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UFC light heavyweight Anthony Smith believes Luke Rockhold would be considered one of the biggest stars in the sport if he acted the way he has recently from the beginning of his career.
Rockhold, a former middleweight champion, is routinely known for his cocky attitude and controversial takes. However, the 37-year-old recently expressed a devil-may-care attitude that has gone over with fans.
Throughout the build-up to his UFC 278 bout with Paulo Costa, the American called out the UFC for issues regarding fighter pay and welfare as well as defended his friend Marlon Vera from an incident with a journalist.
Luke Rockhold's recent change of persona was perfectly encapsulated in his bout with Costa. To the surprise of fans, the 37-year-old's chin held up against the Brazilian as both men traded bombs in one of the most memorable bouts of the year. The Californian announced his retirement from MMA after the unanimous decision loss but left the octagon with his head held high and some new fans to boot.
Discussing Luke Rockhold's retirement on the Believe You Me podcast, 'Lionheart' wished fans could have seen this side of the former champion throughout his career:
"It was raw, so raw. Where was this guy f*****g guy 10 years ago? He'd be a f*****g superstar! I can get behind that guy. The guy who's like 'I'm f*****g old,' I'm with you. I can get behind that guy."
Catch the full episode of the Believe You Me podcast here:
Henry Cejudo believes Luke Rockhold will be inducted into the UFC's Hall of Fame
Henry Cejudo made a big call regarding the legacy of Luke Rockhold after the middleweight fighter's retirement announcement at UFC 278.
Rockhold bowed out of MMA as a former UFC and Strikeforce middleweight champion accompanied by only his second Fight of the Night bonus in his final bout against Paulo Costa.
During the latest episode of The Triple C & Schmo Show, Cejudo discussed Rockhold's retirement and the fight with 'Borrachinha':
"I think Luke, he was inspired to do something amazing but just didn't pull it out. This is why that fight was Fight of the Night. You didn't really necessarily see anything spectacular from both, but it was a slugfest and they went three rounds which is crazy. It was exciting... There's not much to be said, I think Luke is done and he deserves it you know."
'Triple C' then spoke about the possibility of the Californian being a Hall of Famer one day:
"Will he be inducted into the Hall of Fame? There's a lot of guys that have been inducted into the Hall of Fame that are going to allow other people to get in. You know what I mean? Like Rashad [Evans], Urijah [Faber] who never won the belt. So yeah, I think so. It's gonna be a lot easier to get into the UFC Hall of Fame than a Baseball Hall of Fame."
Catch the full episode of The Triple C & Schmo Show here:
