As the curtains drew on UFC 282, it went down in the history books as a controversial event. Both the co-main event and the main event were full of appalling results. Paddy Pimblett stood victorious in the co-main event fight against Jared Gordon. This result became the talk of the town, as many, including fans and fighters, had Gordon winning the fight. Even the main event shockingly saw a split draw between Jan Błachowicz Vs Magomed Ankalaev. Recently, Anthony Smith along with Ariel Helwani discussed the results and poor refereeing decision.

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Fighters such as Jiri Prochazka, Francis Ngannou, Mike Perry, Michael Bisping, and Chris Weidman voiced their disapproval of the events’ results. However, Bisping later deleted his tweet regarding the controversial results, due to his relationship with the promotion.

Dive Deeper – “This Is a Very Serious Situation” – UFC 282 Judge Under Strict Review After Paddy Pimblett Fight

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Moreover, even the fans took over social media to voice their objection to the judge’s decision. This left a sour taste to the fighters involved. Moreover, Ankalaev even threatened to leave the promotion due to the decision of the main event.

Anthony Smith talks about former fighters being the decision-makers

Recently, Smith sat down along with Ariel Helwani on the MMA Hour. He did not agree with the decision makers not being field experts with no experience in MMA fights. 

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He said, “I think one knock on having former fighters or coaches. Having those kind of people in judging positions, I think the argument is that biases in their styles or maybe people they’re connected to.

But it can’t be any worse than what we’re doing now. So I don’t necessarily fully subscribe that we need former fighters or whatever in those seats but. We need at least people that understand each intricate part of the game, ” he further added. 

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Smith gives his opinion on UFC 282

Smith alongside Helwani even discusses the impact of the judge’s decision on fights. The UFC light heavyweight fighter Anthony Smith is known for being quite active on social media and often appears on several podcasts.

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He was one of the fighters who disagreed with the results of the co-main event and the main event. He said, “We need people that know what the f** they’re looking at. It drives me absolutely crazy that these nerds in suits, sitting behind desks in big buildings, with cushy paychecks to not do s***, are the ones making the decisions on our careers.

Anthony Smith

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Why are there not guys that spent a lifetime doing this [making those decisions], after they retire or after they’re done coaching?” he further added.

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Moreover, he also spoke about the state of referees and judges who are in charge of decision-making regarding the fights.

What do you make of Anthony Smith’s opinion?

Watch This Story – UFC 282 Blachowich vs. Ankalaev Highlights: Draw in the Title Fight, Judges Controversial Decision for Paddy Pimblett & More

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Himakshu Vyas

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Himakshu Vyas is a Combat Sports author at Essentiallysports. He is passionate about sports, with soccer and MMA being the sports he is most involved in. Aside from that, he follows the global soccer scene. He is a die-hard Manchester United supporter for over a decade. Himakshu loves to play soccer with his friends a few times a week and indulges in MMA training daily to stay fit. This has helped him gain the perspective of a participant in the sports world. He is a huge fan of the first UFC two-division champion 'The Notorious' Connor McGregor and Jon Jones. He respects and looks up to MMA athletes, as he believes the world of MMA is teeming with disciplinarians and athletes who devote their lives to achieving a god-like physique to compete at the highest level. Apart from sports, he loves to travel and cook. He likes to explore different cuisines on the road and creates his own version of the recipes.

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Vineet Nandwana