Media Anthony Smith says Leon Edwards is a frustrating champion, looking for safe win over Sean

[Unheralded Truth]

As you all know, champion Edwards said that there are no interesting fights in his own division. So this Colby fight is the one title defence he'll have before moving up for a MW title fight instead.

UFC LHW fighter Anthony Smith doesn't agree and think Leon is looking for his one chance to ever become double champ, acting like there are no contenders at WW:

“Leon moving up, that one hits a little harder than some of the previous ones. Like, come on, dude... I like Leon a lot, big Leon fan, but he’s only ever fought Kamaru Usman in title fights. There are a lot of title challengers coming."
"Belal is going to be in there. There’s some up-and-comers. There’s Shavkat, Ian Garry and guys we got to keep rolling. Gilbert Burns is right there. He’s one win away from a title shot."

Smith also said Edwards is only chasing the middleweight title because he sees current champion Sean Strickland as a winnable fight:

“Of course, he’s going to want to move up right now, if Khamzat (Chimaev) was the champion, I don’t know if we’d see Leon running to middleweight so quickly, but I think we have a champion in Sean Strickland that he believes
matches up well with him, and it stylistically makes a lot of sense... I agree though with the frustration."

 

[SeattleFightFan]

Welcome to the club, Anthony.

I think every fighter chasing champ-champ is an asshole. And I know it's a new era and all that shit, but I wish everyone would strive to dominate one division for 5+ years instead.

 

[OldBoy91]

I agree with Smith that Leon shouldn't be fighting for a 2nd belt yet.

I don't think it's because he thinks Strickland or DDP is an easy fight though.

There are a bunch of reasons why every champ wants to become champ/champ these days.

It's risk free, in terms of losing your own belt, you make history and pretty much guarantee a HOF induction. It's much easier to do than defend the belt over and over again like GSP, Anderson and Jones did.

In Leon's case specifically I think he probably feels Aspinall winning the HW belt took a lot of the shine away from him as the premier UK fighter. He might want to do something huge to make himself stand out again, and becoming the first ever British double champ would do exactly that.

 

[Pequeño Corey]

Yes we agree with you Anthony.

 

[2004 account]

Anthony smith has always been correct. In everything.





Seriously though Leon stay your ass put and defend a bit before trying to do what every champ is trying to do now. Some of them just hold up divisions for no good reason.

 

[Bobby Boulders]

I agree with Smith, kinda, but I still don't like him bc of all the other dumb ass shit he's said that I didn't agree with.

 

[Staph infection]

Smith is garbage, after his performance against Jones he has no room to talk.

 

[Mohawk Banditó]

Smith is garbage, after his performance against Jones he has no room to talk.

You










. < the point

 

[Staph infection]

You










. < the point

I just don’t want to hear anything that lionturd has to say

 

[ookii]

As usual Smith talking shit about other fighters even when talking about the current MW champ. No wonder fighters like Poatan had issues with Smith

 

[wwkirk]

The UFC let the genie out of the bottle (or the evils from Pandora's Box) with Conor. Previously, they didn't permit champ champ. As I recall, a fighter had to vacate to fight for a second title. Or at least they would have had to relinquish one of them.

 

[nonoob]

Any championship belt should be successfully defended, then relinquished, before a title fight is given.

Having no skin in the game is unfair to both divisions that get stalled.

 

[Dorkman]

I just don’t want to hear anything that lionturd has to say

Well then why did you click on the thread with his name in the title immediately followed by the word "says"?

 

[World eater]

I have no issue with fighters moving a division up and try to get that second belt. However, they should vacate their belt/position and then take a top 5 fighter in the division above before the title shot. That would make it legit and a high risk high reward situation.

 

[Staph infection]

Well then why did you click on the thread with his name in the title immediately followed by the word "says"?

To call him lionturd

 

[hahahayeah]

anthony smith says a lot of things.

 

[NicholasJBasile]

170 is absolutely staccked lol

 

[Mammothman]

I as much as I call Anthony Smith a can he is absolutely right, Leon Edwards have managed to be a worse champ than Woodley, that says a lot lol.

 

[Dorkman]

To call him lionturd

Well, at least you're honest.

 

[Trabaho]

Chasing champ champ means 1 free ppv title payout. Win or loss your next fight is gonma be on title money terms again. If you win. Ca ching.