Stipe Miocic is an American professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighter like Joanna Jedrzejczyk who presently has signed under the ‘Ultimate Fighting Championship’ (UFC). He was a kid from Ohio who was always interested in many different sports. Miocic came from a middle-class family and was not a child with many privileges. He did dream of becoming an athlete and making a career in sports but with the life, he was living, even that dream was farfetched.
As people keep saying, ‘talent makes its own way’, and Stipe with a lot of hard work and dedication found himself competing in MMA championship in 2011. He began his career when he won his five fights in a local event. This was the perfect promotion for him to get into the real world. Eventually, Miocic went on to win the NAAFS World Heavy Weight Championship. Then he made his debut on UFC which he won and this was just the start of a wonderful journey for Stipe. Let us now get to know more about this amazing athlete.
Stipe Miocic: Early Life, and Education
Stipe Miocic was born on August 19, 1982, in Ohio, USA. He was born to a middle-class Croatian family who found living very difficult. However, Miocic’s parents worked and struggled hard to provide them with a better lifestyle. When Stipe was only 3, his parents split up and his father went back to Croatia. Stipe’s mother then stayed unmarried for the rest of her life and took care of him and his other siblings. Stipe was always close with his mother and in a post-match interview, he says her to be the ‘biggest inspiration of his life.’
Stipe joined the Eastlake North High School for his education. During that period he focused a lot more on sports than on his studies. He was a fan of every kind of sports and played baseball, football, and wrestling. His favorite was always baseball and with some practice, he got really good at it. He then went to Cleveland State University where he was approached by different teams that played for major leagues.
While at college, he started wrestling a bit more but did not have any intention to pursue it as a career. It was the fun factor that motivated him and he only did it under the persuasion of his coach. After the college was over, he did not show much interest in the sport and took paramedic classes to be a fire-fighter.
Stipe Miocic: Career
Stipe for some time managed to avoid a career in wrestling, but he was destined to be great in this sport. He in no time became a ‘Cleveland Golden Glove Boxing Champion’ and joined Division I wrestling at the NCAA. Eventually, Miocic made it and started fighting in the pro-MMA matches and went on a winning streak for a while.
His first five matches were fought locally and Stipe managed to win them all by knocking out his opponents. Then the confident athlete took MMA seriously and signed for an agency based in Ohio. Not so later, he went on to win the ‘Heavyweight Championship’.
He then started making waves in the world of UFC and in 2011 signed a deal with them. His first fight was against Joey Beltran, scheduled to be on October 2011. His dedication throughout the years paid off as he was able to clinch his first UFC victory in a very close encounter.
For his second fight, he faced Phil De Fries in February 2012. Stipe was on fire and was landing some of the heaviest punches on Phil. For that match, Stipe won his first bonus in the form of ‘Knockout of the Night’. His next opponent came in the form of Shane Del Rosario. He again had a relatively easy victory, where he again knocked his opponent out.
Since joining in 2011, Miocic has played a big part in the success of MMA itself. He has an attitude that helps him keep going even when things are not looking well. He has achieved the success and fame which even he could not have imagined when he started out.
Stipe Miocic: Personal Life
Miocic, in his college years, dreamt of becoming a fire-fighter. So in his free time from wrestling, he works as a fire-fighter and a paramedic. He makes a lot of money from his MMA career but it is not all about money for this amazing man who says that there is a different joy in being able to help people.
Currently, Stipe is married to Ryan Marie Carney. The couple walked on the aisle on the 18th of June, 2016, at the Divine Word Catholic Church in Kirtland. Stipe and Ryan dated for several years before deciding to get married. They live together and own 2 dogs.
Stipe Miocic: Net Worth
This heavyweight UFC fighter is having an amazing life and an illustrious career. He is believed to earn a whopping fee of $400,000, per match. As of 2017, Miocic’s net worth is believed to be around $2 million.
Stipe currently owns and drives his own classic Dodge Challenger (Convertible) which costs around $27,000. He is also pretty active on social media platforms like Instagram where he posts photos of his daily life, his wife, endorsement work, etc.
