MMA News: Stipe Miocic Defends Heavyweight Belt in UFC 203 Main Event.

The main event of UFC 205 in Cleveland saw Ohio's own UFC Heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic defend his heavyweight belt against former K1 Grand Prix winner and #3 heavyweight Alistair Overeem in an instant classic.

Though the fight only lasted the first round, it was enough for Miocic to make a statement. The fight was a back and forth battle with both fighters getting hurt in the fight, with Overeem landing an early right hand that rocked the champion, then the Dutch kick-boxer proceeded to put Miocic in a deep guillotine choke, the champ was able to escape and continued to press forward, landing powerful strikes that wobbled the challenger. Miocic went on to aggressively pursue Overeem and got him on the ground, after a quick scramble, then finished him off with some vicious ground and pound to secure the victory.

In the post fight Octagon interview with Joe Rogan, Miocic said that he trains for that everyday, adding that he's still the heavyweight champion of the world, which the hometown crowd responded with a cheerful uproar. Miocic, who is now 16-2 in mixed martial arts, continued to say that he plans to stay the champ for a very long time. Meanwhile, Overeem, who had a hard time getting up after being knocked out, claimed that he felt Miocic tap during the choke attempt, which made him loosen his grip, but in the fight replay, it was clearly shown that did not happen, according to a report from MMA Fighting.

What's next for Stipe Miocic, according to MMA Junkie, could be a bout against former heavyweight champion, Cain Velasquez, for his third title defense. Velasquez's last fight was against Travis Browne, whom he defeated at UFC 200. Velasquez is ranked #2 in the UFC's heavyweight rankings, behind Fabricio Werdum, who also won in the main card of UFC 203.