UFC 261 live blog: Anthony Smith vs. Jim Crute

Anthony Smith and Jim Crute will kick off the UFC 261 fight card Saturday. | Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC

This is the UFC 261 live blog for Anthony Smith vs. Jim Crute, a light heavyweight main card bout on Saturday’s fight card at VyStar Veterans Memorial Arena in Jacksonville, Fla.

Since a failed bid for the light heavyweight title against now-former champion Jon Jones, Smith has gone 2-2 inside the octagon, picking up wins over three-time title challenger Alexander Gustafsson and, most recently, Devin Clark, while suffering setbacks against Aleksandar Rakic and current No. 1 contender Glover Teixeira.

Smith hopes to keep himself in the title picture with a win over Crute, another promising up-and-comer who’s looked like a future contender. The Aussie fighter is currently on a two-bout winning streak, having most recently stopped Modestas Bukauskas via knockout after a submission win over Michal Oleksiejczuk. The victories revitalized his career after a submission setback against Misha Cirkunov.

Check out the UFC 261 live blog below.