UFC vet that took down Merab Dvalishvili and Aljamain Sterling reveals favorite fight

A young kid from Michigan broke into the Top 10 of the UFC in just his third UFC fight. This is the Cody Stamann story.

15-time UFC veteran Stamann was recently let go by the premier promotion last month after a losing skid, but there's more than meets than eye when it comes to his record. Stamann fought legit competition from 2017 all the way up to Da'Mon Blackshear last November.

Stamann fought (and took down) Aljamain Sterling and current champ Merab Dvalishvili a few fights before they both became UFC bantamweight champions. Stamann was caught in a kneebar by Sterling for his first UFC loss, and Dvalishvili defeated him by decision in a competitive fight.

"The Spartan" got his hand raised against #6 contender Song Yadong (it was a draw), Brian Kelleher, Bryan Caraway, Eddie Wineland, and more in a talent-rich division.

At 35 years old, Stamann's a millionaire, thankful for how his life changed miraciously.

EXCLUSIVE: Cody Stamann talks UFC release, what’s next after fighting the best in the world

Cody Stamann Looks Back On Best UFC Moments

A few weeks removed from his UFC release, I asked Stamann what the most memorable moment of his career was. I initially thought his answer would be his $50K bonus-winning knockout of Eddie Wineland.

Stamann's a prize-fighter at heart, but the epic WIneland KO wasn't his all-time favorite.

"That was definitely a pretty surreal moment," Stamann said of the highlight. "That's maybe the only time I ever went into a fight and I was like telling my corner, my cornerman before the fight and I was like, 'Don't even sit down, like this isn't gonna last long.' I'm like, 'It's me or him right away.' And they were like, you know, 'Relax, relax, relax.' But I really had that like mentality. I was like, 'Listen, he's gonna knock me out. I'm gonna knock him out and it's gonna happen immediately.'"

"I'm gonna go on there and just get in a street fight. Obviously it panned out pretty well for me. But honestly, that's not the moment that I look back at and I think, 'this is my highlight in my UFC career'."

UFC's Cody Stamann — Cody Stamann earned a $50,000 bonus for his KO of UFC veteran Eddie Wineland | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

The Actual 'Highlight Of My UFC Career'

No, for Cody Stamann, his favorite moment arrived whenever he was a 16-1 standout at 28 years old. He was on a hot nine-fight win streak, coming off a win over "The Fire Kid" with the same record (which we'll get to later).

"I think what the fight for me that really changed the way I looked at myself as an athlete was the Bryan Caraway fight," Stamann said. Stamann fought Caraway at UFC 222 in 2018.

"That was my third fight in the UFC and he was number seven in the world at the time. I was just some silly kid from Michigan who didn't really have any real accolades outside of a Golden Globes championship and some wrestling experience."

UFC's Bryan Caraway — An unranked Cody Stamann defeated Bryan Caraway, the #7 bantamweight contender in the world at the time. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Cody Stamann Reveals Injury Right Before Bryan Caraway Fight

Bryan Caraway actually handed Aljamain Sterling his first loss, by split decision, the year before he fought the young Stamann. Stamann reveals he was injured at the time, tearing meniscus in the locker room right before the fight.

"I'd never faced that level of competition and I was fighting someone Top 10 in the world and leading up to that fight, I tore my ribs up pretty bad," Stamann said.

"Warming up for that fight, I actually tore my meniscus. Five minutes before I'm gonna go fight one of the best guys in the world, my knee is completely, my knee's all jacked up. I can like barely walk.
And I had a terrible training camp and - I don't know, I just had like, it was like a mental thing. I was like, 'It doesn't matter. I don't care... I was like, 'It doesn't really matter what happens, like leading up to this fight, I'm gonna beat this guy.'"

Stamann's Supreme Confidence In Upset Win

Stamann defended 18 out of 19 takedown attempts from Caraway. Stamann had a tough first round but gained some momentum with a sprawl-and-brawl strategy leading to a split decision victory.

"I just had this like supreme confidence in myself. I don't really know where it came from, maybe [from] God.

"I was so driven at that time, and when I look back, I think like mentally that was like the highlight of my career for me, because I pulled something off that I really had no business doing at the time."

"That guy was scary," Stamann On Fighting "The Fire Kid"

Confident as ever while injured, maybe that came from Stamann's win over the highly-touted Frenchman Tom Duquesnoy. "The Fire Kid" had the exact record as Stamann at 15-1 and a whole lot of hype behind his name in 2017.

"That guy was scary," Stamann recalled of Duquesnoy. "I was doing interviews and stuff leading up to [UFC 216] and like everyone was kind of like, 'Man, that's a tough draw for your second UFC fight.' And everybody was kind of counting me out, and I couldn't figure out why.

"I watched him fight. I was like, 'Listen, yeah, he's good. Like, yeah, he's dangerous, but like, I'm pretty good too.'"

"I thought, 'Yeah, I wasn't really getting any, any respect from the MMA media or really anybody, the matchmakers or anyone.' I was like, 'Listen, I'm just getting started in the UFC.' Like this is just the beginning and I got it done."

For more on Cody Stamann's career and what he plans on doing after his UFC release, click HERE.

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