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In addition to dealing with the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent changes to everyday normal life, UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony Smith also had to fend off a home intruder earlier this week (full details HERE).
Despite being one of the best professional MMA fighters in the world today Smith still had trouble dealing with the 170-pound intruder. No matter how many punches, knees, and elbows Smith through his way, the man kept coming. The intruder was eventually arrested and charged with first-degree criminal trespass before being brought to a local hospital.
This certainly isn’t the way you want to spend self quarantine, especially for a fighter who was training to take on Glover Teixeira at UFC Lincoln on April 25th (that event has since been postponed). But how come the intruder put up such a good fight against a trained killer like Smith?
Joe Rogan and Brendan Schaub discussed the story on a recent edition of The Joe Rogan Experience podcast and detailed what “Lionheart” could have done differently.
“Anthony Smith is one of the baddest motherf—kers walking the earth. He (the intruder) was smaller than him. The guy was a hundred and seventy pounds and he took everything he could throw at him,” said Rogan.
“Why didn’t he just choke him unconscious?” he asked. Schaub, who is no stranger to professional fighting, agreed with Rogan. “Why didn’t he just choke the f—k out of him?”
It’s easy to sit on the outside and say what Smith should have done different, but fighting off a home invader is a scary moment for anyone, even a professional fighter. Per Smith’s account of the incident, he had no idea if the man had a gun or knife ready to hurt his family. It’s an extremely different scenario with everything on the line compared to choking somebody out in a controlled environment like the gym or inside of the Octagon.
Still, Smith was able to subdue the intruder and hold him until the police arrived for the arrest. It was a physical altercation that Smith described as “one of the toughest fights,” and this is a guy who went five rounds with the great Jon Jones.
“I think after he fought Jon Jones he got the rub and looked fantastic. I like Smith a lot. He’s a very intelligent dude. He’s got a future in fighting,” said Rogan.
Smith, 31, is coming off a masterful submission win over Alexander Gustafsson at UFC Fight Night 153 last June. It was his first appearance since losing his light heavyweight title shot against Jones at UFC 235. Smith was scheduled to fight Teixeira later this month in a fight that could have gotten him right back into title contention so look for the veteran to compete relatively quickly after the coronavirus restrictions are lifted.