Anthony Smith had a major fight recently – not in the Octagon, but rather in his own home after he had to confront and subdue an intruder in the early hours of the morning in Nebraska.
Smith gave an admirably frank and honest account of the terrifying ordeal to ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, recalling how an apparently mentally disturbed man had entered their home via the garage while Smith, his wife and kids were sleeping, and then began screaming.
When Smith found the man he took him down and then began what would prove to be a six minute fight to keep him there, describing it as one of the toughest fights he’s ever had.
Remarkably, despite the 205lb fighter estimating the attacker to be significantly smaller than him at around 170lbs, ‘Lionheart’ admits it was exceptionally hard to subdue him, despite the proven knockout artist landing big punches, elbows and knees that left the room they were fighting in covered in the intruder’s blood.
Smith suspects that perhaps drugs or mental instability had a part to play in the intruder’s relentless ferocity and ability to endure the beating he received, but thankfully in the end Smith and his family emerged unscathed and the man was arrested.
While the intruder seemed invincible at the time, Smith says that later on that night the man was reportedly suffering from swelling to the brain after being taken to hospital, amongst other injuries.
Watch Smith’s detailed account of the incident in the video below.
