It looks like Daniel Cormier has finally emerged from the shadow of bitter rival, Jon Jones, after he claimed the UFC Heavyweight title with a first round stoppage of Stipe Miocic on Saturday.
The fight was halted after Cormier floored Miocic late in the first round and followed up with a quick 'ground and pound' before referee Mark Goddard stopped proceedings with less than 30 seconds left on the clock in the opening round.
He now joins Conor McGregor as only the second ever simultaneous 'champ-champ' in the promotion and the fifth ever to win titles in two separate divisions - alongside the Irishman, Randy Couture, BJ Penn and George St. Pierre.
Cormier's UFC career has been largely overshadowed by his rivalry with former light-heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
Fighters need 'beef' to sell fights but when there's legitimate animosity between two competitors - think Dominick Cruz v Urijah Faber or Joanna Jedrzejczyk v Claudia Gadelha - it makes for an even better scrap.
Cormier's decision to drop to light-heavyweight was influenced by his friendship with training partner, Cain Velasquez, who reigned as UFC heavyweight title-holder on-and-off between 2010-2015, although a loss of form and a series of injuries have hampered his career recently.
He won his first five UFC fights before losing to Jones via unanimous decision in January 2015. However, Jones' out-of-cage troubles saw him stripped of his title and Cormier filled the breach, beating Anthony Johnson (x2) and Alexander Gustafsson in the interim at 205 lbs.
Jones returned and stopped Cormier in July 2017 - only for the result to be overturned after he tested positive for the banned steroid, turinabol. Jones had previously failed a pre-fight test when he was due to face Cormier at UFC 200.
Saturday night's win over Miocic has allowed Cormier to finally break free from the shackles of his rivalry with Jones and he now joins an elite few in the world of MMA.
At 39, he is in the twilight of his career but called out WWE star Brock Lesnar who joined him post-fight in the octagon. Lesnar has re-joined the USADA testing pool although he will not be eligible to compete until January - once he completes a previous suspension after testing positive for a banned substance after his appearance at UFC 200.
Regardless of how the rest of Cormier's career plays out - he has now achieved an accomplishment which only the very best in MMA can lay claim to.
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