Former UFC light heavyweight ****** le contender Anthony Smith has had his next MMA fight announced despite his recent legal troubles.
Smith was arrested on July 27 in his native Nebraska on three felony charges of first-degree domestic ****** ault, terroristic threats, and first-degree false imprisonment. He has since pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released after posting a $500,000 bond.
Gamebred FC has announced that Smith will return to the cage against Jordan Heiderman on October 2.
"Gamebred Fighting Championship Official Statement: As we announce Anthony Smith's return to the Gamebred FC cage, I want to speak directly about where our organization stands. Anthony is facing serious allegations, and like every person in this country, he is entitled to due process and the presumption of innocence while his case moves through the courts. He has pleaded not guilty, and that process deserves to play out fully and fairly, on its own timeline, without a promotion, a headline, or public opinion getting ahead of the facts. Anthony also has a family to provide for, and competing is how he does that. Taking away his ability to earn a living before he has had his day in court is not something Gamebred FC is willing to do to him or to the people who depend on him," Gamebred FC's statement read, per Uncrowned.
Despite his legal issues, Smith's MMA career continues for Gamebred FC after he defeated Chase Sherman in the promotion earlier this year as part of its heavyweight tournament.

#gamebred #Legal #first

It's deja vu all over again. Dillon Danis won't be fighting this weekend against Mike Perry.
Perry (15-8) announced at a pre-fight news conference Thursday that he'll instead be fighting former UFC fighter Brandon Jenkins (17-11) at Duel Arena 1 at Kia Center in Orlando, Fla.
"Let's not beat around the bush," Perry said. "This p*ssy-ass b*tch Dillon Danis didn't show the f*ck up. He's not here. He backed the f*ck out because he's a p*ssy."
It's unclear why Danis (3-0) is no longer fighting. He has not publicly spoken on the issue, but he's built a reputation for withdrawing from fights over the years.
Jenkins, 34, was in Nevada on Thursday when he got the call to compete. He is currently en route from Las Vegas to Orlando to weigh in tomorrow morning. Over the course of his nearly 17-year competitive career, Jenkins has made stops in the UFC, LFA, PFL, Gamebred Bareknuckle, Karate Combat, and most recently, MVP MMA in May, when he defeated Chris Avila by split decision.

#jenkins #dillon #orlando #mike

Anthony Smith has pleaded not guilty.
Facing four felony charges, Smith entered the plea Monday as he elected for a written arraignment rather than making an in-person appearance, according to court records MMA Junkie acquired from Sarpy County (Neb.). MMA Fighting first reported the plea.
Smith, 38, initially faced three felonies: including terrostic threats (one count) and false imprisonment (two counts). The state has also charged Smith with attempt of a class 1/1A/1B/1C/1D felony.
According to the attorney's office, Smith is accused of threatening to kill his wife if she did not go home with him following an altercation at a bar in Gretna, Neb., after which he grabbed her and pushed her into the vehicle. The attorney's office further alleges that investigators concluded Smith tried multiple times to hit his wife with the vehicle when she escaped during the drive, but that she was able to maneuver out of the way and avoid physical harm. A warrant was issued, and Smith later turned himself in, according to officials.
Smith is currently out on $45,000 bail. According to a report from KETV Omaha, Smith has been permitted to travel out of the country and compete in a professional sporting event in the Dominican Republic in late September-early October (presumably Gamebred MMA).

#smith

Anthony Smith has been released from Sarpy County Jail in Nebraska.
The former UFC light heavyweight ****** le challenger, who later transitioned to the role of ****** yst for UFC broadcasts, was arrested last Monday night (July 27, 2026) on felony charges of Attempted First Degree Domestic ****** ault, Terroristic Threats, and First Degree False Imprisonment.
Smith appeared before the judge on Wednesday morning and released on $500,000 bond.
That's according to a report from MMA Fighting, though Smith's arrest affidavit remains sealed. All we know at this stage is that "Lionheart" is facing serious allegations and will return to court at some point in the near future. Neither Smith nor UFC have issued a statement at the time of this writing.
Smith, who turned 38 just a few days back, retired from UFC in early 2025 but returned to action for Jorge Masvidal's Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA in April, securing a submission victory over fellow UFC export Chase Sherman. If convicted, Smith (39-22) could be facing up to 20 years in prison.

#released

Former UFC light-heavyweight ***** le contender Anthony Smith has been arrested in Nebraska on three felony charges.
The American, 38, was booked into Sarpy County Jail on charges of terroristic threats, false imprisonment and first degree domestic violence ***** ault.
BBC Sport has been told Smith is in custody and will be called in front of a judge no later than Friday.
Smith last fought in the UFC in April when he lost to Zhang Mingyang, although he competed later that month in Gamebred Bareknuckle.
In 2019 Smith lost against Jon Jones for the UFC light-heavyweight ***** le.

#heavyweight #title #anthony #Nebraska

Michael Chandler’s dream to compete on the UFC White House card turned into a nightmare after Mauricio Ruffy picked him apart and ultimately delivered a first-round knockout.
The loss dropped Chandler to 2-6 in the UFC with a fourth defeat in a row overall as the 40-year-old veteran is now more than four years removed from his most recent win in the octagon. In his post-fight statement, Chandler didn’t even hint at retirement and vowed to come back better that never for his next fight.
But retired welterweight Matt Brown says that Chandler’s losing streak along with this latest performance proves that time has passed him by and he’s just no longer able to hang with UFC level competition.
“With Michael Chandler, just his whole UFC run hasn’t been anything of note,” Brown said on The Fighter vs. The Writer. “The fact that he’s as big of a star as he is in the UFC, I like Michael Chandler, I’m not trying to knock him, I’m just looking at objective facts — he shouldn’t be the star that he is in the UFC. He’s won two fights in the UFC, 2-6 and how are you 2-6 and you’re as big of a star as him? It doesn’t really add up. He was great in Bellator. He had the great fights with Eddie Alvarez and there’s definitely a lot of potential in him. He hasn’t reached his potential.
“I would not get excited to see him fight again. If I’m Dana White, I either cut him or tell him you need to retire. If he wanted to keep fighting, I think he would probably fit in other organizations. I’d like to see him in bare-knuckle. I’d like to see him maybe in Gamebred MMA, the bare-knuckle stuff. I think there’s fun things for him to do. He’s clearly not a UFC level guy though at 2-6. You can’t do that.”

With Mohammed Usman out, Ex-UFC ***** le challenger replaces him in Gamebred FC heavyweight tournament

A change has been made to the upcoming Gamebred FC card on April 10 that kicks off the $500k heavyweight tournament.
Ex-UFC heavyweight Mohammed Usman has been forced off the card due to undisclosed reasons and former UFC light heavyweight ***** le challenger Thiago Santos has been tapped as his replacement. Santos is now set to clash with Guto Inocente in one of the opening round matchups for the 16-man tournament that also features Anthony Smith coming out of retirement to face Chase Sh