Anthony Smith has weighed in on the controversy surrounding Max Rohskopf’s corner.
Rohskopf took on Austin Hubbard in the opening bout on the UFC on ESPN 11. Hubbard was clearly beating Rohskopf to the punch and was too much for his opponent. Once the second round concluded, Rohskopf told his corner that he was done. Head coach Robert Drysdale tried talking his fighter out of quitting but Rohskopf ended up telling referee Mark Smith that he wanted out and the fight was stopped.
Anthony Smith Thinks Robert Drysdale Messed Up
Smith spoke to TMZ Sports and admitted that he isn’t a fan of how Drysdale reacted to his fighter wanting out of his UFC debut (h/t BJPenn.com).
“I’m frustrated for sure. It’s was frustrating to watch and I think the reaction from the fans and the other fighters is more frustrating, especially given the situation I was in not that long ago,” Anthony Smith said to TMZ Sports. “I get it, if there is a kid that’s young and facing adversity for possibly, maybe the first real-time in his career and maybe he thinks he doesn’t have it or maybe needs some encouragement. I believe he asked out nine times. This isn’t God damn bloodsport and not all of us think the same.
“Not everybody is me. It’s just different, he is a young kid and he wanted out,” Smith added. “Get him the f**k out of there. He wanted to go home. He said he didn’t have it, he didn’t want to have to do this anymore. That is what he said, ‘I don’t want to do this anymore.'”
Smith dealt with a similar situation when it comes to his corner, although “Lionheart” says the circumstances were different. Smith’s corner came under fire for not throwing in the towel for his bout with Glover Teixeira. Smith told coach Marc Montoya that his teeth were falling out. “Lionheart” insists that he never looked for a way out of the fight like Rohskopf did. Smith, who is a seasoned veteran, also expressed his belief that the young Rohskopf should’ve been protected by his corner this early in his career.
Drysdale has defended his corner advice and says he has no regrets. The head coach’s retort to his critics is that had Rohskopf truly been in danger, he wouldn’t have hesitated to stop the fight. Drysdale believes Rohskopf was simply frustrated.
