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Tag: Stephen A. Smith

  • Stephen A. Smith: ‘More Experienced Boxer’ Logan Paul Would Beat Conor McGregor In The Ring

    Stephen A. Smith: ‘More Experienced Boxer’ Logan Paul Would Beat Conor McGregor In The Ring

    If former two-division UFC champion Conor McGregor wants to record his first win in the boxing ring at the second time of trying next year, Stephen A. Smith doesn’t think Logan Paul would be a smart opponent.

    Talk of the next step in McGregor’s combat sports career has largely centered around a UFC return in recent times. That was originally announced toward the start of 2023 ahead of his and Michael Chandler’s battle as coaches on The Ultimate Fighter.

    But that reality series and two calendar years will have passed by without the Irishman making the walk again. Nevertheless, McGregor has remained steadfast on insisting that his career is not over, and he’s now eyeing up a clash with Chandler for 2025.

    First, however, it would appear “The Notorious” has his sights on a surprising assignment in the squared circle.

    McGregor — whose most recent battle came in the courtroom, where he was found liable for assault after being accused of rape — took to social media this week to claim an exhibition boxing match with Logan Paul is in the works, with the billionaire Ambani family looking to stage it in India.

    While it remains to be seen how truthful the Dubliner’s claim is, that hasn’t stopped fans and pundits alike from pondering how a clash with the older Paul brother would play out.

    During a recent episode of ESPN‘s First Take, Sports television personality Stephen A. Smith gave his take on the potential matchup.

    For McGregor, it didn’t make for good listening…

    “I think Logan Paul is going to beat him,” Smith said. “I don’t think that Conor McGregor is a boxer; he’s a striker. So, he’s sitting up there, and he ain’t even throwing his jab. He’s pitter-pattering. You ain’t clipping Logan Paul like that. You’ve got to do more than that.

    “We don’t know yet (which size gloves they’re using), but it doesn’t matter. Unless it’s pillows like 16 or 18 ounces, it ain’t going to work. I just think that Logan Paul is bigger, he’s a much bigger man, he’s a more experienced boxer,” Smith continued. “Those big muscles are going to make you a bit slower, and you’ve got to remember that Conor had quickness, he could catch you quick and clip you. That’s not going to be the case in the boxing ring.”

    Like younger brother Jake, Logan does have experience in the exhibition and crossover boxing realm. He battled fellow online star and now-business partner KSI twice before later facing a shared opponent with McGregor in Floyd Mayweather. Having gone the distance in that exhibition, “The Maverick” returned to the ring in 2023 to defeat Dillon Danis.

    McGregor, meanwhile, has not boxed competitively since being TKO’d by Mayweather in their highly covered 2017 bout. Judging by Jake Paul’s recent claim that he, too, has been offered a match with the Irishman recently, it would appear the UFC star is intent on his next outing coming in the ring.

  • Stephen A. Smith’s Take On Jones vs. Aspinall Infuriates Former UFC Fighter: ‘Ban This Man From Speaking’ 

    Stephen A. Smith’s Take On Jones vs. Aspinall Infuriates Former UFC Fighter: ‘Ban This Man From Speaking’ 

    Sports television personality Stephen A. Smith sees UFC Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones as the “best on the planet” and can’t picture anybody getting the better of him, Tom Aspinall included.

    Smith provided his reaction to Jones’ latest performance — a TKO victory over Stipe Miocic in the main event of UFC 309 — on a recent episode of First Take alongside Shannon Sharpe on ESPN.

    The former light heavyweight kingpin added a first successful heavyweight defense to his record at Madison Square Garden, stopping the returning Miocic with a brutal spinning side kick to the body in round three.

    No sooner had Jones had his hand raised in “The Big Apple,” talk turned to a much-awaited title unification fight with interim champ Aspinall, who was cageside at MSG after weighing in as backup for the main event last Friday.

    But while Jones’ repeated dismissal of the Brit has led some to suggest he fears defeat, Smith isn’t entertaining that as a possibility.

    “I think he’s the best on the planet. He’s the greatest in MMA that I’ve ever seen,” Smith said. “I’ve always said to everybody, you’ve got to show me to make me believe that somebody’s going to beat Jon ‘Bones’ Jones, ’cause I just don’t see it happening. He’s just too elite.”

    When a clip of his remarks was posted on X, Aspinall’s fellow countryman, ex-UFC title challenger Darren Till, made his thoughts on Smith clear…

    “Stephen A Smith has the IQ of a mole,” Till wrote. “Please ban this man from ever speaking about anything ever again.”

    Smith has previously caught the ire of the MMA community, most notably when he suggested Donald Cerrone “didn’t want to be there” when he was blitzed by Conor McGregor in 40 seconds at UFC 246.

  • Stephen A. Smith Rips Jorge Masvidal For Post-UFC 272 Comments

    Stephen A. Smith is not buying what UFC welterweight Jorge Masvidal is selling following his loss to Colby Covington.

    Covington defeated Masvidal via unanimous decision in their welterweight grudge match after months of back-and-forth banter. Covington dominated with his wrestling and also out-landed Masvidal with his standup.

    After the fight, Masvidal claimed that he was “flat” with his wrestling, which he feels was a major reason for the loss. Covington has always been known to be a wrestler by nature but has also shown improved standup over time.

    During a recent segment of ESPN’s First Take, Smith gave his thoughts on Masvidal’s approach to the fight with Covington and his post-fight comments.

    “I’m a huge, huge Masvidal fan,” Smith prefaced. “I think he’s great for the sport because he’s got knockout power in both punches, he can obviously use that knee very well and he has improved his wrestling. But Colby Covington showed that he’s on a different level from a wrestling standpoint, and from a stamina standpoint.

    Masvidal reflects on UFC 272 loss to Covington: 'The b—ch can wrestle' - MMAmania.com
    Image Credit: David Becker/Getty Images

    “One of the things that I paid attention to coming into this fight is something that Colby Covington said. Because he knew him and they were former best friends and roommates turned enemies, Covington said, ‘Masvidal trains for his fights; I live this.’ What he was talking about is he is always in shape. He’s never out of shape. He’s renowned for his condition and the pressure he’s able to apply and how he never lets up because he keeps on coming.”

    Smith went on to point out how fatigued Masvidal looked as the fight came to a close.

    “I saw Masvidal gutsy and survive the five rounds, but while he was waving Covington on to come on, ‘Let’s get some more.’ He was literally using two security personnel to lean on because that’s how exhausted he was. Covington looked like he was just starting. He was that energized. The guy is in phenomenal shape, he’s an outstanding wrestler and Masvidal admitted that his wrestling was flat.

    “How was it flat coming into this fight knowing this guy as well as you know him and knowing what he was going to try to do to you, and how much you supposedly hate him? How you were not ready for a wrestling match, I don’t understand. It’s inexplicable.” (h/t MMA Junkie)

    Masvidal has now lost three straight bouts and hasn’t won since his BMF title victory over Nate Diaz at UFC 244. He’s anticipating a return later this year to work his way towards a potential rematch against Covington down the line.

    Smith has had a complicated relationship with the MMA community. In addition to his criticisms of Masvidal, he also came under fire after attacking Donald Cerrone on the ESPN post-fight show for his quick loss to Conor McGregor.

    What are your thoughts on how Jorge Masvidal vs. Colby Covington played out?

  • Archives: White Weighs In On Conflict Between Rogan & Smith (2020)

    The following article was published on this day two years ago. It is presented to you in its original, unaltered form, courtesy of The MMA News Archives.

    [ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED FEBRUARY 6, 2020, 9:50 PM]

    Headline: Dana White Weighs In On Disagreement Between Joe Rogan & Stephen A. Smith

    Author: Fernando Quiles Jr.

    UFC President Dana White has given his two cents on the disagreement between Joe Rogan and Stephen A. Smith.

    Stephen A. got plenty of flak for his comments on Donald Cerrone’s performance against Conor McGregor at UFC 246. “Cowboy” was defeated in 40 seconds. During the post-UFC 246 edition of SportsCenter, Stephen A. said he felt Cerrone “gave up” and that his performance was “atrocious.”

    Rogan fired back at Stephen A. and said he shouldn’t be allowed to talk about the sport of MMA. The two have gone back-and-forth since and even Conor McGregor chimed in.

    White Responds To Rogan-Stephen A. Ordeal

    MMAJunkie.com caught up with UFC boss Dana White, who gave his viewpoint on the situation. White said disagreements are simply bound to happen between two opinionated personalities.

    “I’m not into it. Rogan is not into it. You don’t see that in the UFC. There will be times where I’m pissed off at a guy, and I’ll voice my opinion on what he did or whatever – or if a fight is really bad or somebody did something. What we don’t do is, when a fight is over and a guy loses, we don’t go in and rip them apart. It’s just not our style. We’re fans. We don’t do it. I think Rogan was reacting to that. That’s our philosophy here. For Stephen A. Smith, that’s his thing. That’s what he does. It’s going to happen. You’re always going to have people who have difference in opinions, especially when you have two very opinionated guys like Stephen A. Smith and Joe Rogan.”

    Stephen A. has been discussing UFC bouts more since the promotion’s deal with ESPN. While Smith has covered MMA in the past, he doesn’t do so nearly as much as other sports such as basketball or football.

    While many within the MMA community have been at odds with Stephen A., some have looked at the other side. There’s no doubting that Stephen A. is ESPN’s most popular personality and his reach to the casual sports fan is significant. If he talks about lesser-known MMA fighters, it could boost their stock. Of course, insinuating that a fighter quit can also have the opposite effect.

  • Archives: Diaz Blasts McGregor & Rogan Over Stephen A. Ordeal (2020)

    After Conor McGregor ran through Donald Cerrone at UFC 246, ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith shared his harsh opinion of Cowboy’s performance, which resulted in Conor McGregor, Joe Rogan, and many others in the MMA community coming down hard on Smith.

    Donald Cerrone would later say, in his own words, that he “didn’t want to be there” at UFC 246. Prior to Cerrone making these remarks, Nate Diaz had already come to Smith’s defense against McGregor’s and Rogan’s criticisms.

    On This Day Two Years Ago...

    [ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED JANUARY 30, 2020, 9:38 AM]

    Headline: Nate Diaz Blasts Conor McGregor & Joe Rogan Over Stephen A. Smith Ordeal

    Author: Fernando Quiles Jr.

    Nate Diaz thinks Conor McGregor and Joe Rogan are in the wrong when it comes to their ordeal with Stephen A. Smith.

    Stephen A.’s post-UFC 246 comments on Donald Cerrone’s performance against McGregor have been a hot topic within the MMA community. The ESPN personality ripped “Cowboy’s” performance and called it “atrocious.” He even said that it looked as if Cerrone “gave up.”

    Rogan criticized Smith over his remarks and said he shouldn’t be allowed to talk about MMA again. Stephen A. responded by saying Rogan is wrong to question his ability to cover MMA but Conor McGregor wasn’t thrilled with the response as he made clear on his Twitter account.

    “The call you discuss here is A+. I didn’t show enough. I’m not paid by the hour though. Joe’s comments however, come from you saying the opposition fighter quit. Broken nose/orbital bone say different. Fighting is vicious. Those who make the walk deserve full respect! Apologize.”

    Nate Diaz Puts Conor McGregor & Joe Rogan On Blast

    Diaz is aware of the whole ordeal and he’s taking Stephen A.’s side as he revealed in a Twitter post.

    “Rogan and Conor should give Stephen Smith a apology he said what it was The fight was over before it started Get offfeachothers nuts.”

    Before the tweet, Diaz had told ESPN’s Marc Raimondi that he felt Cerrone was a layup for McGregor.

    “Cowboy doesn’t care about winning and losing, so [McGregor] didn’t have a very hard fight on his hands,” Diaz said.

    Do you agree with Nate Diaz?

  • Archives: Rogan To Stephen A. Smith: I Like You, But You’re Wrong (2020)

    As marvelously as Conor McGregor performed in his 2020 victory over Donald Cerrone, much of the attention was placed on what Cerrone didn’t do as opposed to what McGregor did do. Whenever there’s a Conor McGregor fight, the A-listers come out, including the biggest names in sports media, such as ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith.

    Smith opined that Cerrone looked like he quit during the loss to McGregor and was widely ridiculed for those remarks. Although later that year, Cerrone himself stated that he ‘didn’t want to be there,‘ when everything was still fresh after the fight, Smith’s remarks weren’t taken well by many within the MMA community, including Joe Rogan as you’ll see in the below article published on this day two years ago.

    The following article is presented to you in its original, unaltered form, courtesy of The MMA News Archives.

    On This Day Two Years Ago…

    [ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED JANUARY 29, 2020, 1:20 PM]

    Headline: Joe Rogan Responds To Stephen A. Smith: I Like You, But You’re Wrong

    Author: Fernando Quiles Jr.

    Joe Rogan has responded to Stephen A. Smith and he’s sticking to his guns.

    Rogan and Smith are in a disagreement over Stephen A.’s assessment of Donald Cerrone’s performance at UFC 246. Smith called Cerrone’s efforts against Conor McGregor, “atrocious” and said that Cerrone looked to have “gave up.”

    Joe Rogan Offers Response To Stephen A. Smith

    Rogan expressed his displeasure with Stephen A. and said the ESPN personality should never be allowed to talk about fighting again. Smith responded by saying Rogan is wrong and offered to debate him on the matter. The UFC color commentator took to his JRE MMA Show to respond.

    “Listen Stephen A. Smith, I guess I should respond. You’re a very entertaining guy. Like you a lot and I appreciate the props you gave me in that video, but you’re wrong. ‘Cowboy’ got f*cked up with those shoulders in the clinch. He had Conor’s arms tied up and they’re in tight spaces. Conor dips low and slams this bone of his shoulder into the nose. And he’s at the beginning of the round, Conor’s a f*cking super explosive guy. Super explosive, all muscle. Just f*cking pulled tight at the beginning of the fight and just, ‘Bang! Bang!’ He got off good shots and ‘Cowboy’ was confused.”

    Rogan went on to disagree with the notion that Cerrone quit.

    “Stephen A. Smith said that he felt like ‘Cowboy’ quit. He did not quit. He got smashed.”

    Another problem Rogan has with Stephen A. is that he doesn’t think “Cowboy’s” credibility and status were taken into account with his remarks.

    “It’s also who you’re talking about. You’re talking about a guy who has the most fights in the UFC, the most finishes in the UFC, the most head kick knockouts in the UFC, the most bonuses in the UFC. ‘Cowboy’ is a f*cking legend. He is as tough as they come. He’s lost before, every human can lose. Especially you’re fighting guys like Darren Till and Jorge Masvidal and these f*cking animals that he’s fighting. Or Conor, and Conor literally broke his face. He broke his nose and he broke his orbital bone. So Stephen A. Smith responded and then Conor responded. Conor told him to apologize and Conor’s right.”

  • Jake Paul & Stephen A. Smith Spar Over Career Progress & Canelo

    Jake Paul and Stephen A. Smith had a light back-and-forth about Paul’s career progression as a boxer and his ambitions of stepping into the ring with Canelo Álvarez.

    Love him or hate him, there is no question that Jake Paul has taken the combat sports world by storm since bursting onto the arena two years ago. What began as a dip into the celebrity boxing pool evolved into headlining cards against accomplished MMA fighters Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley. Through it all, the irreverent YouTuber has continued to make headlines and land KOs as his star has continued to rise.

    Nonetheless, after Paul defeated Askren and was booked to face Woodley, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith had already seen enough of the YouTuber’s self-matchmaking.

    “Let me say this. I am not impressed, not one bit,” Smith began in a soliloquy last year on his Stephen A’s World last year. “While Logan Paul is taking fights way over his head, getting in the ring with boxing royalty like Floyd ‘Money’ Mayweather, risking a beatdown for the ages, by the way, Jake Paul is going the opposite direction…the complete opposite direction, fighting non-boxers.”

    Smith went on to lay out why neither Askren nor Woodley were appropriate matchups for Paul in his opinion and stated that the former Disney actor should be facing actual pro boxers.

    After Smith’s comments came to his attention, Paul killed Stephen A. with kindness, merely expressing that he ‘loves his fans’ in response to the renowned sports personality.

    Stephen A. Delivers His Criticism Directly To Paul

    Stephen A. Smith Won't Stop Talking | The New Yorker
    Photograph by Eric Helgas for The New Yorker

    Earlier this week, Jake Paul made an appearance on ESPN’s First Take starring Smith, and the outspoken figure took the liberty to restate his criticism straight to the YouTuber’s virtual face.

    “My problem with you, Jake—because we gotta be real here—I know you heard my position about this—my problem is: You are beating up on dudes that don’t box. They’re not boxers. Nate Robinson was a basketball player.  Ben Askren came out there with a pose looking like he’s Jake LaMotta, he was 19-1 in (MMA), but he was never a boxer. He was a grappler. And Tyron Woodley’s a striker. What was that?!”

    Paul would then issue the following prompt response.

    “Meanwhile, I was on Disney Channel while these guys were winning UFC championships. I was playing with Mickey Mouse while these guys were throwing armbars and winning UFC championships. So I’ve been training for the same amount of time as them.

    “And look, I’ve always gone against people where the odds are even. Canelo just fought Caleb Plant as like a -1400 favorite. Gervante Davis in his eighth fight fought a guy who was making his professional boxing debut. Floyd, in his fourth fight, fought a guy who was making his professional boxing debut.

    “So everybody’s analyzing my career, critiquing it, paying attention to it from day one, but you can’t tell me who was Mike Tyson’s first fight. You can’t tell me, Muhammad Ali, who was his first fight. No one knows. But everyone’s seen all of my fights. And I’m gradually progressing and increasing my level of opposition as I get better (in) the gym.”

    Paul also invoked the name of Tommy Fury as an example of his wilingness to fight a professional boxer as well as doubling down on his interest in fighting veteran second-generation slugger Julio César Chávez.

    Paul’s Confidence In Álvarez Fight Unwavering Despite Smith’s Dismay

    Jake Paul Canelo
    (via Triller & DAZN)

    Another name Paul has expressed an interest in fighting down the line is none other than boxing superstar Canelo Álvarez. Being well aware of these lofty goals, Smith had to hear it straight from the YouTuber’s mouth to believe it.

    “Now you say ‘line ‘em up, knock ‘em down’ and there was rumors about you and Mike Tyson. Mike Tyson basically put that to bed. And I’m sure you’re not trying to fight somebody in their mid-50s, but you did mention the name Canelo Alvarez,” Smith said. “And I want you to know, as much as I like you, Jake, you’re going into deep waters there! Now you’re getting out of control! Because you know Canelo is not the one to mess with! You know you’re not ready for that! Seriously, you do know that, right? This is Canelo we’re talking about!”

    Paul’s response served as a reaffirmation of his own confidence and perhaps an incidental installation of confidence in viewers worldwide about striving beyond others’ limitations.

    “That’s what other people think,” Paul said. “Other people try to place limits on what is possible for you when you are a unicorn doing something different. Other people try to place limits on what’s possible for you and on what you can accomplish because of their mindset and what they think they can accomplish as a human being. But for me, I can accomplish anything I set my mind to

    “And I know I can get after Canelo. I know I can go rounds with him. And the guy he fought the other time, ‘Turkish Warrior,’ quit after three rounds. He didn’t throw one punch. I’m bigger than Canelo, I’m faster than Canelo, I’m more athletic than Canelo. Can I box better? Probably not. But give me three years, and that’s gonna be a big fight. The two biggest names in boxing going after each other. Why not?”

    You can view the clip from Paul’s appearance on ESPN’s First Take below.

  • (Archives) Stephen A: Ngannou KO The Best Thing In UFC History (2021)

    Last March, Stephen A. Smith shared his belief that the best thing to ever happen in UFC history took place when Francis Ngannou knocked out Stipe Miocic to become the heavyweight champion.

    The following article published last year explains how he came to that conclusion. Tonight, Ngannou’s follow-up performance to this KO will come when he takes on Ciryl Gane at UFC 270 to unify the UFC undisputed heavyweight championship.

    The following article is presented to you in its original, unaltered form, courtesy of The MMA News Archives.

    [ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED MARCH 31, 2021, 10:00 AM]

    Headline: Stephen A: Ngannou’s KO The Greatest Thing To Ever Happen To UFC

    The First Take crew is showering new UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou with the ultimate praise.

    Francis Ngannou made history as the first man from Cameroon to become a UFC champion when he knocked out Stipe Miocic at UFC 260. In doing so, the continent of Africa now has three current champions on the UFC roster. The feeling of joy Ngannou had for achieving those two things has been articulated by Ngannou in the aftermath of the event, and he has already been commended far and wide for his improvements, his approach, and his achievement.

    In an appearance on ESPN’s First Take on Monday, host Stephen A. Smith threw one more massive heap of praise Ngannou’s way.

    “I caught your knockout on Saturday. I called it the greatest thing that’s ever happened to the UFC,” Smith told Ngannou. “Because when you’re the heavyweight champion of the world and you come into the Octagon with bad intentions like Mike Tyson did in boxing, like George Foreman did before him, that’s the greatest thing for a pugilistic sport.”

    There’s been some big things to happen in the nearly 30-year history of the UFC: becoming sanctioned by state athletic commissions after being viewed as a bloodsport, women finally being allowed to compete in the promotion after 20 years, Conor McGregor’s rise to fame, the partnership with ESPN, just to name a few. But Smith’s argument comes with the premise that nothing can match the impact of a mainstream heavyweight destroyer.

    As someone with a great amount of experience covering the pugilistic sport of boxing, Smith’s co-host Max Kellerman co-signed Smith’s statement to a degree but seemed to stop at the “potential” Ngannou’s win carries as opposed to proclaiming it the greatest thing in UFC history full stop.

    “I agree with Stephen A,” Kellerman began. “This has a chance to be, what you did now, a turning point in the history of the UFC in the sense that light heavy was always the glamor division. Brock Lesnar looked for a second, like, ‘Can he be that guy at heavyweight?’ But he couldn’t consistently stay at that level. You now have a fight maybe lined up with Jon Jones.

    Francis Ngannou knocks out Stipe Miocic at UFC 260 to become heavyweight champion and set up Jon Jones fight
    New UFC Champion Francis Ngannou. Image Credit: Getty Images

    “Because the UFC champion would beat the heavyweight champion in boxing in an actual fight, that guy’s the baddest man on the planet, especially if he’s a guy that fights like you. So this could be a turning point in the history of your sport. That’s a tremendous achievement.”

    Ever the gracious giant, Ngannou took his praise in stride. During the interview, he noted the impact that Kamaru Usman had on his victory and discussed what it means to him to be a champion for his countrymen and his family. Ngannou’s story and UFC 260 achievement is certainly mainstream news now, and only time will tell if he will be able to carry the heavyweight torch to the places Smith and Kellerman believe he could.

    What are your thoughts on Stephen A. Smith’s and Max Kellerman’s level of praise for new UFC champion Francis Ngannou?