UFC 211 results: Stipe Miocic crushes Junior dos Santos with first-round TKO punch

Miocic dropped his opponent with a vicious hook to end his title fight abruptly

By Brian Campbell

& Brandon Wise

May 14, 2017 at 1:19 am ET • 2 min read

It might be too early to know for sure whether Stipe Miocic will become the savor of the UFC's heavyweight division, bringing prominence back to the promotion's most important belt.

But so far, he has very much looked the part.

Miocic (17-2) tied a UFC record for heavyweights with his second consecutive title defense on Saturday, finishing off former champion Junior dos Santos by first-round TKO in their rematch at UFC 211 in Dallas.

"I think I did," said Miocic when asked if he made a statement. "I am the best in the world. I'm the heavyweight champion. Boom."

In a showcase of just how much he has improved since his last defeat, dropping a five-round decision in 2014 to dos Santos in their bloody first meeting, Miocic continued his red-hot run by showcasing his devastating power.

Miocic, 34, plowed forward despite taking a nasty kick to his right shin that left him hobbling with a colorful bruise. After pinning dos Santos against the cage, he uncorked a right hand to the ear that dropped the Brazilian before referee Herb Dean jumped in, with Miocic teeing off, at two minutes, 22 seconds of Round 1.

"That was terrible. It hurt," Miocic said of the shin bruise. "The fight didn't go that long so I don't know how much it would've hampered me anyway."

Dos Santos (18-5) appeared to show the result of too many wars in recent years as the loss dropped him to just 3-4 since he lost his heavyweight championship to Cain Velasquez in their 2012 rematch.

After proving able to withstand Miocic's power in 2014, he succumbed early on Saturday. Dos Santos was backed up to the cage at will, which made him a sitting duck for Miocic, who knocked out Fabricio Werdum last May to win the title.

"We've been working on that for 10 weeks," Miocic said about the finishing punch. "My coach is the best in the world. That's the reason why I'm the champ."

The victory was the fifth straight for Miocic since the loss to dos Santos. All five have been by stoppage and each one has come against a top contender in the division.

Miocic will eventually need to defeat former champion Cain Velasquez, whose career has been hampered by injuries, to truly make this era of the division his own. But the blue-collar native of Ohio wasn't willing to talk about who's next, instead mentioning the kitchen at his house that he was looking forward to remodeling once he returns.

Pushed to name an opponent during the FS1 post show, Miocic continued to refuse.

"I don't care. Look, I just want to go home and relax," Miocic said. "I'm terrible at that stuff. I just want to go home and enjoy myself."

UFC 211 results

Winner	Loser	Result
Stipe Miocic (c)	Junior dos Santos	First-round TKO
Joanna Jedrzejczyk (c)	Jessica Andrade	Unanimous decision
Demian Maia	Jorge Masvidal	Split decision
Frankie Edgar	Yair Rodriguez	2nd-round TKO (Doctor stoppage)
David Branch	Krzysztof Jotko	Split decision