UFC Vegas 15 video recap: Anthony Smith submits Devin Clark in the first round

Anthony Smith submitted Devin Clark in the first round of the main event at UFC Vegas 15.

What was the high point of the fight?

Clark came out strong, immediately rushing forward and pushing Smith up against the cage. Smith controlled himself and got the double underhooks going, which allowed him to pick Clark up and take him to the canvas. Both men were near the cage at the beginning of the takedown, but Smith and his veteran savvy approach dragged Clark away from the cage and to the center of the Octagon. From there, Smith and Clark worked on the ground for a few minutes where Smith looked for a few submissions including a twister (!) before he was able to lock in a triangle choke. A few moments of squeezing forced Clark to tap out in the first round.

Where do both men go from here?

Smith snapped a two-fight losing streak to names such as Glover Teixeira and Aleksandar Rakic in back-to-back main event outings. The performances had many questioning whether Smith was still able to compete at an elite level in the light heavyweight division, and he silenced those doubters with this submission win over Clark. Smith told Paul Felder in his post-fight interview that he was not going anywhere, so with his place cemented in the UFC rankings for now, a fight against either Jimmy Crute or Paul Craig would be a good next step for him.

Clark had a solid start to 2020 with wins over Dequan Townsend and Alonzo Menifield, but his momentum may have slowed slightly with this loss to Smith. It is unlikely that he Clark gets another ranked opponent so soon, so perhaps a fight opposite of a name like Ion Cutelaba could work.

Watch it now, later or never?

This was a smooth performance by Smith, so watch it now.