After 60 trips to the cage, one of the sport’s ironmen laid down his gloves Saturday.
Anthony Smith (38-22 MMA, 13-12 UFC) didn’t go out the way he’d have preferred – with a win, obviously – but his first-round TKO loss to light heavyweight rising star Zhang Mingyang (19-6 MMA, 3-0 UFC) that left him a bloody mess in the cage while he watched a UFC-produced sendoff video was pretty appropriate for “Lionheart.”
Smith’s pre-planned retirement fight was the co-main event at UFC on ESPN 66 at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.
Smith fought then-champion Jon Jones for the 205-pound belt in 2019 after a stretch of six wins in seven fights – all stoppages. He closed out his UFC career on a 6-8 run after the title loss.
Check out the UFC’s tribute to him below, which opens with a message from Smith’s musician friend Jelly Roll.
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