Hello Cleveland! After bringing his hometown its first major pro sports championship in 52 years, Stipe Mioic will defend his UFC heavyweight title for the first time at home on Saturday, September 10, when he faces No. 3-ranked contender Alistair Overeem at Quicken Loans Arena.

The bout marks the UFC's first ever visit to Cleveland, and its first event in Ohio since UFC 96, which was held in Columbus in March of 2009.

On May 14 in the main event of UFC 198 in Curitiba, Brazil, Miocic made good on his promise to bring a belt back to his city when he knocked out Fabricio Werdum less than three minutes into their championship bout.

Now, with wins in six of his last seven bouts, the new champ is staying busy with a bout against the Netherlands' Overeem, a former Strikeforce, DREAM and K-1 champion who is showing the best form of his UFC career at the moment. Winner of four straight, most recently back-to-back knockouts of former heavyweight titlists Junior Dos Santos and Andrei Arlovski, Overeem's trophy case is missing just one title belt, and on September 10, he gets his shot at adding the UFC championship to his collection.

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UFC 203: Miocic vs Overeem - Fight Card
September 10, 2016
Quicken Loans Arena
Cleveland, Ohio



Stipe Miocic (15-2) vs. Alistair Overeem (41-14-1) - UFC heavyweight title bout

UFC heavyweight champion Stipe Miocic brought Cleveland its first world title since 1964 at UFC 198 with a first-round knockout over Fabricio Werdum in May. Now, Cleveland’s favorite son will get a home game for his first title defense when he meets world-class kickboxer Alistair Overeem at UFC 203: MIOCIC vs. OVEREEM. Also scheduled for the UFC’s first trip to Cleveland is another heavyweight clash between top-ranked Fabricio Werdum and No. 5 Ben Rothwell. The action takes place Saturday, September 10 at Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio.

After shocking the world in enemy territory, Miocic (15-2, fighting out of Independence, Ohio) will find himself on his home turf when he collides with the heavy-handed Overeem (41-14, 1 NC, fighting out of Amsterdam, the Netherlands). Having finished 12 of his 15 career wins by knockout, Miocic looks to make a statement with a win over “The Reem,” who is a former kickboxing world champion with 20 knockouts to his name. When you add his 17 submission victories into the mix, Overeem possesses dynamic finishing power both on his feet and the ground. Yet, as a pair of strikers at heart, Miocic and Overeem will take any opportunity to get a knockout victory.

In addition, former heavyweight champion Werdum (20-6-1, fighting out of Los Angeles, Calif.) makes a quick return to the Octagon after his first loss since returning to the UFC in 2012. There’s no doubt the Brazilian will look to win in impressive fashion, as he has hopes of another shot at the title in his immediate future. Standing in his way is the resurgent Rothwell (36-10, fighting out of Kenosha, Wisc.) who has won four of his last five bouts, with each victory ending before the final horn. With 27 career knockouts to go along with six submissions, “Big Ben” looks to make a statement that will result in a meeting with the winner of the main event for the UFC heavyweight world title. With 49 finishes between the two, fans won’t want to blink.


Additional bouts:

· A lightweight clash between veteran Nik Lentz (28-7-2, 1 NC) and Russian striker Mairbek Taisumov (25-5, fighting out of Vienna, Austria) who is coming off four-straight knockout victories.

UFC 203: Miocic vs. Overeem
September 10, 2016
Quicken Loans Arena
Cleveland, Ohio


UFC 203: Miocic vs. Overeem Fight Card:

Stipe Miocic (c)(15-2) vs. Alistair Overeem (41-14, 1NC) - UFC Heavyweight Title Fight
Fabricio Werdum (20-5-1) vs. Ben Rothwell (36-10)
Nik Lentz (26-7-2, 1NC) vs. Mairbek Taisumov (26-5)
Damir Hadzovic (10-3) vs. Yusuke Kasuya (9-2-2)
CM Punk (0-0) vs. Mickey Gall (2-0)
Jessica Eye (11-5, 1 NC) vs. Bethe Correia (9-2)
Drew Dober (16-7) vs. Erik Koch (15-4)