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Hometown hero Stipe Miocic to headline UFC 203 in Cleveland

The city of Cleveland truly embraced native son Stipe Miocic when he won the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight title earlier this month.

Now his hometown will get to watch him try to defend the belt for the first time.

Miocic will put the belt on the line against Alistair Overeem in the main event of UFC 203 at Quicken Loans Arena on Sept. 10 in Cleveland, sources close to the organization confirmed.

A video of Miocic announcing the event was played to a raucous ovation inside Quicken Loans Arena during a blowout victory by the Cavaliers over the Raptors in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Finals on Wednesday night.

Miocic captured the title with a first-round knockout of Fabricio Werdum in Brazil on May 14. He brought the belt back to Cleveland where he celebrated with fans at Cavs game and took it with him to an Indians game, where he hit a home run during batting practice.

Overeem has won four straight fights, including a second-round knockout of Andrei Arlovski on May 8 in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

UFC 203 will mark the organization’s first event in Cleveland.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj

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