Steve Smith Sr. Got Duped By Parody Account Who Claimed He Was Knocked Out In Fan Fight At UFC Event

The dangers of popping off at somebody online before you fully understand the context of something. A tale as old as time, er, as old as the Internet.

Even though this was a clear dupe job, the shadowy anonymous figure behind the @RyanEvansESPN parody X account made a ballsy choice going after former NFL wide receiver Steve Smith Sr. He is a burly 5-9, 195-pound tank of a human being who was an exceptional football player. Outside of boxers and MMA fighters, there aren’t many sportsmen in this world who I’d less rather antagonize.

Claiming that Smith was KO’d at UFC 302 — don’t let the fact that said event took place on June 1 of this year get in the way of a hilarious story — “Ryan Evans” reposted a fight video that clearly was not Steve Smith Sr.

As you can see in the community notes and below, the dust-up between fans — all too common at sporting events, when shall we learn as a society? — occurred prior to last night’s WBC light middleweight title boxing match in which Vergil Ortiz Jr. prevailed over Serhii Bohachuk.

But if you come at Agent 89 with any sort of falsehoods, fake news, or other related nonsense, trust that he’s going to clap back at you. Smith went off on this dude.

My favorite part of the exchange was the parody account’s response — and how Smith still took it personally.

Smith now works as an NFL Network analyst/broadcaster. You won’t confuse him for a Big J Journalist. Steve Smith is in the media space to give insight on his experiences as a player, and let his candid personality shine in the form of unabashed honest opinions. He doesn’t major in fact-checking some troll who comes at him trying to sully his surname. So I don’t blame Smith for the knee-jerk reaction here. In fact, I’m glad he did what he did, because it only adds to the chip-on-the-shoulder legacy of the Carolina Panthers legend.

Elite athletes are wired like this. Any kind of perceived or imagined slight can send them into assassin mode.

What do y’all think? Should we tell him it’s not real? Or do we just send Smith on a wild goose chase for the real-life troll behind @RyanEvansESPN and see how the moron fares against Agent 89 in the ring?

Never change, Steve Smith.