It’s hard to take punishment when the lights are turned off. Paul Daley knocked out Scott Smith with a highlight-reel left hook at 2:09 of round one.
Daley displayed the crisper technique that many predicted he would show leading into the bout. He landed a crisp one-two combination that briefly put Smith down 60 seconds into the round. Smith regained his composure, but Daley continued to outclass him from distance. Daley started to pour it on 100 seconds into the round, and when Smith came forward in an exchange, he met an explosive left hook. Smith’s head hit the canvas and that was it.
This fight was Paul Daley’s debut in Strikeforce. He defeated Jorge Masvidal and Daniel Acacio after being released by the UFC in May for striking Josh Koscheck after the final bell at UFC 113 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Scott Smith knocked out Cung Le in December of 2009, but dropped a rematch in June when Le stopped Smith with a spinning back kick.