A super rare flub occurred at UFC 301.
Anthony Smith scored a massive upset win at UFC 301 last night (Sat., May 4, 2024), tapping Vitor Petrino in the first round with a guillotine choke — and taking the young Brazilian’s undefeated record in the process — from inside Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil (watch highlights).
However, the win was quickly overshadowed because Bruce Buffer made a rare mistake live during the pay-per-view (PPV) broadcast, announcing the wrong winner (Petrino) just moments after the 205-pound showdown concluded.
Buffer made his usual post-fight announcement, “The referee called a stop to this contest at two minutes of the very first round. Declaring the winner by submission due to a guillotine choke and still undefeated … Vitor … excuse me! Anthony ‘Lionheart’ Smith!!!”
Watch the flub below:
Bruce Buffer made the correct call for Anthony Smith real quick #UFC301 pic.twitter.com/qxzTGkKnT9
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) May 5, 2024
Smith was asked about the rare mistake during his post-fight interview with the media.
“I feel really bad for Buffer,” Smith said. “I know how serious and how much he loves his job and how professional he is. He is really hard on himself…. Me and Bruce are friends, like we work together a lot. So, he takes his job so serious. He takes it to the heart; he puts his heart and soul into this job.
“I feel bad because he’s probably bummed out about it,” Smith concluded. “I hope I get to talk to him after. I’m good with it — people make mistakes. It’s no big deal. I just hope he’s not beating himself up too bad.”
Buffer hasn’t addressed his mistake yet, but when he does, MMAmania.com will share his response.
For complete UFC 301 results, coverage and highlights click HERE.