I won’t condone Anthony Smith’s outburst after his win over Ryan Spann, but I understand it.
Smith had one UFC fight in 2013, a loss to Antonio Braga Neto. He then spent the next three years fighting for five different promotions before getting another shot with the UFC.
Upon his return to the promotion, Smith went on a 7-2 run and earned a shot at Jon Jones and his light heavyweight title. Jones won that fight. Smith then went 1-2 in his next three fights. That stretch left Smith with his fair share of doubters. What those doubters forgot was the quality of competition Smith faced between September 2017 and August 2020.