UFC 277: Anthony Smith vs Magomed Ankalaev- UFC is ready with another action packed PPV and this time it is UFC 277. The Light Heavyweight clash between Lionheart and Ankalaev is being seen as the most firework filled fight of the night. Follow UFC 277 Live Updates with InsideSport.IN
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UFC 277: “He’s not the Boogeyman” Anthony Smith refuses to ride Magomed Ankalaev HYPE TRAIN ahead of their Huge Match
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Anthony Smith vs Magomed Ankalaev: The match can very well generate the next number 1 contender for the Light Heavyweight Title.
Magomed Ankalaev is currently on a 8 fight win streak and has been absolutely dominant inside the UFC octagon.
However the former title challenger Anthony Smith is currently on a 3 fight win streak and would be entering against his toughest opponent in the recent times.
.@lionheartasmith isn't seeing what everybody else is seeing when it comes to Magomed Ankalaev 🤷♂️
"They're talking about him like he's the second coming of Jesus and he's going to rip my head off and feed it to the crowd."
Full #UFC277 media day scrum ▶️ https://t.co/rW15ib1wrH pic.twitter.com/LaZXFh0O4v
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) July 27, 2022
Anthony Smith refuses to ride Magomed Ankalaev HYPE TRAIN: Lionheart has completely refused to ride the Magomed Hype Train and said in spite of being really good, he is just a basic fighter with basic approach.
During the recent media day Lionheart said “I guess my question is, ‘What are they seeing that I don’t? He is good. He is very, very good. I want to be very clear about that. I don’t for a second discredit his skills in the cage. I just don’t see anything super special. You don’t have to be super special to win fights at the highest level. Basics win fights, and he’s very, very basic. His approach is very simple. He makes no mistakes. He’s never out of position, but he doesn’t always necessarily do a lot to make a lot of mistakes.
“A guy like that, you’ve got to get him outside of his box. The mistakes are going to be made when he’s panicking, trying to get back in his box. I think that’s what I do best. Do you know what I mean? I create chaos. I get people out of their comfort zone. I take them to places they don’t like to be. To be fair, I don’t necessarily like being there. But that’s where I’m the most successful. We’ve got to do it anyway. I just think he’s shutting people down, and I think that’s really nerve-racking for a lot of the guys in the division. I just couldn’t care less. I’m going to go in there and do my thing. I can fairly confidently say we’re going to see Ankalaev in a way that we’ve never seen him before”
Smith even recalled the only career lost in Ankalaev’s career that came against Paul Craig and said “He’s not super active (on top), I think, even less so, since the Paul Craig thing, just because I think he got a little bit outside of himself and got a little bit overconfident and got himself caught. That said, I have a lot of respect for Paul Craig. I hope if Paul Craig sees this, he doesn’t take this as disrespect. For what everyone expects Ankalaev to do to me, it’s very shocking that Paul Craig was still around in the third round to be able to do that. I don’t mean that in a negative way for Paul. They’re talking about him like he’s the second coming of Jesus, and he’s going to rip my head off my shoulders and feed it to the crowd. That’s not a guy that should have Paul Craig hanging around for 15 minutes. Do you know what I mean?
“He was in a lackluster, I don’t know. It wasn’t a super exciting (fight) vs. Thiago Santos. He managed to make a guy like Thiago Santos worry. It takes a special individual to do that. I don’t for a second discredit the things he was able to do. I’m also not of the belief Thiago Santos is the same guy we’re used to seeing. I don’t know, man. Maybe I’ll figure it out on Saturday night. We’ll see. As of right now, I just don’t see it.”
Magomed during his interaction with the media was respectful too towards Anthony but showed what he was willing to do in the octagon. He said “I’ll make sure to go all out. I’ll make sure to show what I’m capable of. I know that my opponent is very important to this organization, very big in the sport in general. So it’s important for me to show that I’m a hundred percent ready.
“He’s a very good fighter. He’s got a lot of experience in this sport. I definitely do not underestimate him, but I’m ready to go, and I think this is a challenge that I will be able to solve and keep moving forward.”
UFC 277: “He’s not the Boogeyman” Anthony Smith refuses to ride Magomed Ankalaev HYPE TRAIN ahead of their Huge Match
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