Leslie Smith believes that her loss to Cris Cyborg at UFC 198 was stopped prematurely.
Leslie Smith came into her UFC 198 main card bout against Cris Cyborg as big as a +1100 underdog on some betting sites, and she lasted just 81 seconds against the current Invicta FC featherweight champion. It was the first time in Smith’s career that she’d been finished with strikes — she did lose by doctor’s stoppage after her ear exploded vs. Jessica Eye — and she was none too happy with the stoppage, yelling “f**k that” moments after the bout ended.
In an official Instagram post, Smith outlined her frustration over referee Eduardo Herdy’s call to end the fight.
The full statement reads as follows:
“I’m pissed as hell about the stoppage. The fights that were allowed to keep going in the same cage on the same night showed that my fight was total bull. Now I have to go home to everyone who made sacrifices for me to get to this fight and even though they might not hold it against me I know it was a huge disappointment. I’ll fight her again asap as long as there’s a legit ref like Herb Dean.”
With the loss, early stoppage or not, Smith (8-7-1) is now 2-3 in the UFC, with losses vs. Sarah Kaufman, Eye, and Cyborg, and wins over Jessamyn Duke and Rin Nakai.