"He caught me with a punch. He was the better man tonight. I did my best and he caught me, so, I did my best. I'm sorry I couldn't get the victory for San Jose. I fought me heart out. He fought his heart out. We fought an exciting fight. Thank you for the fight, Scott Smith. I was focused. I just got caught with a punch. You win some, you lose some. I did my best."
-- Cung Le reacts to getting finished tonight for the first time in his mixed martial arts career. His opponent, the hard-hitting Scott Smith, had a puncher's chance heading into his middleweight main event opposite the former middleweight champion at Strikeforce: "Evolution" tonight (Dec. 19) at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California. However, he nearly didn't get that chance because he couldn't connect with the elusive San Shou practitioner, who battered "Hands of Steel" for more than two full rounds and nearly had him finished in the first. Smith was able to hang in there and eventually connect with two big left hooks, a straight right and some brutal finishing shots at the end that put Le down for the count. It was yet another Hail Mary, come from behind win for Smith and certainly a disappointing loss for the action movie star. So should Le stick to the Silver Screen or is a loss to the inconsistent Smith just the wake up call he needs to dedicate his time to mixed martial arts while he's still able to compete? Let's hear it, Maniacs!
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