Anthony Smith on Recent Loss: ‘There’s Some Things That Need to Change’

Anthony Smith believes he needs to alter his approach following a recent loss to Khalil Rountree at UFC Fight Night 233 in December.

Smith (37-19) stepped up on 10 days’ notice to face Rountree (13-5) in the co-main event of UFC Fight Night 233 after Azamat Murzakanov was forced out of his original meeting with the Tiger Muay Thai representative on Dec. 2 due to pneumonia.

On a four-fight win streak, Rountree managed to land with more authority in the first two rounds, even hurting Smith during an exchange in Round 2. Ultimately, “The War Horse” landed a crisp uppercut followed by a left hook in the opening minute of the third round that sent “Lionheart” crashing to the canvas. Smith is now 1-3 in his last four Octagon outings.

Having had the time to reflect on the loss over the holidays, “Lionheart” admitted that taking a short-notice fight against a ferocious adversary such as Rountree was perhaps not the best idea. Moreover, the Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran believes Rountree Jr. being a Southpaw didn't help either, as he didn't have the adequate amount of time to prepare for the nuance.

“I knew he was going to be fast, but it was shocking how fast he is, how he goes from zero to 100 so fast,” Smith told Michael Bisping on the “Believe You Me” podcast. “So, I struggled with the speed in the fight, I didn’t really have any other options. I wasn’t seeing the left hand; he was faster than I was, and he was faster than I was prepared for. Some of that is I wasn’t in fight shape. I was seeing things, but my body just wasn’t reacting fast enough because I haven’t been in camp. That’s no excuse. That’s my fault, I put myself in that position and I knew that was a possibility.”

Smith now believes he needs to alter his formula. For starters, the former title contender agreed with Bisping’s suggestion not to take short-notice fights unless it’s for the title. Moreover, the 35-year-old plans to take each fight one at a time instead of being fixated on a championship.

“I think I came to the conclusion that I still like fighting and I still want to do it. There’s some things that need to change though. Not just in my game and style. I had a conversation with Glover [Teixeira] that I think really helped a lot. Just as we age, you have to change some things. It’s not that you have to quit fighting, it’s not like, ‘I’m not as good here, I’ve not progressed here,’ but there’s some things that you’re already good at that you can continue to really shape your game around and just change it a little bit. I also think maybe I need to stop being so focused on the end goal so much. Maybe I just need to take it one at a time and just face whatever challenge is in front of me and stop—not that I’m looking past people or looking too far ahead—but everything I have wrapped into this fighting thing is about the title. Maybe when I stop being so concerned about the title, maybe I can fully focus on what’s in front of me.”