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UFC 226’s Stipe Miocic can’t understand why he still has doubters

Stipe Miocic might be a 2-1 betting favorite heading into his highly anticipated title bout with Daniel Cormier this Saturday, but the reigning heavyweight champion still has his doubters.

And he’s not sure why.

Prior to his title defense against Cameroonian knockout artist Francis Ngannou in January, Miocic, despite being the champ, was billed as the underdog. It seemed that everyone, including the UFC, was expecting ‘The Predator’ to usurp Miocic with a highlight reel knockout. That didn’t happen, though, and Miocic ended up breaking the record for the most heavyweight title defenses in UFC history (3) and established himself as a top-three pound-for-pound talent.