Anthony Smith vs Aleksandar Rakic Preview (long read)

[Xoleth]

Rakic is a better fighter and Smith got destroyed not only by Jones, he has 15 loses, 13 of them by being finish.
Also, Rakic last fight could have gone either way, very close fight.
BB in BJJ doesn't really mean shit for some fighters.

 

[Spath]

I think Smith is 1-2 fights away from retirement, to be honest. Just a hunch. His body has taken so much wear and tear despite not being particularly old, and he's peaked already - him fighting for the title is something nobody could have foreseen a few years back. I see Rakic finishing him.

Could be. He has had a ton of fights already, but he’s not old and I’m sure he wants to keep earning money and providing for his family. I’m sure the money is better than ever now. So I’d say he probably keeps fighting for a couple more years..

good breakdown

Thanks

Rakic stops journeyman Smith in impressive fashion.

The ”journeyman” Smith is ranked #5 at LHW with some good wins. Rakic has a good chance at winning this, but I don’t think he should be that big of a favorite.

How do you think Rakic finished Smith?

 

[The Chosen]

I think this is a very winnable fight for Smith, with it only being three rounds he doesn’t have to worry as much about his cardio fading as well...

 

[Spath]

Rakic is a better fighter and Smith got destroyed not only by Jones, he has 15 loses, 13 of them by being finish.
Also, Rakic last fight could have gone either way, very close fight.
BB in BJJ doesn't really mean shit for some fighters.

Why is that? What has Rakic shown or done so far that you’d say he’s the better fighter? He has one signature win over Manuwa, who seems to be prone to getting KTFO lately. I think he’s looking good, but I’m not entirely sold yet.

BJJ black belt itself won’t do jack, but if you outwork and maneuver people on the ground.. Then yea, that obviously means something.

I watched more Smith fights and I actually think he’ll shoot for a takedown at some point. Maybe early if he wants to grapple with Rakic to take out some of that explosiveness that makes him so dangerous.

 

[MMAart]

Kind of too soon for Anthony to be fighting after that Glover beatdown

This is exactly the reason why the UFC made this fight: too soon after that Glover beatdown, so that Rakic can have a better chance at winning.

Rakic will get the next title shot if he wins. That's the UFC's plan.

 

[iDisagree]

The ”journeyman” Smith is ranked #5 at LHW with some good wins. Rakic has a good chance at winning this, but I don’t think he should be that big of a favorite.

How do you think Rakic finished Smith?

Who has Smith beaten? Washed up Gus? CTE Rashad? Or the fossil of Shogun Rua??? He just got beat down violently by prehistoric Texeira. Smith had a good run of beating physically and emotionally shot fighters but he has peaked and the damage and mileage has caught up with him. Rakic hurts him on the feet and follows up to a ref stoppage.

 

['Suga Daddy']

This is exactly the reason why the UFC made this fight: too soon after that Glover beatdown, so that Rakic can have a better chance at winning.

Rakic will get the next title shot if he wins. That's the UFC's plan.

No it’s not, Santos vs Glover is the title eliminator

 

[Spath]

Who has Smith beaten? Washed up Gus? CTE Rashad? Or the fossil of Shogun Rua??? He just got beat down violently by prehistoric Texeira. Smith had a good run of beating physically and emotionally shot fighters but he has peaked and the damage and mileage has caught up with him. Rakic hurts him on the feet and follows up to a ref stoppage.

Those guys and Oezdemir, who he submitted after busting his face open. You know, the guy who last beat Rakic!

We’ll see how it goes, not too many days left.

 

[iDisagree]

Those guys and Oezdemir, who he submitted after busting his face open. You know, the guy who last beat Rakic!

We’ll see how it goes, not too many days left.

I think Ozdemir is a decent win but let's be honest, he's an inconsistent gatekeeper at best. Id take Rakic over Ozdemir in a rematch tbh.

 

[Xoleth]

Why is that? What has Rakic shown or done so far that you’d say he’s the better fighter? He has one signature win over Manuwa, who seems to be prone to getting KTFO lately. I think he’s looking good, but I’m not entirely sold yet.

BJJ black belt itself won’t do jack, but if you outwork and maneuver people on the ground.. Then yea, that obviously means something.

I watched more Smith fights and I actually think he’ll shoot for a takedown at some point. Maybe early if he wants to grapple with Rakic to take out some of that explosiveness that makes him so dangerous.

Indeed, Rakic's opponent quality is poor. A win over Manuwa and a very close fight vs Volkan.

Smith has finishes over Shogun, Rashad, Lombard & Gus. Great names... on paper. In reality, all of them were past their primes and look terrible in those fights. Great finishes, though!
Another win over Volkan, who is a legit fighter and in his prime, but his ground game is quite bad.

Yeah, Smith has clearly better wins and is more experienced. But he took a lot of damage in his last fight.
I would bet on Rakic though.

 

[Spath]

I would bet on Rakic though.

Considering the odds I don’t see that being a good bet. This is much closer to a 50/50 pick ’en type of fight and those odds place Rakic to win at about 74% of the time. That’s waaaay too much IMO.

Robbie Lawler is another big underdog this card, vs Magny. Intriguing, he might get outworked to a decision loss, but he just might beat Magny up..