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UFC Heavyweight Champion Daniel Cormier and Stipe Miocic are all set to face off for the third and final time at UFC 252 this August 15th. The two have been in each other's paths since 2018, with Cormier dethroning Miocic in their first bout.
Dana White confirmed after UFC on ESPN 11 that the Heavyweight trilogy will conclude at the UFC Apex:
"Yeah it'll be here [at the UFC APEX]. Yeah, it's official."
It makes sense that it'll happen at APEX since the two are in the United States of America. Fight Island is most likely set to feature international fighters.
Daniel Cormier and Stipe Miocic set to battle it out for the last time
The Croatian-American waited it out for a year and got his rematch at UFC 241 in 2019. This time, it went for four rounds before Miocic became only the second fighter to defeat Daniel Cormier, regaining the UFC Heavyweight Championship in the process.
Daniel Cormier has made it clear that UFC 252 will be the end of his career. While he wanted to retire by 40, circumstances have pushed his retirement back further. MMA Fighting reported that Stipe Miocic wants to fight in a traditional 30-foot Octagon rather than the smaller 25-foot Octagon in the UFC APEX.
It's undoubtedly going to be a big moment, since it appears that Daniel Cormier will wrap up his career, win or lose. If he wins, the title is likely to get vacated quickly and Francis Ngannou will enter the Heavyweight title picture for the second time. The Predator has established himself as the undisputed next-in-line challenger for the Heavyweight Championship following his 20-second knockout of Jairzinho Rozenstruik.
While it hasn't been confirmed, Francis Ngannou is reportedly expected to be the "back-up" fighter in case either Daniel Cormier or Miocic pull out of the bout at the last minute.
