Will Stipe ever regain his HW belt?

C

Combat Wombatt

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Since DC apparently only plans on fighting 2 times before retirement, once at LHW and then once at HW against Lesnar he won’t ever rematch Stipe.

The UFC HW division is as shallow as it’s ever been with Ngannou and Lewis being top contenders.

If Lesnar beats DC I think Stipe would have a hard time stopping his double and GnP.

If Lesnar loses to DC then I could see Stipe regaining his belt.

What do you think?
 
Quite possibly. DC is adamant about retiring in march and there will be an opening. If Stipe takes one fight in the meantime I could definitely see him fighting for the vacant title.
 
He definitely could. He is still arguably the best fighter in the division.
 
After DC retires, I expect that it'll be Curtis Blaydes' time to reign on the HW division. Stipe's turning 36 soon, it's gonna be tough for him to get that belt back. I would never count him out though.
 
Stipe vs. Blaydes for TS after Lesnar's!
 
Sure, he's great, but the UFC won't make it easy for him because he's not a talker/cash cow. I could see Blaydes trumping Stipe too.
 
Shit, Arlovski could at this point. HW is garbage.
 
Seeing the competition in HW and how DC is retiring next March he prob sees it as a time to relax, catch his breath from commitments of being the champ and get the title back by next year at this time bc I don't see anything changing in that division anytime soon
 
For sure

DC beats Brock and retires
Stipe beats Black Beast in the meantime and then he fights against Volkov or Blaydes for the vacant title
 
Anything can happen at HW with elite fighters. We just saw it Saturday night. Im not suprised. If the dice roll his way and the opportunity arises, it's apparent Stipe could regain his title being one of the longest reigning ufc hw champs. Barring injuries, of course.
 
One of the hardest things to do

Randy, Tim Sylvia, Cain
Matt Hughes, GSP
Aldo
Dom, TJ

The only champs to get their belt back that I can think of... (technically Jones didn't since that fight was overturned, also that means D.C. never lost it...)

* I'm not counting interim belts, just real belts. Sorry Frank Mir.

Many great champs and elite fighters failed to do so.

Stipe might be able to but he will have a long wait before he gets a shot and he will likely have to win 1-2 tough fights against guys who can KO with 1 shot. His best bet is either a vacant belt next march when DC retires or Brock pops and maybe he is lucky enough to fill in assuming Jones is still out (UFC would 100% do Jones DC 3 over Stipe rematch).

Curtis blades is now in the mix and Stipe could wind up fighting him for a vacant belt next year unless someone else gets a big win or two. I'd pick Stipe in that matchup.

Stipe turns 36 next month, but at HW he is still about avg age for top 5.
 
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Probably, hell it looks like Blades is next #1 anyway. HW is pretty weak right now
 
felmmando said:
Isn't that a tad hasty? Cormier hadn't competed recently at HW but at least he had a creditable run back in the day.
Click to expand...
UFC was going to have Jones vs Stipe for HW belt after Jones/DC 2. I believe it was supposed to be the 2017 end of year show.

it was apparently a done deal but Jones popped.

All they care about is money and Jones is one of their biggest draws.
 
It’s possible that Stipe gets a chance to get the title back, but I would put my money against it. There are too many factors working against him. The odds may change in the future, though. If Jones is suspended for 2 years, it helps Stipe.
 
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