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Aleksandar Rakic Promised Fallen Friend He’ll Beat Thiago Santos

Aleksandar Rakic could not be more motivated ahead of his fight against Thiago Santos on March 6. #4-ranked light heavyweight Aleksandar Rakic has had an impressive run in his first three years in the UFC, tallying a record of 5-1 in the promotion. In …

Thiago Santos vs. Aleksandar Rakic Booked for March 6

Thiago Santos will look to get right back on the winning track as he has instantly booked his next fight in a banger against Aleksandar Rakic scheduled for March 2021. It was just a week ago that Thiago Santos’s comeback was derailed by Glover Te…

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Aleksandar Rakic, Thiago Santos Agree To Fight At March 6 Event

A pair of top UFC light heavyweights will lock horns at an unannounced event on March 6, as Aleksandar Rakic will take on Thiago Santos in a fight that is sure to produce fireworks and move the winner closer to a title shot. Rakic has made waves in the light heavyweight division since arriving in […]

Rakic has made waves in the light heavyweight division since arriving in September 2017. He’s run up a 5-1 record, with his only loss coming by way of a controversial decision against Volkan Oezdemir. He’ll enter the fight against Santos coming off the biggest win of his career, taking a unanimous decision over Anthony Smith in his first main event assignment at UFC Fight Night+ 33.

Santos will enter the fight needing a win to keep himself relevant in the division. He’s coming off back-to-back losses; first coming up short in a title fight against Jon Jones, then being submitted by Golver Texeira at UFC on ESPN 17 this past weekend. The Brazilian knockout artist was undefeated at light heavyweight before his current stretch, racking up three straight finishes after moving up from middleweight.

The pairing was announced by MMA Junkie, after an earlier report from ESPN. A location for the event and broadcast details were not made available.

Who do you think wins? Aleksandar Rakic or Thiago Santos?

Anthony Smith Opens Up On Aleksandar Rakic Loss: ‘I’m Not Doing Well’

Anthony Smith is having a hard time after his UFC Vegas 8 main event loss to Aleksandar Rakic. Smith was returning to the Octagon just three months after his beatdown loss to Glover Teixeira in May. “Lionheart” entered the fight as a sizeable underdog and early on got dropped due to leg kicks. Rakic was […]

Anthony Smith is having a hard time after his UFC Vegas 8 main event loss to Aleksandar Rakic.

Smith was returning to the Octagon just three months after his beatdown loss to Glover Teixeira in May. “Lionheart” entered the fight as a sizeable underdog and early on got dropped due to leg kicks. Rakic was beating his leg up and for the rest of the fight the Austrian dominated it with ground and pound.

Now, just days after his loss, Smith went on MMA on SiriusXM and opened up saying he is not doing well physically or mentally.

“It’s not good,” he said when asked about the state of his leg, which took a significant amount of punishment in the fight (via BJPENN.com). “It’s not good at all. I’m still on crutches, so there’s that.

“If I’m being really honest with you guys, I’m not doing well,” Smith added, opening up on his mental state. “I’m super disappointed. I couldn’t get out of bed on Sunday. They had to send people from the [UFC Performance Institute] to my hotel room and drug me up and put a bunch of anti-inflammatory creams and big compression ice machines [on me]. It was like I had a whole f**king team in my room.

“It’s a little bit better today,” Smith continued. “There’s an occult fracture on my fibula head, so that’s cool. It sounds bad, but it’s not a huge deal actually. In four to six weeks it will be fine.”

For Anthony Smith, he said the leg kicks made it impossible for him to fight how he wanted to. He could barely stand on it so he couldn’t generate any power striking. So, he had to keep the fight on the ground and see if he could pull out a submission.

Not only is the defeat disappointing, but Smith is surprised his leg gave out after just three leg kicks from Rakic.

“Had I not had the leg damage, I would have changed my gameplan and just said ‘alright, we’re just going to stand in this boxing range and we’re just going to go to town here,’” he said. “And I’m confident I’d have been fine. But I couldn’t take one more leg kick. I didn’t have the ability to change my game plan to just strike with him and just box, because the one time he steps back into kicking range, and I don’t have enough time to close that distance, I’m down, and I’m not getting back up.

“That’s the thing. He kicked me three times. That is nuts. Hector Lombard kicked me 32 times in that fight. No issues. Three kicks from Aleksandar Rakic and I’m on crutches.”

Where Anthony Smith goes from here is uncertain. There is no question this is a disappointing loss for him.

What do you think should be next for Anthony Smith?

Aleksandar Rakic Thinks Dominick Reyes Is The Toughest Fight At 205lbs

Aleksandar Rakic has expressed his belief that Dominick Reyes would provide him with the toughest of all the light-heavyweight contenders currently vying for the 205lb strap recently vacated by the long-time champ, Jon Jones. Rakic made the claim after picking up a dominant decision win against Anthony Smith last night. Speaking to media post-fight at […]

Speaking to media post-fight at UFC Vegas 8 Rakic said he is ready for a title shot but is prepared to accept a five-round main event fight to prove himself to the promotion.

“I made a great performance tonight, and I think I’m the next for the title,” he said. “But if the UFC wants to see me in a five-round fight, they can do it. I was preparing for a three-round fight, but put on this great performance tonight, and I could go another two rounds with no problems. I was ready for five. Can you imagine me getting ready for a five-round fight with this pace? It’s amazing. We’re going to see what the UFC plans for me next. I’m going to be ready.”

Rakic went on to recap his win over Smith. The Serbian standout was able to utilize his superior wrestling skills to dictate the fight and pick up the biggest win of his career.

“I worked hard on my wrestling and putting pressure on him. I made him really tired,” Rakic said. “I heard in the second and third how he was breathing heavy. The plan was, don’t rush and don’t go for the submissions. If he gave me something really, really, then I’d go for it. The goal was to dominate, put pressure, and to win.”

Dominick Reyes is set to compete against Jan Blachowicz for the vacant light-heavyweight title at UFC 253. Despite recognizing the abilities of the Polish power puncher and fellow contender Glover Teixeria, Rakic thinks Reyes would provide him with the toughest challenge.

“I think the hardest challenge for me would be Dominick Reyes,” Rakic said. “He fought a very good fight against Jones. He’s fighting for the title with Jan. Both guys deserve a title shot. But Thiago, Glover and Jan are very strong athletes, and they are here in the top for a reason.” (Transcribed by MMA Fighting)

Do you agree with Aleksandar Rakic? Is Dominick Reyes the toughest test for anyone at 205lbs?

UFC Fight Night: Smith vs. Rakic Recap Show

In the UFC Vegas 8 main event former light-heavyweight title challenger Anthony Smith dropped to a second straight loss against Aleksandar Rakic. The Serbian standout was able to dominate the fight with wrestling and heavy leg kicks. Prior to that former welterweight champ, Robbie Lawler lost his fourth straight fight – in a unanimous decision […]

Join Jordan Ellis and Ryan Galloway who recap these fights and the entire UFC Vegas 8 card in the latest LowKickMMA podcast.