Aleksandar Rakic Took Anthony Smith Down ‘To Show I’m Not One Dimensional’

Aleksandar Rakic Took Anthony Smith Down Repeatedly To Prove Him Wrong About Being One Dimensional

Aleksandar Rakic
Photo via Instagram @ufc

Many people were confused at the fact that Aleksandar Rakic kept taking Anthony Smith down in their UFC Vegas 8 main event. Now he explains why he made that decision.

Heading into last weekend’s card, Rakic was ultra confident about his first UFC main event. He had been working with legendary fighter Mirko Cro Cop, and felt like he was well prepared for the fight. This paid off too, as the light heavyweight battered Anthony Smith with leg kicks on the feet in the first round, before controlling him on the ground to win by unanimous decision.

Aleksandar Rakic Wanted To Prove A Point

Something that fans questioned during the bout between Aleksandar Rakic and Anthony Smith, was why Aleksandar kept taking Anthony down. He clearly had the advantage on the feet, and likely could have finished the fight, yet he opted to go for control positions on the ground and grind out a decision. Speaking on the Believe You Me podcast, the 28-year prospect explained that he did not appreciate comments Smith made about him before the fight, so he wanted to prove a point.

“I started with the leg kicks because in the UFC Apex arena, the cage is very small,” Rakic explained. “So I started with the kicks to hurt him and slow him down a bit, and then I dropped him with the kicks. As soon as we hit the ground, in my head was his words, what he said in the interviews, that I’m a one dimensional fighter, that I’m just a striker. I thought to myself ‘I’m going to show you that I’m not a one dimensional fighter. I’m going to control you the whole round. Then the next round we’re going to start again in the standup position, and I’m going to kick your legs again and go for the liver.’ That’s the reason I chose to stay on the ground with him, to show him that I’m not a one dimensional fighter.”

https://youtu.be/dQu0blGNnHo?t=2m20s

Not everyone was happy with the way Aleksandar Rakic performed against Anthony Smith. In particular, the way he got up and celebrated before the fight was over really rubbed people the wrong way. However his position is understandable, and it seems likely that Smith will not be calling him one dimensional again.

Published on September 3, 2020 at 4:36 pm
Stay up-to-date with the latest MMA news, rumors, and updates by following the RED Monster on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. Also, don't forget to add MiddleEasy to your Google News feed Follow us on Google News for even more coverage.

Related

Leave a Comment