"I don't see where Paulo Costa wins this fight" - Anthony Smith details how Luke Rockhold can "make it look easy" against the Brazilian
Despite not seeing eye-to-eye with the middleweight, Anthony Smith has sung Luke Rockhold's praises ahead of his clash with Paulo Costa. He claims not to see many routes to victory for the Brazilian.
The former Strikeforce and UFC middleweight champion has earned just one win in his past four fights inside the octagon dating back to 2016. He has struggled to find form since losing his title to Michael Bisping at UFC 199. Prior to his loss against the Brit, the Rockhold was unbeaten in the company since his debut in 2013.
While speaking with James Lynch, Anthony Smith dismissed Paulo Costa's ability. He insisted that if Luke Rockhold can avoid being hit by something huge, he should comfortably walk away with his hands raised on August 20.
"I think that Luke is absolutely the better fighter... Luke Rockhold's problem is not that he is not good enough to be at the top of the division, because he is, and that same goes for 185 and 205, he is that good.
"His issue has always been his defense and pulling out of shots with his chin up... I don't see where Paulo Costa wins this fight, I don't see how... If he can avoid taking a big shot from Paulo Costa, honestly, as silly as it sounds, he might make it look easy."
Although the light heavyweight makes it seem like Rockhold has an easy task ahead, the dangerous Borrachinha is a problem for much of the middleweight roster. The BJJ Black Belt possesses heavy hands, but has proven to be no slouch when the fight hits the ground.
Check out what Anthony Smith had to say about the fight in the video below.
Luke Rockhold vs. Paulo Costa and other big fights at UFC 278
Luke Rockhold will take on Paulo Costa in the co-main event at UFC 278. It is set to be headlined by the welterweight title clash between Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards.
Legendary Jose Aldo will put his title aspirations on the line against the grappling prowess of Merab Dvalishvili in a highly-anticipated bantamweight bout.
Undefeated prospect Alexander Romanov hopes to make easy work of #11-ranked Marcin Tybura in his push toward the top 10 in the heavyweight division.
After putting on a striking clinic in his last outing, Tyson Pedro returns against Harry Hunsucker, alongside appearances from A.J. Fletcher, Sean Woodson, and Jared Gordon.