After his loss to Zhang Mingyang at UFC Kansas City, Anthony Smith announced his retirement. However, his actions immediately after the fight suggested he might have had one more physical altercation in mind.
While receiving medical attention for a severe cut on his head that bled heavily during the bout, Smith was clearly upset. He was seen repeatedly directing double middle fingers and shouting towards a specific person sitting near the cage. He even got up from the canvas to confront them further at the fence.
On the UFC Kansas City post-fight show, Smith later explained the cause of his agitation, which was so intense it made him consider delaying his retirement to physically confront the individual.
Smith disclosed, “Before the fight, a guy wearing a Nebraska shirt was booing me, giving me the finger, and trash-talking. I was focused on the fight then. But after the fight, his friend was cheering, and this same guy was still giving me the finger and saying quite disrespectful things.”
“I was extremely angry,” he stated. “He was wearing a Nebraska shirt! We should be like family; our community isn`t that large!”
As a resident of Omaha, Nebraska, Smith has always proudly represented his state. Witnessing a fan in Nebraska apparel engage in such behavior particularly annoyed him. Compounded by the emotional weight of losing his final career fight, Smith acknowledged that anger and rage overwhelmed him at that moment.
Indeed, Zhang Mingyang even approached the cage to prevent Smith from potentially escalating the situation, as it appeared Smith was contemplating jumping the fence to confront the disruptive fan.
Smith recalled, “Mingyang told me, `Brother, don`t do this, you have to stop.` Look, I was emotional. The fight didn`t unfold as I hoped, but that`s just how it is, it`s part of the sport.”
He added, “I just couldn`t process it. I dedicate myself entirely to this sport, and while I don`t mind if someone thinks I`m not good, if you`re in the audience, you`re certainly not doing what I`m doing, especially in a Nebraska shirt. You simply don`t trash talk while wearing a Nebraska shirt! It`s just not right! That`s the core of it.”
Regarding Saturday night being the conclusion of his fighting career, Smith admitted he was still processing everything.
He found the realization that there would be no “next fight” to be perhaps the most challenging aspect of transitioning into retirement, a concept he hadn`t considered in almost two decades.
“It feels strange,” Smith commented. “Normally, whether you win or lose, you immediately think about what`s next. Your mind goes through options: if I lost, who should I fight next to improve my ranking? If I won, who`s ahead? Now, there`s simply nothing else to look forward to in that sense.”
“Therefore, I`m choosing not to be sad,” he continued. “I feel I shouldn`t allow myself sadness. It`s been a long path. I started at 17 and will be 37 soon. I`ve achieved enough. My life is built upon what this sport allowed me to do; it gave me chances I otherwise would never have had. I`m making myself focus on being happy about the journey itself, rather than sad that it`s concluded.”
