This just in: Anthony Smith still despises Luke Rockhold.

Luke Rockhold has been critical of Anthony Smith during Smith’s rise up the light heavyweight ranks, with Rockhold believing that Smith is simply not that talented of a fighter. Smith took those comments very personally to say the least, primarily because they were unprovoked, but that did not stop Rockhold from doubling down whenever the topic of Smith has been broached in an interview. And every time Rockhold opens his mouth about him, Smith finds himself both irked and perplexed as to what Rockhold stands to gain by continuing to disrespect him:

“If you want to talk your way into a fight, that’s fine,” Smith said to MMA Junkie. “There’s ways of going about it. You don’t have to convince me. I’m not the guy that you’ve got to goad into a fight. All you’ve got to do is ask. Want to fight? Sure. Yeah. Let’s do it. That’s as far as you’ve got to go.

“And if you want to build a fight, you’re not the (expletive) champion. So what are you building it for? You don’t get pay-per-view points. I don’t get PPV points. You’re not making any more money by being an (expletive). So what are we doing here? It’s a waste of time.”

Luke Rockhold has stated that he has no problem with Anthony Smith but is merely assessing Smith’s fighting ability in a candid manner. Anthony Smith finds nothing constructive or intellectual about the criticism, though, and while he believes Rockhold must have some issue with him, he is stumped as to what it could be. One thing he is confident about, though, is that there is a very real possibility that Rockhold’s perceived arrogance could backfire and soon:

“I just don’t get what his beef is, and now, he just keeps going with it,” Smith continued. ‘Oh, Alexander Gustafsson’s going to beat his ass.’ But maybe not, (expletive). You ever consider that? Maybe you should focus on your fight and worry about that, because you’re going to look real stupid if I beat Alex and you lose. Real stupid. Historically, his (expletive) talking hasn’t worked out well for him.”

Anthony Smith would conclude by taking a moment to inform Luke Rockhold that no one affiliated with the UFC likes him. And with that being the case, Smith poses, how rewarding could a career possibly be?

“That’s why nobody likes him,” Smith stated. “Nobody in the UFC likes him. None of the staff likes him. None of the executives like him. None of the fighters like him. So he can sit pretty and eat his meals on TMZ and talk all the (expletive) all he wants. But at the end of the day, no one likes you, and sometimes that’s what matters most. It’s about how you treat people and if people respect you.”