Anthony Smith was all set to fight Jamahal Hill in his next fight, so you can well imagine that it was a bitter pill to swallow to suddenly discover after UFC 282 that Hill would now be fighting Glover Teixeira for the 205lb title instead.
To make matters worse, Smith was actually in the middle of the UFC’s own post-fight show broadcast on ESPN+ when the news filtered through from backstage that Dana White had just announced the fight, and so it wasn’t long before he had to react to the news live on-air.
“Yeah, that’s a problem,” was the less than happy Smith’s immediate reaction when asked about it on the show. “That’s a big problem for me…”
UFC commentator Jon Anik was also at the desk and he was clearly feeling for Smith in that awkward moment and perhaps did him a big favor by interjecting to sympathize with him and smoothly steering the conversation away from the star saying something in the heat of the moment that he might later regret.
Dominick Cruz was also there to back up his fellow fighter, suggesting that perhaps he should get paid anyway, while also urging him to call out someone else instead.
Smith pointed out that part of the problem was that many of the UFC’s other leading contenders are either out injured or have just fought, leaving him with no clear route to the title himself in the immediate future, though he did warm up to Anik’s suggestion that perhaps a fight with former champ Jan Blachowicz in a potential title eliminator might be an option.
“I feel like someone owes me a favor right now,” Smith said. “so I don’t know – we’ll figure it out.”
Watch Smith’s full reaction in the video below.
