Miocic beats Werdum to become new UFC heavyweight champion

Andrei Arlovski, right, kicks Stipe Miocic in a heavyweight mixed martial arts bout at UFC 195, Saturday, Jan. 2, 2016, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

RIO DE JANEIRO -- Stipe Miocic of the United States has beaten Brazil's Fabricio Werdum in front of his shocked home crowd and is the new UFC heavyweight champion.

The American fighter used his boxing expertise to knock out the Brazilian in the first round of UFC 198 in Curitiba, Southern Brazil on Saturday.

Miocic, an Ohio firefighter, has won six of his past seven fights.

Werdum had won five straight fights, highlighted by a win against Mark Hunt for the interim title and then a submission victory against Cain Velasquez in a unification bout.

The bout was scheduled for February until Werdum pulled out with injuries and forced a postponement.

The event was held in front of a sold-out crowd of 45,000 fans at Arena da Baixada.