What mattered most at UFC on ESPN+ 29 in Jacksonville, Fla.? Here are a few post-fight musings …
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1. Anthony Smith’s corner failed him
Before we move on to praising Glover Teixeira for his thorough victory in the main event, we must address the biggest discussion point, and that’s whether Anthony Smith’s corner failed him by not stopping the fight before the referee did in the fifth round.
In short: Yes, they did.
Smith is named “Lionheart” for a reason, but even this was too much. Referee Jason Herzog could’ve easily stopped the fight when Smith was dropped in the early rounds, but fine, he gave Smith a chance to get back in the fight. It only took a few moments before it became abundantly obvious a rally wasn’t happening, and at that point Smith should’ve been saved by someone. Anyone.
To his credit, Smith moved every time Herzog told him to show something up until the merciful final sequence. Smith used veteran tactics to avoid the stoppage as long as possible, but when it become apparent he wasn’t going to quit, that’s when the corner needed to do its duty.
I’m not the slightest bit surprised Smith said he was OK with how the fight played out and had no issue with his corner work. That’s what he’s supposed to say, and he’s not going to turn his back on his team. But seriously, that was bogus. And if there’s any doubt, just look at Smith’s list of post-fight injuries. One can only wonder how many of those occurred after the initial knockdown.
Factory X coach Marc Montoya was in the corner and had the power to stop it. This isn’t the first time a situation like this has come up involving him. I’ll never forget the horrific beating Mike Davis handed Thomas Gifford at UFC on ESPN+ 19 in October, and Montoya was in the corner for that, too.
Sadly, other than some public and media scrutiny, no one’s feet will be held to the flame over this situation. The cornermen will be right back at the next event for their next fighter, and the world will go on.
Smith’s the one who has to take the worst of it, because it’s going to take some time for him to get back to full health. An even then, there’s no telling if the damage absorbed will change him for the worse. It’s truly sad, and something that could’ve been minimized if the people around Smith did a better job protecting him.
2. Glover Teixeira deserves his due
With my rant on Smith over, let’s turn attention to Glover Teixeira, who is very much deserving of major props for his effort, despite it being somewhat overshadowed by the concerns for Smith.
At 40, Teixeira is now on a four-fight winning streak in the UFC light heavyweight division and is trending closer to a title shot than any point since coming up short against Jon Jones in his first title opportunity in April 2014.
After a rough first round, Teixeira turned the tables on Smith and was relentless until he finished the fight. There’s only a few in the division who can break Teixeira down to the point of getting him out before the final bell. Smith couldn’t, and that attribute is going to continue to carry the Brazilian through fights until it goes away.
The top of the light heavyweight division is already somewhat crowded with contenders such as Dominick Reyes, Jan Blachowicz and Thiago Santos, but Teixeira has now put himself in the mix. Only one person can get a title shot next, and although Teixeira is the least likely, he’s put himself in position to get matched up with whomever doesn’t challenge Jones next.
3. Ovince Saint Preux’s heavyweight experiment fails
It’s hard to watch Ovince Saint Preux’s loss to Ben Rothwell and feel like a permanent move to heavyweight would be a good career choice. It just wasn’t a great showing, despite him taking one scorecard to make it a split decision.
If Saint Preux is to stay at heavyweight, he needs to vow to let his offense go. When he did that against Rothwell, he had great success. When he didn’t, he got overwhelmed and worn out by the bigger fighter. It’s understandable that Saint Preux would be more cautious when there’s greater firepower coming back from the other side, but he had to know that before stepping in the octagon.
At 240.5 pounds, Saint Preux didn’t look massively out-sized at heavyweight. However, Rothwell’s size and strength were definitely a factor, and the light heavyweight division is probably the better fit for OSP going forward.
4. Drew Dober delivers Justin Gaethje’s encore
Drew Dober said prior to his fight with Alexander Hernandez that he wanted to carry the momentum of good friend and teammate Justin Gaethje stemming from his interim lightweight title win over Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 this past week. Well, he certainly did that.
Just like Gaethje, the key to victory for Dober was putting on a striking clinic against someone who didn’t react well to his power. He hit Hernandez over and over before finally finishing the fight with a standing TKO – which was an eerily similar position to how Gaethje stopped Ferguson.
With a 7-1 record when fighting in the UFC at 155 pounds, Dober is worthy of a top 15 ranking in the sport’s deepest division and a matchup that jives with that position. He’s good, and it’ll be interesting to see what his ceiling in the sport ultimately ends up being.
5. Michael Johnson is (still) maddening
Michael Johnson produced the full Michael Johnson experience against Thiago Moises. For anyone who has followed his career, it has to be among the most maddening losses “The Menace” has experienced to date.
Despite an extremely up-and-down UFC run, Johnson still gets people excited because of his potential. When he shows up, he’s beaten the likes of Tony Ferguson, Dustin Poirier and Edson Barboza. Unfortunately, he didn’t show up against Moises. At least not for more than the first round.
Johnson was firing on all cylinders for the opening five minutes. He was landing good shots and completely overwhelming his foe, but then the tide changed in the second round. Moises bum-rushed Johnson, pulled guard, locked in a heel hook, and got the tap in a slick sequence.
It left Johnson in shock and nursing his knee, though, and now he’s sitting on a three-fight losing streak. Coming into the event, Johnson, who had been fighting at featherweight recently, said this was going to be his time to shine and fulfill his potential at 155 pounds. He failed to put it together from start to finish again, however, and now it seems hope could be lost for good.
