DESPITE ENTERING THE bout as the favourite, Anthony Smith was comprehensively beaten in last night’s UFC main event.
Smith (33-15) suffered a fifth-round TKO defeat to Glover Teixeira (31-7) in the headliner at UFC Fight Night 171, which took place behind closed doors in Jacksonville, Florida.
Teixeira finished Smith in the final frame after his opponent had told his corner at the end of the fourth round that several of his teeth were falling out as a result of the considerable volume of punches he had been subjected to from the 40-year-old veteran.
Having lost three of the five bouts he competed in between August 2016 and July 2018, Teixeira is now riding a four-fight win streak in the light-heavyweight division.
The Brazilian veteran, who fell short against reigning champion Jon Jones in 2014, is now hoping his resurgence can earn him another title shot.
“You’ve got to go out and look for help when things start going wrong and that’s what I did,” said Teixeira, who entered last night’s fight ranked eighth in the 205lbs division. “Here I am, getting on another run for that title.”
Smith, who’s ranked fourth, rebounded from a March 2019 defeat to Jon Jones by submitting Alexander Gustafsson last June. However, last night’s defeat represents a major setback for the 31-year-old Texan.
After an eight-week absence due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the UFC – the largest organisation in mixed martial arts – has now held two events in the space of five days.
On Saturday night, Jacksonville also played host to UFC 249, which concluded with an interim lightweight title win for Justin Gaethje over Tony Ferguson.
Jackson is again due to be the venue for this Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 8 card, where a heavyweight bout between Alistair Overeem and Walt Harris is set to top the bill.
UFC Fight Night 171
- Glover Teixeira def. Anthony Smith via TKO (punches) after 1:04 of round five
- Ben Rothwell def. Ovince Saint Preux via split decision (28–29, 29–28, 29–28)
- Drew Dober def. Alexander Hernandez via TKO (punches) after 4:25 of round two
- Ricky Simon def. Ray Borg via split decision (28–29, 29–28, 29–28)
- Andrei Arlovski def. Philipe Lins via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 29–28)
- Thiago Moisés def. Michael Johnson via submission (heel hook) after 0:25 of round two
- Sijara Eubanks def. Sarah Moras via unanimous decision (30–27, 30–27, 30–26)
- Omar Morales def. Gabriel Benítez via unanimous decision (30–27, 29–28, 29–28)
- Brian Kelleher def. Hunter Azure via KO (punches) after 3:40 of round two
- Chase Sherman def. Isaac Villanueva via TKO (elbow and punches) after 0:49 of round two
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