It seems like the dust has finally settled between UFC light heavyweights Anthony Smith and Alex Pereira! But if you ask the fans, there’s still some unfinished business between the two warriors. The origin of their ‘beef’? It seemingly started Pereira wasn’t impressed with Smith’s performance against Ryan Spann in their clash at UFC Fight Night 225 in 2023. On his YouTube channel, ‘Poatan’ had stated, “The only ones who speak bad about me are Anthony Smith types. Washed-up vets who never amounted to anything, who are still fighting.”

The result? An incensed Smith later shared on SiriusXM’s MMA Today, “I’ve been nothing but complimentary of him and his whole team, I like his coaches. I love Glover to death and a lot of his training partners. Like, I don’t know what I did to that guy.” Confused by Pereira’s sudden attack, Smith wondered if the remarks were based on something taken out of context or a headline blown out of proportion.

However, it appears that that the two have now buried the hatchet. In a recent video shared on social media by ‘Championship Rounds’, the fighters sat down to clear the air, exchanging pleasantries rather than punches! Smith started off by stating, “Aside from the competitive rivalry or whatever it was before, I have a lot of respect for you. I am a big fan of your game, I love watching you fight, best of luck here in Salt Lake City, and I really appreciate you and your whole team.”

The Brazilian champion’s response? He responded with, “I am thankful to you for reaching out. Ever since you spoke to Glover (Teixeira), I don’t think there is any malice, there’s no bitterness about the back and forths that we had.” But while the two light heavyweights have seemingly left their ‘feud’ in the past, the fans aren’t ready to let it go and are still demanding more! Here’s a look at what the netizens had to say.

Fans call for a clash as Alex Pereira and Anthony Smith sit down for a ‘peaceful’ end to their ‘beef’

The conversation between Alex Pereira and Anthony Smith caused the fandom to ponder that perhaps there wasn’t any ‘beef’ between them to start with! But is that true? According to Pereira in a past interview on ‘The MMA Hour’, “It’s always something going on that Anthony doesn’t give me the proper credit that I deserve. He kind of hates on me a little bit… But it’s always something else to discredit me for everything, and that’s why the beef is there.” However, their latest exchange does indicate that things might have finally settled down!

“there was never no beef”

One fan indicated UFC rivalries have a way of reigniting when you least expect it. With both men still active in the light heavyweight division, a clash seems more than plausible. Alex Pereira is currently lined up to defend his title against Khalil Rountree Jr. at UFC 307, and Smith is scheduled to face Dominick Reyes at UFC 310. As such, it remains to be seen if the match-up demanded by the fandom becomes a reality in the near future!

“Respect to them but they still gotta fight”

But what about a match-up outside the Octagon? That was seemingly a challenge put forth by Anthony Smith as he felt that ‘Poatan’ was too one dimensional when he fought inside the cage. However, as it turns out, it wasn’t Smith’s idea at all! In a past interview on ‘The MMA Hour’, ‘Lionheart’ explained, “Every single time grappling has been brought up with Alex Pereira, he brought it up. I’ve never challenged him to anything…”

“I still want the grappling match.”

Some fans took a more light-hearted approach, suggesting that the next step for Smith and Pereira should be co-hosting a cooking show, given how easily they squashed the beef! While the cooking show idea is indeed interesting, Pereira has shown in the past that he isn’t one to carry on rivalries longer than needed. The proof? After their storied clashes in kickboxing and UFC, ‘Poatan’ was even open to the idea of training with Israel Adesanya as he’d stated, “But I think it’s over. I don’t know. I’d even train with him if I had the opportunity.”

“Looks like Alex Pereira and Anthony Smith decided that squashing beef is way better than trying to knock each other out! Next step: a cooking show?”

Meanwhile a few fans took jabs at ‘Lionheart’s title aspirations by pointing out that this resolution with Pereira might be a sign that the UFC veteran is done with his championship dreams. What do you think?

“Bro finally came to terms with him never getting the belt”

In conclusion, fans clearly still want to see the two go head-to-head, but only time will tell if the UFC will grant their wish. While Smith and Pereira have seemingly put their differences aside, one can’t help but wonder if this is truly the end. Do you think Anthony Smith will get another chance at the light heavyweight crown, this time against Alex Pereira? Or is their rivalry truly laid to rest? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!