Since ESPN became the exclusive broadcast partner of the UFC in January 2019, we’ve heard more from talking head Stephen A. Smith discussing MMA. If you’re like me, then you’ve definitely done a facepalm or rolled your eyes at a lot of what he’s had to say:
- Donald Cerrone “gave up” against Conor McGregor.
- “I just don’t like it” when it comes to women fighting in the UFC.
- This past weekend, not acknowledging the great work of UFC fight night reporter Megan Olivi.
Et cetera, et cetera.
Smith was back at it during Monday’s episode of “First Take,” discussing Kamaru Usman’s UFC 261 knockout of Jorge Masvidal and whether the reigning welterweight champion is the pound-for-pound No. 1 fighter in the world. Kellerman thought so, but Smith disagreed and still gave the nod to Jon Jones.
Please pay close attention to this:
“I still think it’s Jon Jones. I still think it’s Jon Jones. Listen, I saw Colby ‘Co-vin-ton’ talking a lot of junk about Masvidal after the fight, and obviously he lost to Usman in five rounds, but that brother can fight. When he talked about Masvidal and his record had 14 losses coming into the fight, I got more respect for Masvidal than he does, but then again I’m not a UFC fighter like he is, so his opinion is more qualified than mine.
“Plus, I’m not an expert like idiots out there try to accuse me of pretending that I’m being just because I’m commenting. No, I’m a fan. I’m not an expert on the UFC. I didn’t start watching until a few years ago.”
At this moment, Kellerman interjected to give Smith props for his years of fight knowledge (boxing) before Smith finished his point, which isn’t important.
What is, though, is that he botched the name of the No. 1 ranked welterweight before making that admission. Fitting, even.
You can watch in the video below:
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Stephen A. Smith admits the obvious: ‘I’m not an expert on the UFC’
