Daniel Cormier on why Roman Dolidze is a “tougher matchup” for Anthony Smith at UFC 303

UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier thinks Anthony Smith has a taller mountain to climb after a last-second opponent switch ahead of UFC 303.

Smith was scheduled to fill in for the injured Jamahal Hill against Carlos Ulberg at UFC 303. But, Ulberg withdrew due to an undisclosed injury, after Ulberg filled for a previously injured Khalil Rountree.

Roman Dolidze, a UFC middleweight contender, will move up to 205lbs to fight Smith on days’ notice at UFC 303. He was scheduled to face Anthony Hernandez earlier this month at UFC 302 before Hernandez withdrew.

After the scrambling of fighters and matchups on the UFC 303 main card, Cormier thinks Smith will have a tougher opponent on his hands after Ulberg’s pull-out.

Daniel Cormier: Roman Dolidze a tougher out for Anthony Smith

During a recent episode of Good Guy/Bad Guy with Chael Sonnen, Cormier explained the challenges that Smith may face against Dolidze.

“It just seemed as though there was a clear path against Ulberg. Avoid the dangerous striking, you have a chance to take him down, you can grapple him. That doesn’t seem as clear against Dolidze,” Cormier said. “A tremendous striker and grappler, so I believe it’s a tougher fight. Luckily though, Dolidze is a middleweight, so Smith will still have a size advantage.”

Dolidze has lost back-to-back fights since a four-fight winning streak in his UFC tenure. He most recently fell to Nassourdine Imavov by majority decision in February.

Smith is looking to keep his positive momentum after a quick finish to Vitor Petrino at UFC 301. He tapped out Petrino with a guillotine choke just two minutes into the fight.

Smith will have a distinct experience advantage inside the Octagon. He’s faced some of the top all-time UFC light heavyweights, including Jon Jones and Glover Teixeira.

Despite this, Cormier feels Dolidze is a tricky stylistic puzzle for Smith to solve at UFC 303, and the upstart Dolidze could earn a statement win on one of the summer’s biggest stages.