Anthony Smith Returns To Action in a Quick Turnaround To Face Ryan Spann On September 18 UFC Fight Night

UFC light heavyweight fighter Anthony Smith will return to action in a quick turnaround as he will Ryan Spann on the September 18 UFC event. Smith fought Jimmy Crute at UFC 261 where the latter suffered a devastating foot drop after a leg kick from the former and the match ended in doctor stoppage.

‘Lionheart’ Smith will look to build on his 2 fight win streak against Spann who will look to pick up a second straight win.

Smith is a veteran of the sport. He has competed in 51 professional fights since his debut in MMA in 2008. The American had applied his trade for Strikeforce before a move to UFC in 2013.

His mixed bag of results in Strikeforce although acted as a ladder for UFC, but he couldn’t really affect much and was released from the promotion shortly after his debut match loss in 2013.

‘Lionheart’ then had a brief but successful stint in Bellator MMA in 2014. He fought in two matches for the promotion. He first clashed with Victor Moreno at Bellator 117 where he won via triangle choke submission. Smith then faced Brian Green at Bellator 129 and won via unanimous decision.

He then appeared for other MMA organizations and remained unbeaten before his hard work paid off and UFC resigned him in 2016. He has been an integral part of the promotion since then.

The American has had a good run since being reinstated where he has racked up 10 victories out of 15 fights. He moved up to light heavyweight in 2018.

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Can Ryan Spann upstage Anthony Smith?

‘Superman’ Spann has had an impressive run in his brief but eventful career in UFC. He has picked 5 wins in his first 6 matches for UFC.

After performing for various local promotions, ‘Superman’ made his debut for UFC in 2018. He fought against Luis Henrique Barbosa de Oliveira at UFC Fight Night 137 and picked up a unanimous decision win.

He followed up his impressive debut win by claiming victories against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Devin Clark, and Sam Alvey. The Fortis MMA fighter suffered his first loss against Johnny Walker at UFC Fight Night 178 via KO.

Although the loss was a disappointing one, he brushed aside the wounds with a commanding KO win over Misha Cirkunov earlier this year in March at UFC Fight Night 187.

His next opponent, Smith, will present him with a tough challenge. Both of them will be eager to increase their chances of fighting for the gold presently held by Jan Blachowicz one day.

Who do you see prevailing in the end?

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