UFC 241: Stipe Miocic listed as underdog against Daniel Cormier, opening betting odds

Daniel Cormier’s next heavyweight title defense won’t be against Brock Lesnar. After Lesnar’s retirement from the sport yesterday, it was reported that Stipe Miocic would be shuffled into the top of the heavyweight deck once again. As Brett Okamoto and Ariel Helwani of ESPN noted, we’re now expecting Cormier vs. Miocic 2 to go down at UFC 241 on August 17 in Anaheim, California.

Early betting odds for the heavyweight rematch have Daniel Cormier as a slight favorite (-130), and Stipe Miocic is listed as a +150 underdog.

These odds are a complete reversal of the closing betting odds before their original bout back at UFC 226. On that night, bookmakers had Cormier as a +140 underdog against Miocic, who was a -160 favorite.

Of course, the result of their first title fight will be fresh in the minds of many. Those who were picking Cormier to defeat the champion mostly had him doing so by earning a decision after five rounds. Not many saw him stopping Miocic, and fewer saw him knocking out the champion in the first round.

Since then, Daniel Cormier defended the UFC Heavyweight Championship successfully against Derrick Lewis at UFC 230. Cormier submitted Lewis with a rear-naked choke in the second round. UFC 241 will mark the first time Stipe Miocic returns to the cage after losing his title to Cormier in July last year.

Here are the current betting odds for Daniel Cormier vs. Stipe Miocic 2: