UFC 175 Results and Review: Rakic pounds Anthony Smith in Three Rounds
Lopsided encounters marked UFC Fight Night 175 action. The evening’s truncated main event saw rising light heavyweight contender Aleksandar Rakic dominate former title challenger Anthony Smith from every angle. The power broker dealt early leg kicks which fell Smith to set tempo. Through their fifteen minute encounter Rakic also owned distance, outlanding his assignment 136-20, as Smith apparently fought simply to avoid consecutive knockouts.
While Rakic now stands 5-1 vs. Octagon fare, ‘Lionheart’ is 1-3 since his destructive 2018 run - the bad fortune began with a decision loss vs. then champion Jon Jones. Clearly backsliding from a 7-2 UFC debut, Smith has taken decisive recent losses from Glover Teixeria and Rakic.
To wit, numbers in sports generally don’t lie, and 49 fight MMA veteran Anthony Smith offered almost no resistance in what was likely his final Zuffa main event. It appears Teixeria took more from 32-year-old Smith this May than matchmakers realized. Conversely, Rakic appears poised for a shot at the division's elite and could gain first crack at whoever walks away with vacated 205 lb gold when Dominick Reyes meets Jan Blachowicz.
Resume boosting wins vs. Jimi Manawa, Devin Clark and no. 5 ranked Smith, alongside his highly disputed December setback against Volkan Oezdemor, place the Austrian among the hottest 205 prospects. That noted, a bold ratings leap should await Rakic this week.
The co-main offered another Neil Magny highlight, this time vs. former welterweight king Robbie Lawler. In similar vein to Rakic's night-ender, Magny muted 'Ruthless' while outstriking his challenge 116-41. The complete Magny arsenal proved too much for shopworn Lawler as the former appears done at the UFC level. After 19 years of face-first wars, which culminated in surprise championship glory, it seems appropriate Lawler find immediate post MMA life as he spent more time looking at the clock Saturday than throwing hands. Conversely, 'The Haitian Sensation' authored win three since returning this March. It isn't hyperbole to state Magny fought a perfect fight against his gunshy opponent from Apex Facility
On a night which scribed another winning chapter within Magny's UFC compendium, the 33-year-old grounded Lawler four times and added 'Ruthless' to defeated notables including Kelvin Gastelum, Hector Lombard, Johny Hendricks and Carlos Condit. It makes sense to match well-rounded Magny next with Vicente Luque given each man's hot streak.
The evening's third bout brought ranked fighters Alexa Grasso and Ji Yeon Kim together. And while Grasso made her 125 lb debut after a heated struggle against Carla Esparza, the divisional newcomer used dynamic combinations to easily outpoint larger Kim. From bell to bell the proud Mexican warrior found openings while tallying a decided 123-85 land edge to bust up her opponent's cheek and eyes. That quick-handed performance, with a late takedown to boot, garnered Grasso social media praise from several noted Octagon peers. With her victory, 27-year-old Grasso stands 4-3 vs. Zuffa competition; however the Esparza verdict felt like more of a winning effort. Expect evolving Grasso to be among the official top-15 bantamweights this week. Meanwhile, Kim has dropped two of three after starting Zuffa life 2-1.
UFC Fight Night 175 opened with a war between veteran Ricardo Lamas and fresh Contender Series alum Bill Algeo.
Algeo opened fast, landing harder strikes to open abrasions on Lamas' weathered eyes, however, the seasoned cage fighting operator dominated final stanza action to gain another winning nod -all three judges scored round three 10-8 for Lamas. The victory casts 'The Bully' as prime gatekeeeper for 145 pound hopefuls.
Undercard results for Saturday's event include:
-Impa Kasanganay def. Maki Pitolo by decision
-Zak Cummings def. Alessio De Chirico by decision
-Alex Caceres submits Austin Springer
-Sean Brady submits Christian Aguilera
-Polyana Viana submits Emily Whitmire
-Mallory Martin submits Hannah Cifers