Following his unanimous decision defeat to Johnny Walker at UFC Charlotte, Anthony Smith was understandably disappointed. However, despite removing his gloves in the octagon, Smith never had any intention of retiring. UFC president Dana White initially thought that Smith might be calling it a career, but he later clarified that Smith wanted to “think about it” before making a decision.

Smith revealed that he removed his gloves because his hand wraps were tight and stated, “No, come on, I’m not going out like that.” The fight saw Walker dominate Smith, punishing his leg with kicks throughout the three rounds. Although Smith did win the second round on one scorecard, Walker still earned the unanimous decision victory. The loss marked Smith’s second consecutive defeat, bringing his record to 3-2 in his past five fights after suffering an ankle injury in his previous outing against Magomed Ankalaev.

Despite his disappointment over the loss to Walker, Smith is adamant that he would never take off his gloves and announce his retirement in the center of the octagon. He explained, “If I ever retire, it will be one of two ways. I’ll fade into obscurity and you guys will go ‘damn, I haven’t seen Anthony in a while,’ or it will be being drug out of there kicking and screaming.”

Smith remains a prominent figure in the light heavyweight rankings and is still within striking range of a future title opportunity if he can string together a series of wins. For Walker, on the other hand, the victory over Smith serves as his most significant win to date, bringing him one step closer to a potential title shot in the future.