Khalil Rountree Jr. finishes Anthony Smith in the third

A clash between light heavyweights Anthony Smith and Khalil Rountree Jr. served as the UFC Vegas 83 co-main event on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.  

Smith entered the bout with Rountree ranked eighth in the 205-pound division and coming off a split decision win over Ryan Spann in August.  Rountree had won his last four before stepping in the cage with Smith.  He was ranked below Smith at eleventh in the weight class.  

The two did not touch gloves with Smith wearing red trunks and Rountree dawning black spandex fight shorts.  Smith pressured Rountree and moved forward.  Rountree circled on the outside.  Rountree connected with a right hand and a kick to the body.  They clinched and exchanged knees to the legs along the cage.  They separated and Smith landed a right hand.  

A kick to the body kept Rountree on the outside.  Smith connected with a left and Rountree responded with a leg kick.  In the final minute of the round, Rountree landed a hard kick to the body.  He landed a counter combination that caused Smith to cover up and back away.  And that’s how the round ended.  

Rountree landed a hard kick to the body to start the second frame.  Smith immediately closed the distance and clinched.  They separated and Rountree connected with a right hand that wobbled Smith.  Smith continued to press forward anyway.  Rountree’s speed was giving Smith problems.  He landed a counter right hand.  Rountree landed a left hand, but Smith shook it off.  A head kick was a blocked by Smith but he continued to pressure Rountree.  The two stood toe-to-toe for most of the round.  

 Smith again pressured Rountree in the third.  A counter right hand off of a kick by Smith put Smith on the canvas.  The referee stepped in to prevent Smith from taking anymore damage.  The official time of the stoppage was 0: 56 of the Round 3.