Anthony Smith targeting Paul Craig fight after impressive submission win at UFC Vegas 15

UFC light heavyweight contender Anthony Smith is open to the possibility of facing Paul Craig in his next fight.

Smith secured an impressive first-round stoppage victory over Devin Clark in the headlining bout of this weekend’s UFC Vegas 15 event. He defeated Clark via a triangle choke in the very first round of their light heavyweight bout which served as the main event of the evening.

Anthony Smith is willing to fight Paul Craig next

Lionheart addressed his spectacular performance at a media scrum that followed the UFC Vegas 15 event. Anthony Smith also weighed in on where he sees himself in the current UFC light heavyweight landscape.

Anthony Smith indicated that most of his recent performances have not yielded the best of results for him. Smith asserted, however, that he’s more than willing to work his way back to the top of the light heavyweight division.

The talented 205-pound contender also suggested that a fight between him and Paul Craig would be a fun matchup.

“I’m kind of open, you know? I know what my last year looked like. I’m not gonna get one win over an unranked guy (and issue callouts). You know I did to Devin Clark what I am supposed to do to Devin Clark, right? I’m not saying that I’m not happy with that win, but if anything other than that happened, we have a problem. So, I’m not gonna be the guy that says, ‘I’m f***ing next in line’. You know? Like, and if I gotta stay down at the bottom of the rankings for a little while and, you know, fight my way back to fighting those top-five guys, then that’s what I’ll do.

“I think I’d seen something about Paul Craig. He brought my name up or something. Like, it’s a fun matchup. It’d be a fun grappling matchup with Paul Craig. And you know I love his style. I’ve been listening to his interviews forever. He seems like a cool dude.” (*H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription; Video courtesy: Helen Yee Sports)

Anthony Smith keeping things open on what’s next and said he’s seen something from Paul Craig and thinks that’ll be a fun matchup #UFCVegas15 pic.twitter.com/xSp53uWcHf

— Helen Yee (@HelenYeeSports) November 29, 2020

Anthony Smith and Paul Craig both picked up wins in their most recent Octagon outings

Paul Craig last competed against MMA legend Mauricio "Shogun" Rua at UFC 255 (November 21st, 2020), besting his opponent via second-round TKO.

On the other hand, as noted, Anthony Smith’s most recent fight was a first-round submission win against Devin Clark at UFC Vegas 15 (November 28th, 2020).

"I don't give a s*** what the media says. I don't care what the fans say. I don't care what anybody says. It's about making a statement to myself."@LionheartASmith was happy to get a bounce-back win to prove he is still a contender in the light heavyweight division. #UFCVegas15 pic.twitter.com/bmBPkchMPT

— UFC News (@UFCNews) November 29, 2020

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