Smith came up short in Wednesday’s second of three UFC events from Jacksonville, Florida in the space of a week, losing by fifth-round TKO to fellow former world title contender Glover Teixeira.
The loss is a blow for Smith, who is coming off arguably the biggest victory of his professional career in his last outing against Alexander Gustafsson — and it looks like the fight will leave the American on the shelf for a prolonged period after the fighter detailed a gruesome list of injuries suffered in the fight.
Just spoke to Anthony Smith via text.
Injuries suffered tonight: Broken nose, broken orbital bone, two missing teeth and a cut under his right eye. One tooth in front and one towards the back, he said. His real teeth.
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) May 14, 2020
“Just spoke to Anthony Smith via text,” a tweet from ESPN’s Ariel Helwani reads. “Injuries suffered tonight: Broken nose, broken orbital bone, two missing teeth and a cut under his right eye. One tooth in front and one towards the back, he said. His real teeth.”
‘Lionheart’ Smith was the bookies favourite heading into the contest but ran into Teixeira who gave one of the most impressive performances of the latter part of his career. After experiencing some trouble in the first round, the Brazilian fight took control late in the second and dominated in both the striking and grappling departments.
Teixeira, meanwhile, has now won four straight fights at 205-pounds — three of them finishes — and seems poised to once again stand in contention for Jon Jones’ light heavyweight championship.
“Sorry Anthony, it’s part of the job.”
“Yeah. It is what it is.”
Glover Teixeira politely apologised for beating down on Anthony Smith… during their fight! 😳😅 #UFCJax pic.twitter.com/catPf8V2TR
— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) May 14, 2020
Unknown fact – They keep a big pint of milk cage side for any teeth that gets knocked out mid fight.
What a game! @ufc #GreatFightsTonight
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Double Champ King of it All. https://t.co/B3lupBdyup— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) May 14, 2020
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