Roman Dolidze stepped up for a short-notice battle in a higher weight class and came away with a win.
Usually a middleweight competitor, Dolidze (13-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) offered his services to fill in against Anthony Smith at light heavyweight on the main card of UFC 303 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. After 15 minutes, Dolidze earned a unanimous nod over Smith (38-20 MMA, 13-10 UFC) with scores of 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28.
Dolidze set the tone early with a series of kicks targeting Smith’s legs, body and head. While Smith pressured forward looking to land punches, Dolidze attacked with kicks targeting the lead leg. Smith added a few kicks of his own, but one that missed prompted a friendly taunt from Dolidze.
