Jan Blachowicz reacts to Anthony Smith's performance against Ryan Spann; 'Lionheart' responds

Jan Blachowicz was impressed with Anthony Smith's dominating first-round victory over Ryan Spann. The UFC light heavyweight champion made sure to recognize Smith's "great performance" and said he is still a worthy contender in the 205-pound division.

Smith and Spann collided in the main event of UFC Vegas 37 last night. 'Lionheart' outclassed Spann on the feet and eventually took his back before submitting him in the fourth minute of round one.

In a recent Q&A session on Twitter, Blachowicz reacted to Smith's impressive showing at UFC Vegas 37:

"He is still in the game. Great performance and congratulations to @lionheartasmith," tweeted Blachowicz.

Smith was also quick to respond to Blachowicz.

After capturing the light heavyweight belt in September last year, Blachowicz has defended his strap on one occasion, against Israel Adesanya at UFC 259. He is now set to fight Glover Teixiera at UFC 267, which is scheduled to take place in Abu Dhabi on October 30, 2021.

Blachowicz is confident that he will emerge victorious opposite Teixeira. He said he is aware of the Brazilian's superior ground game, which is why he will try his best to keep the fight standing.

The 38-year-old Pole is on a five-fight win streak. His last loss occurred in February 2019 at the hands of Thiago Santos.

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Anthony Smith wants a rematch against Aleksander Rakic

Anthony Smith made a huge statement at UFC Vegas 37. He has now won his last three fights in spectacular fashion, finishing Devin Clark, Jimmy Crute and Ryan Spann. During his post-fight interview, Smith expressed his desire to fight Aleksander Rakic in a rematch:

“I want Aleksander Rakic. He’s just sitting around. He’s not next for the title. Either I get that fight or I’m going to skip it. That’s what I want. I want someone ahead of me and I earned that.'

Smith and Rakic locked horns in August last year. The highly-touted Austrian convincingly defeated Smith in the three round-main event. The result lead many to question the future of 'Lionheart' in the light heavyweight division.

However, with three remarkable back-to-back victories, Smith has now once again put the light heavyweight division on notice.