- Alex Pereira blasted Anthony Smith for always criticizing him in the past
- “Poatan” thinks Smith did nothing to beat Ryan Spann at UFC Singapore
Alex Pereira had time to watch UFC Singapore and shared his honest take on the Anthony Smith vs. Ryan Spann rematch. While weighing in on the fight, “Poatan” remembered Smith as the commentator and fighter who constantly criticized him, and decided to hit back.
Anthony runs his mouth because he’s bitter and washed
According to Pereira, he understands that Smith is a commentator but he shouldn’t be bashing other fighters, especially for not making weight because he should also know how hard it is for a fighter.
As it turned out, “Poatan” also still recalls how “Lionheart” slighted him when he moved up to the light heavyweight division and reckoned that Smith just keeps talking bad about him for clout as he is already an aging “washed-up” veteran.
“I think his situation is kind of complicated and going a little deeper into this subject, right, because he is a commentator. I always see him talking, mainly about me,” Pereira said of Smith on his YouTube channel. “He talks really bad. I don’t know what he has against me but he criticized other athletes too, saying the athlete didn’t make weight and a guy who in Glover [Teixeira’s] fight in Rio de Janeiro was a backup and the guy didn’t make weight. It shows why he’s not that successful… A commentator who is a fighter knows how tough it is but somehow he chooses not to give them any credit or at least stay silent. He has to put his two cents in because he loves being in the spotlight. He doesn’t show up at the fights. I mean, he likes fighting but doesn’t show up. No one talks about him so he spouts off nonsense just to get some screen time.”
“The only ones who speak bad about me are Anthony Smith types. Washed-up vets who never amounted to anything, who are still fighting… Those who are already doing well, I don’t see them talking about me, you know? It’s the ones who are beneath me or those who tried and failed, bitter souls like Anthony Smith. I don’t really like doing this, coming here just to bad mouth people. Actually, I’m not bad mouthing anyone. I’m just speaking the truth,” he exclaimed.
It should’ve been a Draw
As for the fight itself, Pereira thinks that Smith didn’t really do much to beat Spann. The way he sees it, there’s nothing exciting about the fight, and “Lionheart” did nothing to be hailed the winner via split decision. If anything, it should’ve been a draw.
“The first round was kind of a bland round, not too exciting,” Pereira assessed. “Anthony Smith took it but without doing much. In the second round, Ryan started putting in his strong hands there and Anthony Smith felt it, almost got knocked out, went to some good positions, stayed on top. So it was clearly a round with a high risk for Anthony Smith. The third round was also more slow-paced. Anthony Smith really tired, I was wondering if it’s the altitude or what’s up with that place.”
“The guy being 35 years old, performing, fighting at a high level, and didn’t do that much to get that tired. I guess he has some issue. I think it was kinda a controversial fight. In my opinion, he took the first round. The second one clearly went to Ryan. The third one, to break the tie, was kind of a draw. I’d say it’s more or less a tie, in my view,” he added.
The win over Spann saw Smith ending his two-fight losing skid. On the other hand, Pereira is focused on winning the light heavyweight championship before gunning for a trilogy match with Israel Adesanya.
