Stipe Miocic: ‘Croatia, I love you and I’m sorry’
- by croatiaweek
- in Sport
Stipe Miocic has spoken publicly for the first time since his defeat to Francis Ngannou at UFC 260 in Las Vegas on Saturday.
Miocic was knocked out in the second round and lost his heavyweight belt but he is still deservedly regarded as the best heavyweight in MMA history.
The American-Croatian is also known as the most humble champion of all-time and once again he has shown that he is as gracious in defeat as he is in victory.
Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou square off (Screenshot)
On Monday the 38-year-old had a message for his fans.
“First and foremost, I’m ok. I know that fall wasn’t my most graceful fall, but I was unconscious, so it happens. To my family friends and fans, especially Croatia & Cleveland.. I love you and I’m sorry. I hate letting you down. To my team, thank you. I know you feel every loss just as much as I do. We win as a family, we lose as a family. Losses aren’t fun, they always sting for a while, but that’s the beast of this business. You can’t win them all, and it’s important to understand that losing is just as much a part of sports (and life) as winning. Don’t ever forget God will always put you where you’re meant to be at that exact moment. You can’t dwell on what you should have done better, but you can learn and improve from it and come back more prepared next time.
Unfortunately, I deviated from game plan. I felt great coming into the second round, I saw it was beginning to go as planned. He was getting very winded, and I came in over zealous and unprotected. I wasn’t in a good posture to take the hit. He saw the opening, and did what any great fighter would have done. That was my error that I accept, it wont happen again. Lastly, I’d like to congratulate Francis Ngannou and his team on a well earned victory. Saturday night was your night, enjoy your victory! For now, I’m going to enjoy the down time, spend some time with my family, and welcome our son into the world this summer… stay tuned, God bless,” Miocic wrote on Instagram, ending his message with the Croatian flag emoji.
View this post on Instagram
Miocic has the most consecutive title defenses in UFC heavyweight history after defending his title four times against Alistair Overeem, Junior dos Santos, Francis Ngannou and Daniel Cormier.
