Canada’s Elias Theodorou outworked Trevor Smith through the first two rounds, and arguably edged out his opponent in the third to take a unanimous decision victory to kick off UFC Liverpool.
Kicking off the action at UFC Liverpool (UFC Fight Night 130) at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England on Sunday was a Canadian invasion. One of three Canadian fighters crossing the pond for the UFC’s debut in Liverpool, Elias Theodorou was looking to build off a recent win over Dan Kelly (also fighting at UFC Liverpool, coincidentally). At 6-2 in his UFC tenure to date, the TUF: Nations winner was taking on Trevor Smith. Smith, a former Strikeforce competitor, was seeking to build off a win over Chris Camozzi at UFC Stockholm, almost a year ago to the day from Sunday’s card.
As the action kicked off, it was Smith holding the center early, and Theodorou connecting with an uppercut as Smith walked him down. Smith fired back, and the pair ended up clinching up against the fence, with the Canadian sneaking in some more uppercuts while the pair traded in a phone booth. Smith wound up dropping for a takedown as Theodorou attacked his arm, which led to Theodorou hitting home with some hammer fists.
Still working along the fence, Smith went to the body, while Theodorou thew a knee before the pair finally separated. That gave the Canadian space to work, but they were in the clinch moments later, with Smith scoring with a knee and Theodorou landing a standing elbow. Breaking again, Theodorou connected with a kick to the body, and the pair continued to trade punch for punch as the round wore on. A big knee in the clinch landed for Elias in the final minute, followed moments later by an uppercut.
Smith and Theodorou continued to battle for control in the clinch as round two got underway, frequently trading knees. Just as it had been in the first round, the uppercut was there for Elias Theodorou. Smith looked for a takedown/throw as the round progressed, which the Canadian was able to fight off — though he ate a number of punches to the head in doing so. Theodorou connected with a knee to face in the clinch; back in the open a short while later, the uppercut found a home once more, and it looked like he might have an opportunity to really turn things up. However, after a few shots they were back in the clinch. In a subsequent exchange, a headbutt opened up a cut on the Canadian; the ref brought in the doctor, who deemed the fighter able to continue. Smith, however, seemed to have a burst of energy as a result, and as the action resumed he unleashed a flurry of knees in the clinch.
They are TRADING at #UFCLiverpool pic.twitter.com/z7T9kXMSo8
— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) May 27, 2018
Dealing with a nasty gash on the forehead from the clash of heads in round two, Theodorou came out attacking the lead leg of Smith. He even managed to work in a spinning back fist attempt. The Canadian was much more mobile to start the third. Soon, however, he was on his heels a little, mostly looking to avoid the clinch and create space. Smith, meanwhile, stalked him, walking him down. He appeared to have more gas in the tank, and secured a takedown with three minutes left in the round. In the grappling exchange that followed, Smith threatened with a choke as Theordoreau worked to escape. However, ‘The Spartan’ would make it make up to his feet, and took control. He wound up controlling Smith until the final minute. After one last clinch, things opened up, with Theodoreau landing an elbow, more uppercuts, and a final kick as Smith charged at him. Going to the judges, Theodorou earned the unanimous decision, with just a single judge awarding Smith a round.
Elias Theodorou def. Trevor Smith by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
