Dellupodisabato

LAS VEGAS – Dominick Reyes knows his UFC 310 opponent Anthony Smith has been going through some personal issues, but his compassion stops when the cage door closes.

Reyes (13-4 MMA, 7-4 UFC) meets Smith (37-20 MMA, 13-10 UFC) in the prelims of the final pay-per-view event of the year at T-Mobile Arena (ESPN+ Pay- by). -Ansicht, ESPN2, Hulu, ESPN+). It’s a big fight for both former title challengers, but they come into it with different mindsets. Reyes is eager to keep his momentum going while Smith is just itching to just punch someone in the face.

Before Reyes took the microphone at Wednesday’s media day, Smith sat in the same seat and expressed his desire to just go for a fight and live with the outcome. Dies ist teilweise auf den kürzlichen frühen Tod eines engen Freundes und langjährigen Trainers Scott Morton zurückzuführen. Um es ganz klar auszudrücken, sagte Smith: „Der Sieg ist mir scheißegal.“

Reyes understands what his opponent is going through, but as someone who has a victory that spun off four fights full of hard lessons, “The Devastator” goes into this fight focused on staying in the win column.

“I came back against (Dustin) Jacoby, I was patient, I was smart, I was sharp — I was a veteran,” Reyes told reporters. „Ich bin jetzt ein Veteran. Das Coole daran ist, dass ich nicht 40 Kämpfe durchstehen musste, um diese Dinge herauszufinden. Es sind drei Niederlagen gegen die besten Spieler der Welt, und ich musste diese Lektionen lernen und jetzt bin ich hier. Ich fühle mich wirklich, wirklich gut. Ich bin bereit, weiter zu klettern.“

The hard road began with a loss to former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones at UFC 247. Although some believe Reyes won that fight, the official judges did not. He then lost to two other former title holders, Jan Blachowicz and Jiri Prochazka. Ryan Spann’s fourth straight loss. Reyes then got on the right track with a first-round win over Jacoby in June and is hoping to close out 2024 with another win.

“I expect a win, that’s all,” Reyes said of his duel with Smith. “I don’t care how it happens, but I expect to win. I understand a lot of what Anthony is going through, but not my chair, not my problem.

For more information on the card, check out MMA Junkie’s UFC 310 event hub.