It's all good. Of course, but then as you poke him, this has kind of become a narrative about the fight, right, because he has the wonky eye now and all of that. When you poke him, I'm not saying you poked him and you went, oh, fucking karma, dude, but when he's screaming at Mark Goddard and all that,

is there any part of you that inside you're like, yes, dude, this, like I know what you're going through because I went through this. Now you get it. I feel my pain. No, no. I had no idea. I poked him in the eye until after that round was seen between rounds and that big screen was right above him. Yeah. Oh shit. Yeah. I was like, Oh dude, my bad. I had no idea.

I'm so sorry. probably had a ton of times so when you poke someone in the eye like that you really just have no idea as a fighter i guess the adrenaline's going all the contacts happen you have no idea like it was just like oh i guess that happened yeah i honestly i didn't realize i did i think it was just the heat of the moment i just happened i didn't realize i did you know i just I just, I felt terrible. And I just not like it. Of course. There were a few moments in the fight where it looked like you were shooting for a takedown and you never like fully committed and really seemed to dig for

one. But I was just curious about that. Was that you sensing him getting tired? Was that part of the game plan? Let's show him, you know, where my wrestling comes from. What was that about? Yeah. I mean, it's just, it's putting everything together. You know, if you get it great, if you don't, you still have to think about it because you can't get lazy because then you will take them down so yeah that's all just blending everything together you know when the striking and take down to you know kicks to angles and just it all it all works together and just you know you gotta keep them guessing so what was your corner telling you

going into the fifth and final round i had you up 3-1 by that point, but a lot of people seemed to have it 2-2. So were they saying, we don't know if you got this, go in there and finish the fight? Like, what was that like? No, they said just keep fighting, man. Just keep doing what you're doing. You're being smart. Just don't let your guard down.

Keep angling. Keep hitting your shots like you're doing. No one, yeah, pretty much from start to finish, exactly what they're saying every round was just keep doing what you're doing yeah and when did you know you had the fight secured was it like when the judges were reading there or when bruce buffer was reading the judges scorecards was there any doubt in your mind well there's always doubt in your mind because you never know what the judges are thinking you know you can never like work hard in that it's what sucks you know and i knew it was a good

fight i know it's close but i i didn't know i felt i felt confident but at the same time you just never know and when they said 49 46 twice i'm like i got it we're good yeah yeah it seemed like you had it at that point did you feel the small octagon played a factor in this a lot of people were talking about it leading into the fight but as far as a fighter who actually fought in there did you feel like it was a lot different it definitely was it was different it was a lot smaller but i think it helped me actually oh really yeah yeah i know the clinch work was easier to clinch you know put them against the cage and all that stuff your clinch work was like really interesting to watch i found it interesting at least in arena because you could hear the corner so clearly and i could hear like the little adjustments each corner was trying to get

their fighter to make and it was almost like a glimpse into like the the chess match that is the clinch game and by the way you threw a few uh spinning elbows out of the clinch that whoo those were nasty steve those are nasty and you guys are more about it i probably got to hit one of those yeah you did i mean that sent I mean, that sent shockwaves through his ribcage, it looked like. Jesus Christ, you hit that. I think I pissed myself a little bit. What do you think this trilogy's legacy is going to be 10 years down the line in MMA, if you could put a stamp on it?

Honestly, I think people will love it. I think, man, what a great trilogy. The way it started and how it ended. Especially the last like man what a great trilogy how the way it started how it ended you know just especially the last fight because it was such a you know a lot of people enjoyed the fight it was a great fight it was action-packed it was non-stop so you can't beat that you know that's what people want people want to see good fights and you got to put on a hell of a fight in the last one and a hell of a trilogy it was tremendous i think it was the greatest heavyweight trilogy in mma i really do believe that i'm not just saying it because you're

sitting in front of me just to keep our questions for you. We don't think that we're going to see you in the Octagon for the rest of 2020. Is that correct? Seem like you want to take some time off. Yeah, definitely. That's one thing I'm worried about. I'm not worried about fighting right now. I'm going to worry about healing up, you know, and then once I heal up, you know, enjoy myself for a change and then, you know, back to reality. Yeah. You got a big birthday coming up next week

i'm not even going to ask you about a future opponent and gano tomorrow oh it's tomorrow oh my god i'm sorry i should have known i should have known steve but we're not going to talk about future opponents it's all about you steve it's all about you it's all about the heavyweight championship so here's another question how confused were you when you're sitting at the post-fight press conference and that guy says would would you like that win back over Stefan Struve? Oh, of course I would. I mean, there's no question, but I was like, yeah, of course. But listen, man, it is what it is.

Probably not going to happen right now. Yeah, I'm good, dude. I'm happy where I'm at. I got all the belts with me. I'm good. Yeah, not a big deal, all the belts on your desk there. All right, final question for me for this whole interview. Will we see Robbie Fox and Stipe Miocic in Warzone in 2020?

Don't threaten me with a good time, my friend. Oh, yeah? Well, I'm streaming now. I know you're streaming on Twitch. I think we got to squad up, maybe throw in Max Holloway, maybe throw in Megan Anderson, all these UFC fighters streaming on Twitch now. I think we got to squad up. Maybe throw in Max Holloway. Maybe throw in Megan Anderson. All these UFC fighters streaming on Twitch now. I think we got to squad up.

I'm down, dude. I played last night. God, it was bad. It's funny how you don't play for a couple days, man, and you just lose everything. Is that humbling after you win the heavyweight championship, getting destroyed by a 13-year-old in Versdonk? Yeah, it was a sketchy night, though. There were some interesting players last night,

some pretty good shots I was kind of ill-affirmed about, you know? Yeah, yeah, absolutely. All right, Stipe, I really appreciate the time, as always. Congratulations on a phenomenal win, phenomenal trilogy that you wrapped up, three years of fighting now behind you. You could finally close the book on that chapter of your career. We'll talk to you next time,

I'm sure, before your next fight. And we look forward to it. Enjoy your birthday tomorrow. Sounds great, man. Thanks for having me.