The Las Vegas-based promotion announced the bout and event on Wednesday. UFC 203 will take place on Sept. 10 at Quicken Loans Arena, the home of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers. The card will air on pay-per-view and marks the UFC’s first ever trip to Cleveland.
Miocic captured heavyweight gold with a first-round knockout of Fabricio Werdum at UFC 198 on May 14. The Ohio-based fire-fighter has won six of his last seven fights in the Octagon, besting the likes of Andrei Arlovski, Mark Hunt and Roy Nelson during that time. His only defeat since 2013 came in a hard-fought five-round verdict against Junior dos Santos at UFC on Fox 13.
After losing three of his first five UFC appearances, Overeem has re-established himself as one of the sport’s top heavyweights, winning four straight inside the Octagon. Most recently, the Jackson-Wink MMA product scored a second-round technical knockout victory over Arlovski on May 8. “The Demolition Man” has also bested dos Santos, Nelson and Stefan Struve during his current run.
Heavyweight Champ @StipeMiocicUFC just announced some exciting news at The Q:@UFC is coming to @TheQArena on 9/10!https://t.co/ykaJWgrbM3
— Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) May 26, 2016