This past Saturday in the co-main event of UFC Singapore, we saw a rematch between two top ten light heavyweight contenders. “Superman” Ryan Spann (21-9) was looking to get a little revenge against former title challenger Anthony “Lionheart” Smith (37-18).
When these two first fought a couple of years ago, Smith ran right through Spann finishing him in the first round. Smith also talked a little trash after the fight was over. Spann was determined to get that win back and he looked very good on Saturday.
In the first round, Lionheart got the better of things. He also used a big takedown to secure the round for himself. That said, Spann completely took things over in the second. He battered Smith with huge shots and nearly closed Smith’s eye with the shots he was landing.
The third round was very close. Smith landed more shots, but Spann landed more powerful shots. It was close all the way through, but I leaned towards Smith due to Spann just not being active enough. In the end, two of the judges agreed at UFC Singapore giving Anthony Smith the split decision win.
What’s next after UFC Singapore?
This is a very tough loss for Ryan Spann. After building a ton of momentum in 2022 with back-to-back first round wins, he’s now been stopped by Nikita Krylov and now has suffered a decision loss against Anthony Smith. It’s also a tough loss for Spann because the fight was right there for him to win.
Had Spann thrown with a little more volume in the final round, I think the significance of his shots would have carried him to a decision win. He’s going to definitely kick himself when he watches back the tape of UFC Singapore. Despite the two straight losses and the closeness of this one, I don’t think he takes a major step back.
I think he’s due a really exciting fight and I think a great matchup would be him and 15th ranked Dustin Jacoby. You just know that these two would stand and trade bombs. It’s a great fight for both men and a great fight for the fans.