Is  Stipe Miocic the underdog? The way the fans and Jon Jones are underestimating him, it seems like it. Jones is expected to make his long-awaited return into the octagon this November at Madison Square Garden against Miocic who is a two-time heavyweight champ. Jones acquired the vacant HW belt at UFC 295 in March 2023 by defeating Cyril Gane. But after that, he was away from the octagon because of a pectoral injury during training which also delayed his fight against Miocic.

Now Jones is underestimating Miocic calling him ‘old’ so their common opponent Daniel Cormier had something to say about this. DC warned everyone about Miocic’s prowess and cautioned Jones through his message.

Daniel Cormier reminds fans and Jon Jones that Stipe Miocic is not to be taken lightly

Daniel Cormier knows a thing or two about the two fighters headlining the UFC’s upcoming mega-fight—after all, he’s faced Jon ‘Bones’ Jones twice and went to war with Stipe Miocic three times. This unique history makes Cormier’s insights invaluable, and when he speaks on this matchup, fans listen. Appearing on the Pound 4 Pound channel, DC shared his take on the much-anticipated showdown between Jones and Miocic, and he didn’t hold back. “People seem to be looking past Stipe,” Cormier warned, addressing both fans and Jones himself. “Stipe is a bad boy! He hits hard, he’s not slow, he can wrestle, and he’s got good cardio. Stipe is not a quitter.” According to Cormier, those dismissing Miocic are making the same mistake as Jones, who might be overlooking the former champ—and that could be dangerous.

Cormier’s message is clear: underestimating Miocic is a massive mistake. He’s seen firsthand how tough Miocic is, having lost to him twice in their trilogy. Miocic might have fallen to Francis Ngannou, but even the ‘Predator’ himself has warned not to count Miocic out, telling CBS Sports, “Stylistically, Stipe. I fought Stipe twice. Stipe doesn’t get the credit he deserves. I won the second time but I know that I could have even lost that time. I know how good of a fighter he is. He fought [Daniel Cormier] three times and you can see how he fought.” Ngannou knows better than anyone how dangerous Miocic can be, and Cormier shares that sentiment.

DC even doubled down on his own YouTube channel, sending a direct message to Jones: don’t overlook Stipe Miocic. The former heavyweight champion is still a threat, and if Jones treats him like a past-his-prime fighter, it could cost him the belt. Anthony Smith echoed these sentiments, stating that Miocic seems unfazed by Jones’ preparations and is ready for the fight of his life.

Anthony Smith vouched for Stipe Miocic

The mega fight is going to take place in November and even Tom Aspinall offered himself as a backup fighter for this event in case the main fighters get injured. However, it seems like ‘Stone Cold’ is not worried about any of this and is just concentrating on his training according to Anthony Smith. Miocic, a former two-time champion has an interesting asset which is the ability to switch off from his fighter mode when he is not fighting. “He doesn’t give a s..t. He’s barely a fighter. Like he doesn’t have the mentality of a fighter unless he is in there actively fighting. He doesn’t talk about fights, and he doesn’t watch them that much. He trains every single day. But he is not immersed in this world at all.”, added Smith.

So this means when he is fighting he is completely into the zone and does not back out under any circumstances. Jones is also making a return as everyone knows and after defending his title 11 times in the light heavyweight division, he might be facing his biggest obstacle yet.  Dana White even announced that Tom Aspinall would be the backup fighter for the UFC 309 main card. Fans are pretty excited about this prospect but Daniel Cormier is not elated by the news.

He said that Sergei Pavlovich was the backup fighter when Jones and Stipe were supposed to fight at UFC 295. However, Jones pulled out and the fight fell through and Aspinall finally fought against Pavlovich. According to the former Olympian and UFC fighter, there is no guarantee that because Tom Aspinall is the backup fighter this time somebody is going to fight him.  Yet, presently everyone is pumped up for UFC 309 so who do you think is going to win? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.