A few days ago, police arrested Anthony Smith on three felony charges in his home state of Nebraska, leaving the MMA community in shock. Reports alleged that the UFC veteran was involved in a serious altercation with his wife, a day before his arrest. However, Smith is not the only prominent figure to face criminal allegations recently. 

Last week, Miami police arrested Andrew Tate and his brother, ahead of their appearance at a Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship event in Florida, after new charges were brought against them. With both men facing arrests in the same month, an old video of ‘Lionheart’ challenging Tate to a bout under special rules quickly resurfaced on social media and was widely reshared by fans. In the clip, the former UFC title challenger can be seen responding to the controversial internet personality after Tate claimed that Brazilian jiu-jitsu was “useless” outside the Octagon.

“Yeah, so I don’t think he’s completely wrong,” Smith stated on the Believe You Me podcast with Michael Bisping in 2022. “Like you said, if you’re dealing with multiple attackers, jiu-jitsu in and of itself is a slippery slope. It’s going to be tough if that’s all you know or all you’re allowed to use.

“In terms of the biting and scratching, I’ll make you a deal. If Andrew Tate wants to have a competition, you can bite, you can scratch, and you can even have a knife. It’s just me and you in a room. All I can use is jiu-jitsu, and all you can do is kickbox. I’m leaving that room with whatever was in your pockets. One hundred percent.”

Though Anthony Smith sounded highly confident about beating Andrew Tate in a special-rules match that would even allow the internet personality to use knives, it would still be difficult for him to completely dominate the contest. Tate possesses a strong kickboxing background, making him far more dangerous than the average untrained person.

However, the edge still goes to Smith because of his experience across 59 professional MMA fights, a significant advantage over Tate, whose primary expertise lies in striking rather than grappling.

In fact, the former UFC light heavyweight title challenger also surpasses Andrew Tate in their recent appearances.

The 38-year-old lost to Zhang Mingyang in his UFC retirement fight last year before bouncing back with an impressive victory over Chase Sherman at Jorge Masvidal’s Gamebred Bareknuckle promotion in April of this year, which marked his last appearance before his arrest a couple of days ago. Meanwhile, Andrew Tate endured a disappointing outing against Chase DeMoor at Misfits Boxing, losing via majority decision. 

That said, the idea of Smith and Tate colliding inside a cage or a ring certainly sounds intriguing, and it would undoubtedly generate significant interest, especially after both men became entangled in serious controversies. But staging such a fight anytime soon would be highly unlikely given the severity of the legal issues surrounding both fighters. 

At present, Anthony Smith is facing three felony charges after allegedly attempting to strike his wife multiple times with a car during a domestic dispute. Although he was released after posting a hefty $500,000 bail, Smith is scheduled to appear in court on August 17. If convicted, he could face up to 20 years in prison. However, the situation is arguably even more serious on the other side. 

Andrew Tate and his brother will remain in jail for two more weeks   

Right after police arrested Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate in Miami, reports emerged that the controversial brothers were facing a new set of criminal charges stemming from their past alleged offenses. According to Bedfordshire Police, the Tate brothers face a combined total of 59 charges, with Andrew facing 42 and Tristan facing 17.

Following their arrests, both were extradited to London, where the proceedings are set to take place. However, there was some confusion over whether they would remain in custody before the hearing. Addressing the issue, a federal judge clarified that the social media influencers would stay in jail until their next court appearance.

Reports also indicated that U.S. Magistrate Lauren Louis scheduled a hearing for August 13 to determine whether the Tate brothers would remain in custody or be released pending further proceedings. However, the internet personalities’ attorney, Joseph McBride, maintained their innocence and argued that public opinion had turned against them.

“They don’t have anything but the accusations,” McBride said after the hearing. “It’s just their word against our word right now.”

Now, with both men facing serious criminal charges and the possibility of prison time, a fight between Smith and Tate appears to be a distant prospect. However, it would be interesting to see whether the two eventually meet inside a ring or cage if their legal situations are resolved.