MMA Preview – Anthony Smith vs Vitor Petrino at UFC 301
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ANTHONY SMITH VS VITOR PETRINO FACTS
When is UFC 301? Sunday 5th May, 2024 - 01:00 (UK)
Where is UFC 301? Farmasi Arena, Rio de Janeiro (Brazil)
Where can I get tickets for UFC 301? Click here to buy tickets for UFC 301
What channel is UFC 301 on? TNT Sports 1
Where can I stream UFC 301? TNT Sports subscribers can stream the fight online via the TNT Sports website and Discovery+
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
ANTHONY SMITH VS VITOR PETRINO LOWDOWN
Anthony Smith (37-19) heads to Brazil for his 21st UFC appearance. He has been battling it out with killers for over seven years and he would love to win a few more battles before retiring. He is 1-3 in his last four getting knocked out by Magomed Ankalaev (2022) and outpointed by Johnny Walker (2023). He responded with a split decision win over Ryan Spann (2023) which is not ageing terribly well and now he is coming off the 11th knockout loss of his career courtesy of Khalil Rountree Jr.
Vitor Petrino (11-0) fully expects to deliver a 12th knockout loss to add to his own impressive tally. He made his UFC debut off the back of five straight knockouts. He then outpointed Anton Turkalji (2023) before submitting Marcin Prachnio (2023). He then reeled off a vintage knockout over Modestas Bukauskas (2023) and is now coming off a unanimous decision win over Tyson Pedro (2024) to extend his unbeaten record.
ANTHONY SMITH VS VITOR PETRINO PREDICTION
The power of Petrino and chin of Smith make this a simple prediction. However, Smith has the grappling and experience to cause the upset and inflict the first loss on the Brazilian’s record.
We can see him piercing the guard with his jab and chop the legs down with snapping kicks and if he can get him on his back, he can threaten a submission.
However, Petrino has underrated grappling, and we expect him to be able to defend the majority of takedowns and leverage his power to overwhelm Smith on the feet.
On paper, this is a very tough test for the Brazilian who is not as skilled as Smith, but he can pull off a knockout to catapult himself up the rankings.
Prediction: Petrino via KO/TKO
Value Bet: Smith to win
