The UFC will be hosting a Fight Night on August 29th, and the card will feature a contest between two top ten light heavyweights. Former title challenger, Anthony “Lionheart” Smith (33-15) will be making his return against Austrian, Aleksandar Rakic (12-2)
?? MMAPLAY365 EXCLUSIVE:
The UFC are working on a huge Light Heavyweight fight with Aleksandar Rakic vs. Anthony Smith.
Per sources, both fighters have signed to fight on August 29th in Las Vegas.#UFC #UFCFightNight pic.twitter.com/ZZ2pk7LCdb
— MMAPlay365 (@mmaplay365) June 19, 2020
Smith trying to get back to a UFC title shot
We last saw Smith back at UFC Fight Night 171 in May against Glover Teixeira. After a really good start, Smith got rocked in the middle rounds and never recovered. Teixeira finished Smith off in the fifth round. Prior to that loss, Smith has been one of the top light heavyweights in the UFC over the last couple of years. Smith won three fights in a row in 2018 which gave him a shot at champion, Jon Jones. Smith was shut out by Jones, but bounced back strong defeated Alexander Gustafsson in Sweden. Smith will look to get back on track towards another UFC title shot with a win in August.
Rakic looks to climb the mountain
Rakic lost his first professional fight, then he went on a 12 fight winning streak with nine knockouts. Rakic lost an extremely close decision to Volkan Oezdemir back in December at UFC Fight Night 165 which snapped that streak. Going into that fight, Rakic had back-to-back first round stoppages over Jimi Manuwa and Devin Clark. Rakic is ranked ninth in the light heavyweight division, but a win over Smith would vault him close to the top five. It’s a big fight for both men as Smith will try to get back to title contention while Rakic will look to start climbing the mountain for the first time.