Anthony Smith believes one UFC fighter was looking for a free victory.
If anyone knows what it’s like to be hit by an illegal strike, it’s Smith. “Lion Heart” was hit by John Jones’ illegal knee in the 2019 title fight. Smith was able to squeeze out the foul, but he refused to go outside and continued to fight. Six years later, Smith served as a desk analyst for UFC Atlanta, witnessing a match that ended due to an illegal upkick.
Fans are furious and believe that the fighter hit by illegal shots tried to get a DQ victory.
Related: UFC Atlanta Results: Rodolfo Bellato Vs. Paul Craig ends with a contest (video)
Anthony Smith blames Rodolfo Berato for floping
During the UFC Atlanta Post Show, Anthony Smith re-watched the moment Paul Craig hit Rodolfo Berato with an illegal upkick. “Lionheart” is sure Berat quickly went into flop mode after seeing the referee to point out a foul on the referee (via mmafighting).
“He’ll look to the judge, ‘Oh, my God is illegal! Ah, I’d better pretend to be unconscious,” Smith said he was playing around, rewatching the battle. “The shock wakes up. This is the worst performance I’ve ever seen. The judges know that this isn’t really happening. It really feels bad for Paul Craig.
“What happened here with Rodolfo Berato and Paul Craig is so ridiculous that we’re laughing and joking about it, but Paul Craig broke the rules. We had to deal with it. He broke the rules. It wasn’t intentional.
In the end, the fight was ruled as no contest. If UFC brass also feels like Berat is fake as unconscious, that might not work for him. So far, he is 1-1, 1 NC under the UFC banner.
