default-cbs-image

It's a stat that continues to haunt the UFC heavyweight division like a scarlet letter. Every time the belt is defended, it seems to pop up again. 

In the 20 years since Mark Coleman defeated Dan Severn at UFC 12, unifying the UFC Superfight championship with the UFC tournament championship, creating the inaugural heavyweight champion, no one has defended the belt more than twice. 

You might as well call it a curse.

Not even the great Randy Couture has done it. Or Tim Sylvia. Or Frank Mir. Or the shooting star that was Brock Lesnar. Remember that guy Cain Velasquez, who demonstratively dethroned Lesnar in 2010, in what felt like the start of his own era? Not even him. 

Stipe Miocic (16-2), who knocked out Fabricio Werdum last May to win UFC gold, is the latest contestant in this revolving game of "will the best heavyweight of this era please stand up?"

At UFC 211 on Saturday in Dallas, Miocic will face the last man to defeat him, former champion Junior dos Santos, in a rematch that will headline the card. Miocic, who thrilled his hometown Cleveland fans by shaking off some early cob webs to knock out Alistair Overeem last September, will be trying for his vaunted second title defense. 

Miocic, the 6-foot-4 former collegiate wrestler and Golden Gloves boxing champion, has been dominant since his bloody five-round decision loss to dos Santos in 2014, recording four straight stoppage wins against the top names in the division. What he lacks in terms of crossover personality, he makes up for with his exciting and hard-hitting style. 

A firefighter and paramedic in his spare time, Miocic is blue collar to the core. He also flashes power in both hands, with an ability to almost effortlessly turn out his opponents lights, as we saw when he finished Werdum with a short left hand off the back foot while circling away. 

Miocic also proved against Overeem he can absorb damage and still find a way to win. Simply put: He just might be the guy to cross the threshold of three title defenses and truly provide a face to the division. It's one that hasn't been there since Lesnar's brief but exciting run on top as a breakthrough pay-per-view star. 

This is the heavyweight division, of course. And with four-ounce gloves, anything can -- and usually does --  happen. That might seem like the biggest thing Miocic is up against as he looks to carve out his own name as the UFC's best heavyweight in history. 

But even though Miocic is just two defenses away from separating his name from the pack, there remains an elephant in the heavyweight room. Its name is Velasquez, who many still consider the division's best fighter, if not its best in history. 

Velasquez has elite wrestling and unmatched cardio for the division, along with a perfectly well-rounded game. He just can't stay healthy long enough to fulfill his potential and cement the idea that this is his decade historically. 

Twice Velasquez has captured the heavyweight title and twice he surrendered it in fights where he was physically compromised by serious injury (along with a poor adjustment to altitude against Werdum in Mexico City). In between, Velasquez has been utterly dominant. He has also consistently missed large chunks of time -- including a 602-day layoff entering the Werdum fight -- that have stolen from his legacy. 

In his return last July, Velasquez showed heavy flashes of his brilliance when he demolished Travis Browne inside of one round. But true to script, he hasn't fought since and underwent back surgery in January. 

Can't get enough UFC? Be sure to subscribe to my podcast In This Corner with Brian Campbell where I break down everything you need to know in the world of MMA.

For Miocic, 34, to prove he's not just another fly-by-night keeper of the company's most prominent title, it will take more than title defenses. It will likely take a conquering of Velasquez, provided he can prop himself up long enough to compete again at a level close to his very best. 

Until then, all Miocic can do is flash his fan-friendly style and natural inclination to finish. And if you look closely over his recent four-fight run, in a division that has always lacked depth, it's difficult not to ponder whether Miocic is the one -- the one man who can save the division and give the heavyweight championship an identity once again. 

His journey to get there continues on Saturday against dos Santos.